ity of a
drowning man to a rope. He made a des perate effort to bring me under, but still I maintained my position. The force of my grasp now began to tell upon him. He strangled, and I could sensibly perceive he ras growing weaker. At length, just as I was about to relax my hold, for fear of choking him to death, he suddenly threw up one hand, buried it in my hair, twined a long lock around his finger, and the next moment placed his thumb to my eye, with a force that seemed to start the ball from its socket.
Great Heaven! what a feeling of horror came over me! I was about to lose an eye be disfigured for life. Death, I fan cied, was preferable to this; and instantly releasing his throat, I seized his hand with both of mine. This was exactly what he desired; and the next moment I found myself whirled violently upon my back on the rough pavement, and my antagonist uppermost. I attempted to recover my former advantage, but in vain. My ad versary was by far too powerful a man. Grasping my throat with one hand, with Bnch a pressure that everything began to grow dark, he partly raised himself, plant ed, a knee upon my breast, and with the other hand drew a long knife. I just caught a glimmer of the blade, as he
...
raised it to give me a fatal stab; but I was too exhausted and overmastered to make any resistance; and I closed my eyes in despair, and felt that all was over.
Suddenly I heard the voice of Teddy, shouting :
"To the divil wid ye, now, for a blath- ing spalpeen, that ye is!" and at the same moment I felt the grasp of my opponent leave my throat, and his weight my body.
With my remaining strength I rose to a sitting posture, and saw Teddy dancing around me, flourishing a hickory shelaleh over his head in the scientific manner of his countrymen, and whooping, shout ing, and cursing, in a way peculiar to himself.
By some means he had been made aware of my danger, and, like a noble fellow, had rushed into the crowd and felled my adversary, with a blow so powerful that he still lay senseless upon the ground.
"And who are you, that dares thus to Interfere?" cried a voice in the crowd,
which found immediate echo with a dozen others.
"Who am I, ye blaggards?" roared Teddy : " Who should I be but a watch man, ye dirthy scull-mullions, yees! Come," he cried, seizing me by the col lar, " ye'Il gi f a lock-up the night for this blaggard business of disturbing the slum bers of honest paaple afore they've gone to bid, jist."
I saw his ruse at once, and determined to profit by it, and make my escape. To do this, I pretended, of course, that I was not the aggressor, and that it was very hard to be brought up before the Mayor for a little harmless fun.
"Harmless fun!" roared the cunning Irishman. " D'ye call it harmless fun, now, to have your throat cut, ye scoundrel? Come along wid ye!" and he pretended to jerk me through the crowd, which gave way before him.
We had just got fairly clear of the mass, when we heard voices behind us shouting :
"Stop 'em! stop 'em! he's no watch."
"Faith, they're afther smelling the joke whin it's too late," said Teddy. " But run, your honor, or the divils will be howld of us."
I needed no second prompting; and with the aid of the Irishman, who partially sup ported me for I was still weak I darted down a dark and narrow street. For a short distance we heard the steps of pur suers behind us, but gradually one after another gave up the chase, until at last we found our course left free.
It would be impossible for me to picture the joy 1 felt at my escape, or my grati tude toward my deliverer. Turning to the Irishman, I seized his hand, while my eyes filled with tears.
"Teddy," I said, " you have saved my life, and I shall not soon forget it."
"Troth, your honor," replied Teddy, with a comical look, " it was wor-r-th pre serving for it's the best and ounly one yees got."
I said no more, but silently slipped a gold coin into his hand.
"Howly mother! how smooth it makes a body's hands to be butthered," observed the Irishman, as he carefully hid the coin in his pocket.
Deep was the sympathy of H
