The Democratic press. (Eaton, Preble County, Ohio) 1860-1865, 1861-01-03

| NlHNONS 40 IlC Suh ICNINN w
above the distant hills and scatter
ed the gray mists Of the morning.
My bcd-fellow was breathing hea-
Willy, but it was broad daylight and
there was no sleep in me, so | was
determined Horace should wake up
and hear the story of the railroad
breakdown. I Turned quickly and
gave the sleeper a sudden shake
AsTapidly as my own motion, my
i bedfellow, who had with hi:
i back toward me, sprang to a sit
ting position. There are such sur.
prises as are without terror, which
actually deprive us of our speech
until the brain has time to act and
reason. Such surprises do not
generate screams and faints. They
are expressed by open mouths and
silent wonder. This was the case
with myself and bed-fellow, and
we sat upright and stared. Right
by my side, with her face within
two feet OF my own, sat young wO-
man not more than seventeen with
great dark, hazel eyes, and such
great masses Of brown curls, tucked
away under thcncatcst little night
cap that cvcrwas. She had gather
ed the bcd-clothes with a spasmOdic
jerk, up about her throat, and with
the most rigid, astonished look, as
though doubling wether she was
sleeping or waking, gazcd steadily
in my eyes. Memory serves a man
but little in such cases, but if my
memory serves me right, it was [
who first spoke. l blurtcd out
with
GLOW came you hcre?"
The figure stared still in speech
less astonishmcnt, but in a moment
as though awakened fromits stufer-
faction, spoke;
care you Charles Morgan?"
eyes" | stammered out.
"W ell, then, Mr.. Morgan" said
the figure, by this time calm, and
with quite as much dignity as
though in the drawing room, 81
am May Stevens, and was put in
this room after an unexpected ar,
rival. Horace had gone over to 4
neighbors a few miles off, before
! got here, and was not to return till
to-day. This is how [ was put in
this ROOM
So here I was sitting us q riS to
this May Stevens, that mythical
lady for the first meeting with
whom | had intended to get W
such asuperlativc toilet? And she
by this time was as cool IS the
31st of December, and sat looking
me right in the eyes as l made
some rambling explanation of be-
ing in that extraordinary position.
1t was lame explanation, wonder
fully mixed up with irrclevent mat
ter, and stammered and suffered
through it in a way that should
have disgustcd any sensible person.
She seemed TO be seriously ponder
ing during the recital, and at its
cndlooking at me as though asking
the most simple question in the
world, said:
"What is to be donc?'
Diet me jump out of the window
as | came-iu;" said |, in q sicllly
tone of voice, for the thought came
to me to achieve this end, I must
make some desperate display of
myselfin style of costume which
| deprecated. She relieved me in
stautly with:
"No, that will not do, there are
people moving about and you will
be seem"
1t was now my turn to stammer
out:
"What was to be done?" For
[ saw that the little hazcl-eyed girl
was superior to me in presence of
mind, and energy of action. She
did not wait long to answer my
question.
"You must lie still here while l
get up, When I have left the room
you can rise, dress and go away at
the first opportunity" was her res
ponsc, delivered in a quiet, business
like manner:
"And so | did, Under May Ste
ven's command 1 puried my intru-
ding head under the bedclothes and
kept it well covered till l heard the
retreating footsteps on the stairs,
which was but u few moments,
though it seemed an age, then with
a desperate bound l sprang from
the bed, and turned the key on the
departed one. 1t was the quickest
dressingI [ ever made, and l will
venture to say that no man ever
sncakcd out of his own apartments
more stealthily than l did:
That morning we met, May Ste
vcns and I, at the breakfast table
[ in the character of the newly ar
rived that morning-and were
formerly introduced, during the
ceremony of which, we astonished ,
every one present, and planted a
thorn of wonder in the sides of Net
bic and Carrie, by bursting stimuli a