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VOL. I.
TUIi CABLv&Y
Is published every Saturday , by P. L.
ROBINSON, Warrenton , Geo. at j
three dollars per annum , which may be \
discharged by two dollars and JiJty
cents if paid within sijcty days of the
time of subscribing.
Select Tales.
MJi VERNAL HE VENGE.
Giannina was one of the most
comely damsels in Ualabria, and had
many a wealthy suitor. To none
however, did she seein im lined to
lend a willing ear. Some of a more
timid nature, admired the maiden,
and would fain have wooed her, but
were kept, aloof by the haughty glance
of her light blue eye; a glance that
was rendered more remarkable from
the tender color of the eye, whose
sable fring s formed another strik
ing, but agreea K le contrast with its a
zlire line, and agreed with the glossy
raven locks that shaded her snowy
brow.
Giannina’s father was by no
means a thrifty man. His cottage
had a better appearance than most of
those in the village, of which it was
the farthest habitation. The village
itself was on the confines of a wood,
which reached half way up the side
of a wild, and in some parts inacces
sible mountain, and dreadful were
the tales told of the bamii -ti, by w hicli
it was infested. The villagers how
ever, having nothing to lose, had also
little to fear from their depredations;
and indeed of late only one instance
had been given of any attempt to dis
turb their tranquility. This attempt
was made on the abode of Gkiannina's
father; and it was supposed to have
been thus directed from his being re
puted one of the wealthiest inhabit
ants. By the courage of Giannina
it had been defeated. She was rous
ed in the night by an attempt to force
her window when seizing a hatchet,
she struck at a man who was in the
act of entering. The robber fell to
the ground as Giannina’s father,
whom her cries had brought to her
assistance, arrived, hut only in time
to witness the intruder’s escape, which
he effected, although the blood with
whii li the window was still imbued,
testified that he had not escaped un
hurt.
Not long after this event, a strang
er made his appearance in the village,
and succeeded in obtaining the affec
tion which Giannina had so constant
ly withheld from her rustic admirers.
The suitor to whom she seemed thus
favorably inclined was about thirty
years of age; of handsome, though
wild and haughty aspect. His stat
ure was considerably above the mid
dle size, and he would have appeared
robust, had not his extreme paleness,
occasioned by a wound, that he said
lie had lately received in the chase,
and which still obliged hi in to wear
his arm in a sling, given a sickly
delicacy to his features.
Giannina’s father, whose will was
entirely subservient to her own, con
sented to the marriage; but from the
day on which it took place, the bride
and bridegroom disappeared, leav
ing the afflicted parent as completely
ignorant of their fate as the rest of
the villagers.
‘Giannina’ said Antonio to his
bride, as after the marriage ceremo
ny, they were returning towards their
father’s roof, *let U 9 escape a while
from the noisy festivity that awaits
us, within the shade of the adjacint
wood.*
“Tis but a dangerous resort,’ re,
joined Giannina. Dost thou fear?’
said Antonio; and the inflection of his
Rural Cabinet.
v las second to import more Until,
‘doit thou fear?’ Giannina attended
hut unto the words. The damsel
wai proud of her merited renown for
mirage; and replying with a degree
ofiique, that she would prove her
dating, took with him the road that
led to the ill fumed forest. They
hal wandered some minutes in its
gl.des; when Giannina asked Auto
nh if he could still reproach her with
lea*s? ‘What should a sovreign dread
“thin her realm ’ he answered in a
sarastie tone.—-‘My realm!’ ‘Aye,
time, rny bandit queen!’ and on a
lonl whistle, a number of well armed
("fir-ms appeared to rise from the
eirth, descend tin* trees, and in a no.
unit to encompass them. ‘Homage
tiyour QoeeitJ’ said the robber Cap
tiin, for such he was, and taking his
“Minded arm from a sling—‘Mv gen
tfc bride!’ said he, dost, know this
orv) less hand!’ It was not su< !> the
h£ht it opened thy casement! But for
lip hand of mine, l*ve now a hand of
time; and the few drops of blood I do
bigive thee! Homage to my Queer,!’
Aid at this m-mient Gi -inn in a looked
aQucen. Site turned to Antoni. as
lib ugh he, also, were her subject. 1
i nit her love nor fear thee* Os love
tbu art unworth} ! and fear—what
hve i It If to fear?—Deem not I shall
Htempt to forego mv file, for whitln r
siould 1 flee hut infamy would follow?
