The independent press. (Abbeville C.H., S.C.) 1853-1860, 1857-08-28

Il am fc:ttlS 10 attcHu YOU " w puIt,
yuo still think of going" he said, addressing
the lady. She arose quickly at the sound of
his voice, and accepting IL large blanket
which the ticketmastcr kindly offered her
us q further protection against. the inclc-
mcmt weather. she followed her conductor
out into the ,lark, piercing night, and was
lifted into the sleigh which awaited them.
Argcn>cn wrapped the buffalo closely a
round her, an'l attaching the large glass
lantern, which he had carried in his hand,
TO the front part of the cutter, he sprang in.
The horse was large, powerfully built an
imal, Of Il dark. iron gray ; and his fiery
eyes, as wcIa< his long, slender neck, show
cd him srrited as strong.
The eager crowd of idlcrs left their warm
quarters hy the inside stove, and gathered
round The slcig!, and its occupants, some
cxpos;ua!irg On the madness o! the twain
i'll n*c,tinG out on such nj i@ht-olicrs wish
ing them Gol-spcch, and amid the Iuur
INJURED acclamations, they drove oil.
Half Il mile on tcrru ,tiyn'a, and the
horses feet rang sharp and clear on the sol
id ice of .he Winmip pSscogec. The sum
mits oflhc tall, blue mountains which rose
on either side of our travellers, were slroul-
CN III ,''1 iilii'ciSiiHpic. H'iSt, anu VIC hSIL
wind which blew was sufficient to break up
the clouds Of rimc that filled the air.
Little or no conversation passed between
these two people, SO recently thrown to-
@e;hcr Arwcnscn was occupied with
thoughts Of the pcrilous undertaking before
them the lady, with sal images of her
dying mo,her-tying without the kiss O.
her only cllilL to smooth her passage
througE the Gal, void between time AMI
eternity.
With anxious eye, the young mountain-
Ger scanned the ,l:ickcning air. and the ter
riLle thought would iii, across his brain
If Nc $Guults shouid rise ~
Nearly four milo. Of the Journey was
passed over in safety. They had Reached
The dreallcst part Of the road, ard the
darkness became almost Na!paJe. Noun
tains black as ErchuS com plctcly walled in
the shining track Office, and by the pitch
ing Of the cutter, and the careful progress cf
tie horse, they knew that drifts OF STOW and
bi'-cs Of ice ob@tiuc!cl the way. Tie
wind steadily increased, and cut the f're
Ike Il sharp ic;cle. The brcaths Of cur
travellers cn::"c:.led almost before they left
their bodies, ana tic dark sides oF tn. horse
were covered with, u tta'hcry frost.
The col! bcran,,. intense. p.:in"ating the
thick buffalo skins as if they had been mere
coEwcbs, and the delicate frame Of the
young girl WAS chilled through. Bravely she
suppressed tie death shivcrS that involun-
tarily stole over her: but Argcnscn felt the
effort, and drawing his arm around her, lie
said, in 4 low, earnest tone: "Ladv, we
arc strangers, but it is no time to stand for
ceremony, when one is freezing! Sit as
close to me as possible, and lay your face
here upon my breast the wind is rising to
gale, and the squalls will be upon us ere
long,
With one powerful hand he guided the
horse with the other one he held close
TO his side the little form of his companion
and the noble gray, as if feeling that every
thing depended on their reaching the end
Of their journey before the breaking Of the
sq,al over their heads, tore bravcly on.
IN vain in vain ! in vain The NAL
wind bore along the cbon clouds with the
switlncss of the lightning, and scarcely more
than five miles of their way were passed ere
it Lutst upon them in all its fury. The
dlea,lcl "whitc eye cnvclopcd them. Hail
and minute particles of frozen snow, in
thick, con,inu ous sheets, blinded the eyes
of the brave Argensen, and shut out the
dim, overarchiny sky. The horse drew up
nndcr the Ice Of a wooded island, and
could bc induced to 60 no further. Ar
gensen elapsed both arms around his par
alyzed companion, and waited the progress
Of the storm. Heavily, and more heavily,
she leaned upon his shoulder, and ut length
the fatal truth rushed over him with APP
paling forcc-Me steep Hut inrarmbiy
proceeds death By freezing acas upon her!
lie sprang up willy.
"For the love oflIeavcn, awakc9 Rouse
yourself To slcepis death +"
a faint moan was the only response.
lie tore of tho buffalo robe which cnvel-
oped her, and vigorously cl,afed her cold
hands, and brcaihed on her icy lips. For
time he feared that lie held only death in
his arms but at last, by the dim light Of
the lantern, he saw ilusl, steal over her
face, and her cyclds slowly uncloscd.
"Is it my mother holding me T. she said,
drcamiIy then, as if remembering all she
drew herself away from the arms that sup
ported her. Argenscn soo.hel and. en-
couraged her, until the storm broke and the
clouds were swept away. A few faint,
struggling stars burst through the bllows
OF. vapor, and, like angels eyes, looked
down upon the wide desert Of snow. Two
hours they waited there-two hours of ag-
onizing suspense-ere the noble horse could
be made to@pursuc his way With more
than brute instinct, hc knew The dangers
Of the way in the thick darkness and storm,
and refused to subject his lnaster'to greater
peril.
AS the wind sunk to rest, AMI the sky
became clearer once more, our travellers
went on and after an hours swift trot they
arrived safely at WolfJhrn. The ncccssa.
ry inquiries being made regarding the
whereabouts Of the young lady's mother
Argensen drove her 10 tue house spccified,
and yielding 10 the urgent solicitations Of
his teliow-royageur he went in with her
The iirst question Of the afflicted girl was
answered in such manuer that the warm