A TALK OF THE RESURRECTIONISTS.

Waikato Argus, Volume I, Issue 37, 3 October 1896, Page 1 (Supplement)

A TALK OF THE RESURRECTIONISTS.

Oxk stormy night towards tho close of the year 1828, Sandy Macdonald and a friend were comfortably seated, smoking their pipes, around tho fire in the watehhouse of the churchyard of Kilwardic. Sandy's wife had died a few days before, of some obscure disease, which very naturally led him and his friends to institute a watch on the grave. This was considered to be the more necessary on account of the universal body-snatching epidemic which prevailed tit that time. Sandy was a taciturn, bold, and determined fellow. On this particular night he was exceptionally dull and moody, no doubt chiefly because of his recent bereavement in the person of a niuch-adiuired helpmeet.

Murdoch Finlayson, his companion, was a totally different sort of man—a garrulous, unimpressionable nonentity, whose tongue, never seemed to cease from clamour and clatter from the moment he opened his eyes in J lie morning till kind sleep took him again at night under her jurisdiction.

A few minutes before the incidents about to be related occurred, Sandy had occasion to rebuke his friend sharply for the continuous (low of jargon that fell from his tongue, and in consequence we find thein, when wo lirst make their acquaintance, both steadfastly gazing into 'the fire. Murdoch's idiocyncrasy did not, however, permit of a very lengthened persistence in such an exercise altogether uncongenial to his disposition, ih; stepped out into the churchyard, and having sauntered about for nearly an hour, returned to the watehhouse to find Sandy still pulling away at his black cutty, in the same position, as intently as ever staring into the glowing embers on the hearth.

" What like's the nicht, .Murdoch?" said Sandy, raising his head and speaking for the lirst time in the last two hours. " Wild, wild," answered Murdoch; "as dark as pitch and as coarse a nicht o' win' and rain as ever I saw. The river is coming doon in spate. There's no fear o' the doctors coming this gate a nicht like this."

Sandy shook his head ominously, said nothinjr, aul returned to his former position and reverie. ".Murdoch," he suddenly said, pointing with a small wand which he held in his hand to the fire, "do you see that?"

Murdoch," could sec nothing of an extraordinary nature in the embers, though he essayed to do so by putting himself into every conceivable shape and position ; stiil he had the feeling to say he did not.

" Thcre : s death in the fine, 'Murdoch : that's a collin, that's the crossbones ; and see the death-head peeping out behind that bleedin' block." " .Maybe, maybe, ncrv,ously exclaimed .Murdoch.

" Am!,'" said Sandy, continuing, " that's an open grave, and, if I am no mistaken, the grass around is covered wi' stains o' olocd." I'oor .Murdoch was too deficient in the imaginative faculties to perceive any of the lire-dreamer's gloomy pictures, but he gave them implicit belief notwithstanding. •' 1 like these things ill," said Sandy. " Last time 1 saw a vision like it was the nieht o' the droonin' up at the pool. Yes, dare's death in tin.' lire, and it'll come to pass this very nieht.'''

" (Jo I bless and prolcct us," Murdoch whined, as he walked round the room rubbing his hands in manifest excitement.

" We'd better see to our guns that they are right," said Sand}, " ami we maun get some refreshments."

Murdoch, who by this time was nearly beside himself with (error, at once jumped with delight at the

suggestion about the refreshments, lie would go across the river to Luckio Macqueen's hostelry despite the swollen and dangerous state of the river. This was no consideration to Murdoch in comparison to the terror of waiting in expectation on a probable murderous combat with the body-snatchers,

It w'as beyond midnight when Sandy saw that Murdoch was safely landed ou the opposite side of the river, and scrambling his way through bush and brake to Mrs. Macqueen's clachan. Sandy returned through the churchyard—quit) close to which the river passed—to the watehhouse. He shook himself from the wet like a duck newly emerged from her nature clement, muttered a few sotto voce comments, and reclined on a wooden form to await the return of Murdoch with the refreshments, The storm, which raged all night with great severity, had now attained to the dimensions of a hurricane.

Crash, crash, and a long groaning noise indicated the destruction of an old ash tree, whose branches spread far athwart the rustic burying ground. Sandy sprang to his feet to save himself from tho inevitable death he would meet, had not some unexplainable cause swerved the monstrous tree clear of the watehhouse. In its descent, however, great damage was done to several fine obelisks, and less pretentious headstones were smashed beyond reparation. As Sandy stood peering into he darkness, essaying to estimate the extent of injury done, be observed a light glimmering through the trees, anel evidently coming along the turnpike road in the direction of the churchyard. The light clearly was that of some vehicle. There was nothing extraordinary in the discovery had it happened at an earlier hour and on a less boisterous night; but as it was, Sandy knew there was no communication by the ferry at such an hour to the other side. He therefore rightly inferred the possibility of the vehicle being that of the notorious resurrectionists, and that they were coming to " Kilwardic."