110 devote myself thy victim, nay,
een thy faithful wife, and my own in
jtics forgive. Beware alone, no
(ted ot thine do injure aught of mine!
o that aim e beware, for even a victim
u|y revenge—ltespect my lather and
a) that is mine!’
She ivas his faithful wife. Three
y|ars had p issed, and Antonio's buid
hd been hunted down, until some
hd died of hunger and fatigue—some
o the scaffold. Antonio and Gian**
niii wandered now alone except that
Gannina carried in her arms an in-
fflt, that slumbered sweetly amongst
lingers. Site thought if ever shea
gin could reach her native village,
t leave the babe at her old father’s
dor, with these words, ‘if is Gianni*
n’s chilu !’ But they were distant
tom her home, in the recesses of
(tdabria, which, alone, the pencil of
idvator* hath pourtrayed in all their
vldncss: he wandered there with
knditts such ns they, and he hath
Ift us the wild mountain scene, the
ide banditti, and his captive self,
toried on his canvass.
More than once had Antonio, for
hose head a large reward was offer
J, been rescued by the quickness
ml courage of Giannina.—But the
’yrolese troops to whom the Austri
n commander at Naples had assign
(! the task of exterminating the ban
itti, left them no repose. One day
arrassed beyond measure, and close
r pursued, they reached a bridge, so
eposed to view, that they dared not
azard passing it. It was in summer,
nd the river over which the bridge
/as built, now flowed in a narrow
ed, but yet too deep to ford. They
determined to take refuge under one
if the arches which the current had
idandoned. Hark! their pursuers
ipproach! Their steps are heard on
he bridge! the outlaws scarcely dar
<l to breathe—Giannina pressed her
jfant to her breast— it gave a feeble
ry—Antonio smothered it upon its
lother’s bosom!
*Sa!vator Ttosa is said to have been
rade prisoner bv Calabrian banditti, and
t have been detained *omt; months by
tern in the mountains. One of bis land
sapes in which are introduced some fig
l!# !*r jobbers, and of a young man who
spears in captivity, is supposed to relate
hiown story.
Warrenton, July 19, 1828.
The dlinger past;— Giuuniu.i dug
a grave in the sand, and placed within
it the body of the poor lifeless child.
# * # *
‘Antonin, the robber’s bead!’ cried
the populaice of a small town in Ca
labria, as a female with disheveled
hair and haggard mein brought a
bleeding head, fresh severed from the
trunk, to the magistrate of the dis
trict.
‘A thousand crowns are thine, thou
second Judith!
•I seek not reward—Antonio was
my husband—lie killed my child, but
yesterday—this night I slew him as
lie slep*!*
i HORRIBLE ADVENTURE.
At ibe period when Murat was a
hout to invade Sicily, the Chevalier
It , Paymaster general of the
Neapolitan forces, was travelling
tjirough Calabria for the purpose of
joining the army, having been to Na
ples to make arrangements for the
transmission of specie.—lie had sent
on his servant before him, to prepare
iiis quarters at the town of , ex
pecting to arrive there himself by
night-fall; but, the day being very
sultry, lie hail loitered on the road,
and at nine oMo< k in the evening,
found that he was still at a consider
able, distance from the proposed end
of his journey.—He was so much
harassed and fatigued that lie deter
mined to put up for the night at the
first convenient house. lie at length
entered an old romantic building on
the road-side, inhabited by a man arid
Ins wife, the former a stout muscular
figure, with a swarthy countenance
almost \\holy shrouded in a mass of
bushy whisker,sand mnstachios. The
traveller was received with civility;
and, after partaking of a hearty sup
per, was conducted, up a crazy old
staircase, to liis apartment fur the
, night. Not much fancying the ap
! pearanee of the place, and finding no
lock on his door, he lixed a chair a
gainst it; and after priming his pistols,
put them carefully under his pillow.
He had not been long in bed when he
heard a noise below, as of persons en
tering the house; and, some time after
wards, was alarmed by the sound of
a man’s footsteps on the staircase.
