ONE WHO EARNS HIS BREAD BEFORE HE EATS IT.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 825, 18 January 1871, Page 3

ONE WHO EARNS HIS BREAD BEFORE HE EATS IT.

A VERY STRANGE STORY. TO THE EDITOR OF THE BTAE. Sic, — Wandering the other day in the precincts of what for the present I may call "Printing House Square," the enclosed MS. came accidentally into my po-session, evidentally dropped by the writer on his way to your office; judging by its address that it was intended for publication, I feel that I am only carryin r out the intentions of the writer in forwarding it to you, deeming it& contents of peculiar interest at the present time. Your obedient servant, Bohemian.

On reading Judge Richmond's address upon " Colonialism," I was forcibly reminded of some experiences of my ancient friend, the Perapatetic Philosopher, as narrated, in his diary, and acquired in some of the South Sea settlements, which I make bold to extract for the amusement and edification of your numerous readers : — " I once Boj <urned (so the diary commences) for a short time in the City of Atterbury, and for the benefit of posterity have jotted down in my diary some pleasing illustrations of the cust ms of its citizens an*l public men At the time of my arrival there was great excitement, caused by a trial for arson that was then proceeding, and in which I became deeply interested, because it was currently reported that however damaging the evidence, the able counsel, Win Whistlehum. engaged for the defence, felt confident, from his great experience of criminals and criminal law, in bringing his man safely through — and much to the surprise of myself, and great numbers of the worthy citizens, the trial ended by the acquittal of the prisoner. " Fr.m subsequent events that became public, it appeared that immediately i recedin • t 1 c trial the prisoner, having great doubts of i he result of the trial, notwithstanding the assurances of his counsel, made arrangements by which Win Whistlehum was to convert all his estate into cash and bills, which bills the said counsel discounted and placed to his own credit at the bank ; and upon the acquittal of his client advised him to clear out for .shtlbourn-, without going through the slight formality of settling with his creditors, and before they could throw any impediments in the way calculated to affect his movements, at the same time handing him sufficient for his temporary wants from his (wh'-m I shall now call Ballanger's) own funds, supposed to be about .£80), promising to send the balance after him (if any balance remained after deducting a reasonable sum for the defence and other services.) Acting upon this disinterested advice, Ballanger took the road towards the boundary that night, >«nd was a considerable distance from the city next morning when overtaken by the coach, as he had not dared to start f om the city by the coach, and saw before him an easy escape to Shelbourne One of the victimised creditors, however, obtained a warrant for his arrest, and start, d a "special" in pursuit. As it would not have suited the plans of Win Whistlehum for Ballanger to be captured, and brought back t-> face his enraged creditors, and to the possible detriment of the said balance, he Win Whistlehum, sent a telegram to a certain station on the road, apprising B Hanger that he was pursued, and urg ng him to cross the boundary before being overtaken, and to threaten an action with damages at £2000 if they persisted in arresting him when out of the settlement. Ballanger was sleeping in unsuspecting security at the road-side inn, within a short distance of the rubicon it was so impo'tant to pass, having comforted himself with the reflection that he had had twelve hours' start of his pursuers, when lo ! he is aroused by voices he knows too well, and dexterously slipping out of window, and along the hill side, is soon accrosa the famous line that was to set the myrmidons of the law at defiance. But the inte'lect of these ratn was so obtuse that they utterly disregarded his protestations and his damages, thinkiug only of the damages of their em, loyers if they allowed him to escape, and so per force b ought him to the seat of justice, where Win Whistlehum, filled with virtuous indignation at the majesty of the law being trampled under foot by the illegal arrest of a • not true born Briton to be sure ' but perhaps a naturalised alien, and the luckless creditor at whose suit and expense he had been brought b ck, saw with dismay his prisoner set at large; but at this juncture, another officer produced a warrant obtained by some " little snob of a shopkeeper, and he (Ballanger) was immediately re-arreated, and provided with board and lodgings at an Hostelry called • Reston's Hotel.' " While in the enjoyment of these comfortable quarters, he became acquainted with a fellow lodger, whom, for the sake of com panionship, and to beguile his leUure moments, and with frelingß expanded by the genial influence of thin water-gruel, he (Ballanger) made a confidant of, and ingenuously narrated the whole of the foregoing, with sundry additional particula-s, which he (the companion) immediately upon his retirement from the s id hotel, communicated to Messrs Fortymen. The action taken by them resulted in a lot of cross affidavits

having to be filed in the High Court of Justice, in order to establish the unblemished reputation of Win Whistlehum,who, to prove how disinterested he had been through the | whole transaction, involuntarily devoted a portion of the balance of about £800 — still in his hands —to the payment of the creditors 17s 6d in the £ on a total of debts of about £250, leaving the creditors minus the large sums expended, including the costs of residence at ' Reston's,' to bring about this very satisfactory arrangement. " So ends my experience of abrief residence at Atterbury. May the shadow of the inhabitants never be less."