In any case, Sandy thought it was best to be ready for an emergency, and at once covered tho fire,

clutched his own and .Murdoch's muskets and ran to tin; river's edge to see if he was yet coming. Murdoch evidently fell into good com pany at the clachun, or was studiously avoiding all the dangers an early return might incur, for Sandy saw no signs of his appearance. Meanwhile the approaching vehicle had arrived at the entrance of the churchyard, aud tin; lights were extinguished. It was only the work of a few minutes for Sandy to secure a place of safety within gunshot of his wife's grave, on the top of the ruins of an ante-Reformation church. From this place, covered with abundaut juniper shrubs profusely growing on the thick walls. Sandy could distinguish, dark as it was, the approach of any person to the grave. Having secured himself from the storm as best lie could, he lay down on his face to await the approach of the supposed robbers of the dead.

lie was not kept long in suspense. Four undefined objects wen; discerned by Sandy's watchful ryes making tracks direct to the object of his watch. Three of the men at once set to work by digging tho grave. Sandy gave a loud shout asking them to desist. It Mas cither not heard, or it was not heeded. Again and again lie shouted to the same effect, but no uso. lie then lirpd a shot over their heads ; still no use. " The deil talc' then)," said Sandy. " I'll try one on their heids afore I'm done \vi' them, if they dinna leave the deid alane."

The digging was meanwhile proceeding apace. The resurrectionists were now fairly under cover down in the grave, and regardless of the leaden missiles that whizzed harmlessly over their heads, while their superintendent evidently lay in perfect safety behind the impregnable cover of a gravestone. Sandy was getting exasperated, indeed, he was well nigh on the verge of madness, when he heard the sound of tho spades as they came in contact with the collin top. Forthwith the collin and its contents were raised to the ban!:. " Now or never," by heavens," exclaimed Sandy aloud, and raised his gun once more, aiming at an obscure object. A flash, a wild yell, and the object of his aim, after completing a somersault in the air fell to the ground.

Shots wore now returned in the direction of Sandy's hiding place, and a thorough search in the vicinity was instituted by the three desperadoes, hut all in vain. Sandy had it in his power to kill them all, but it was furthest from his intention to do so, and if they .should now desist from further desecration of the grave lie would not continue hostilities. After about an hour's diligent search for Sandy the villains retreated towards the grave, and lifting the dead body of their ecmrade, they hastened to the vehicle at the roadside, and drove furiously away in the direction whence they came. It. may he remarked hero that Sandy thought he heard the voice of the sexton among the three men who searched for him—a circumstance, which was all the more astonishing to him on account of

this official's apparent piety, as well as the fact of his being a confidential neighbour.

Murdoch returned in time to assist Sandy to re-inter the body. His prolonged stay at Luckio Macqueen's establishment, to Sandy's disgust, loosened his tongue, and he now gave vent to his pent up feelings in one continuous unbearable string of invectives regarding the conduct of the marauders on the tomb.

" Why, man, Sandy, did you no kill every soul o' the blackguards? My conscence, it's a blessing for them that 1 wisna here —not a soul of them would have gano back to tell the tale. Dod, Sandy, man, 1 clinna think you would allow anyone to go this length with the work, an' it the corpse of your ain wife. The coffin, good gracious—all 'out broken open -actually lying on the brink. Goodness, were you asleep, man ? Where were you 1 What were you doing? Where did they come? Was there many of the blaicks ? "

Sandy was deaf to all the clatter until at length his temper gave way.

"By heavens;" said Sandy, "if you don't '' Crack, crack—Hashed the rifles of the foe, who had evidently come back to a neighbouring thicket to

avenge the death of their comrade : and the bullets went whizzing past the heads ot Sandy and Murdoch. " They're back again," said Sandy, as he laid aside bis spade and bent down to pick up his gun. " Look out there, Murdoch, that's another flush. Step in behind one of I he gravestones, and wc are pretty safe," said Sanely, without looking round in bis friend's direction.

Murdooh, however, did not stay to hear tins advice, for as soon us tlin first gun wont off lie took to his heels, and left the. field to S.indy. As Sandy had nothing to guide him further than the position of the flames he did not attempt to return the fire. However, lie made a long detour, and came within a fair distance of the enemy's position. Sandy hanged away into the thicket now, carefully changing his position. The body-snatchers were clearly taken by surprise, for the attack at once ceased. As Murdoch did not return, Sandy, when he had completed the filling up of the grave, went home at daybreak. He stepped aside to inspect the scene of attack the thicket. There he discovered traces of blood on the withered grass and leaves. lie followed the blood tricks to a neighbours house, that of the sexton, and thinking that one of the fugitives ran there for temporary safety, Sandy knocked at the door and made the necessary inquiries. There was no such person there, was the answer. Honest Sandy had no reason to doubt the truth of the answer, and went home under the impression that he was in a measure labouring under a delusion. During the clay, however, a doctor was observed leaving the sexton's house and the news of the sexton's alarming condition ran likewildfire among the neighbours.

" He was rabbit-shooting," it was said, " and liis gun exploding shattered his arm." The arm was amputated, and the doctor said to Sandy confidentially that Iho arm was broken by bullet, aiid not by rabbit shot.

From that day Sandy loathed the presence of the sexton, and he was dismissed from his ofliec of gravedigger. About twelve miles distant, in a palatial residence of a country laird, whose second son was an army surgeon, and at this time at home at leave, the day dawned over a scene of the greatest excitement and sadness. The young surgeon was taken home dead at daybreak. Accompanied by another medical student and a ghillie, they departed from the mansion at midnight, ostensibly to the deer forest some 20 miles up the glen. "He was accidentally shot," said tho student and the ghillie, " he died shortly afterwards." The sad accident cast a shadow of intense gloom over the district, and with the exception of Sandy Macdonald all were agreed on tho accidental nature of the young surgeon's death.--North IJrilish Advertiser.