He then perceived a light through the
crevice of the door, against which
the man gently pressed for admit
tance, but finding some resistance, he
thrust it open sufficiently to admit his
hand, end with extreme caution re
moved the chair, and entered the a
partment. The Chevalier then saw
liis host, with a lamp in one hand and
a huge knife in the other, approach
ing the bed tiptoe. The Chevalier
cocked bis pistols beneath the bed
clothes, that the noise of the spring
might not be heard. When the man
reached the side ot the bed, he held
the light to the Chevalier’s face, who
pretended to be in a profound sleep,
contrived nevertheless to steal an oc
casional glance at his fearful host.
The man soon turned from him, and
after hanging the lam|i on the bed
post, went to the other end of the
room, and brought to the b< and side a
chair, on wlii< h he immediately
mounted, with the tremenduous knife
still in his hand. At the very mo
ment that the Chevalier was about to
start up from the bed and shoot him,
the man, in a hurried manner, cut
several enormous slices from a piece
ofharon that was hanging over his
bedstead, though it had been wholly
unnoticed before by the agitated trav
eller. The host then passed the light
before his eyes again, and left the
room in the same cautious way in;
w hich he had entered it and uucon-
; s mus and tin’ (1 ng- r lie. ii .and escap •(),
returned to a crowd of new npd hun
gry guests below stairs, who were, of
course, not very sorry to that
ho had saved his bacon.
From the Norfolk Herald 30th lilt.
A TALE OF DEPRAVITY AND
OUTRAGE.
About three weeks ago a young wo
man of 17, made her appearance be
fore a Magistrate of Gates County,
N. C. to swear her illegitimate child
to a young man of her in igh mem,ml,
in order to tax him wilh its mainte
nance. The extreme ignorance of
the girl induced the Magistrate to
take unusual pains to impress tijmn
her mind the nature of an oath, and
the. deep solemnity of its obligations.
He nut only explained to her the pm
-1 allies inflicted by human laws, f r t..k*
ing a false oath, but the dreadful pint
• isliinent width awaited those who
were guilty of the crime, in a future
state: giving her to understand, :Ii *t
although she might escep*’ the denun
ciations of the first, there w as ao all
seeing eye that pi- reed the inmost
recesses f the heart, from v\!i h
nothing could he concealed, and wli li
would hear terrible witness ag. iost
her at the awful day of trial, when all
the deeds done in the body must ho
I revealed to the Great. Judge of tho
Universe. Awed by the solemmt} f
his manner, and disturbed by an a
„ wakened coiiSi ience the wretched girl
! with fear and trembling confessed that
the man against whom she was about
to take oath, was nut the father of her
child.
Magistrate. Who, then, is its fa
ther?
(hrl. My father!!!
A thrill of horror ran through all
who were present at this damning
confession. The abandoned < fea
ture, at oucc the partner and the \ir
tirn of a most ahhured crime, was
dismissed until further cognizance
Could be had of the case; while the
spectators, overpowered by their feel
ings declared that such a monster us
the father, was unworthy to breathe
io a civilized community. The ex
citement smm spread, and popular
vengeance was about to wrest from
the law its high prerogative, when
the guilty wretch fled for concealment
to the woods. His name is Nader
Briggs liis character that of a mere
out-cast of society; mean, ignorant
and worthless, lie had no family
but this daughter. Well had it been
both for himself and the good of the
neighborhood, if he. had forever lied
the scene of his guilt, and spared the
recital of what followed.
After a week’s absence he ventur
ed to return to his cabin, thinking
the popular ferment had by that time
subsided. He was mistaken howev
er, for his domicil had been watched
all the time, and the daily visits of
his (laughter to the woods where ho
was supposed to be concealed, had
not escaped notice; as soon therefore
as he ventured out lie whs seized by
four stout men, who threw a meal bag
over his head and conducted him far
into the woods, where, first tying his
hands and feet securely, they pro
ceeded to lay him on his back upon
the trunk of a fallen tree, to which
they lashed him with strong cords,
until he was deprived of all power of
motion. They then left hint, and he
remained nearly an hour in that pain
ful situation, when he heard the foot
steps of someone approa hieg.
In the hope that i! might beoM
humane individual \vn
com! oi tt i! I! swt!,
’ m ■! ’ \ ; I j |
1 ‘ i 1 : :j - ! u fIM|
No. 8.