The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1869-11-19

sometimes when l could get III
sufibicnt courage to do so, l woult
60 down to the point and join them
but these occasions were rare. be-
cause l could not make sure thai
Florence wanted me to disturb then
often. True, she always smiled, and
made room for me on the rock where
she found a scat, but she did no,
smile much, and she had way look.
ing out to sea which made me fancy
she was dreaming dreams in which
could have u part.
I Stanford was not 80 particular. He
was down at the Point almost every
day wncn the Waynes were there,
and the smell Of his cigar and his
light laugh foatcd landward together
on the sea breeze. .s...:
1t was in July that the manufac-
turing company in which all my prop
erty was invested, failed and left me
very nearly penniless. 1t was plain
that | must go to work, and I was
courageous enough to be willing to
take hold of anything which offered.
But the times were dull. workmcn
plenty, and work scarce, and in spite
Of all my efforts, nothing presented
itself to me to do.
was gloomy and down-heartcd for
the most part, aud everything looked
cheerless and apprchensivo. In this
mood, one gray September day, /
strollcd down to the Point. I had
not expected any ono would be there,
but as | turned an angle of the path,
saw Florence in water. proof cloak
and hood, in her old seat; ana
caught out in the surf the CLEAN of
Mr.. Wayne's red bathing suit.
Even as | gazcd, and before I had
spoken to her, sharp cry broke
from Florence, and L saw with dismay
that Mr.. Wayne had got beyond his
depth, and not being able to swim,
the undcrtidc, which was very strong
at that point, was sucking him under
in spite of his determined efforts to
resist it..
Ina moment I was Lufeting with
the waves, and though am strong
man and an extra good swimmer, /
must confess that moro than once J
was on the eve Of giving over and
letting fate dispose Of both myself
and the helpless burden with which l
was trying to reach the shore.
But the sight of Florence standing
on the sands, her face white as death
her arms extended towards us,
gave me strength, and fy and by,
more dead than alive, I succeeded in
laying tho old man at his daughters S
feet. And would have riskcd my
life over and over again for the sake
Of hearing her say again as she said
then ~
civilian Morton, may Heaven
ever bless you! You have saved all
[ have to Lowell"
Paul Stanford was on the spot al
most immediately-vcry much out of
breath and very profuse in his pro-
testatious of sympathy. He had
witnessed the danger Of Mr.. Wayne
from Colncy's Hill. . quarter Of
mile away, and had como with all
haste, but too late to be of material
assistance. He hoped, however, that
Miss Wayne would not refuse him
the pleasure Of supporting her father
to their cottage.
And SO by his superior tact and ad-
dress he managed to secure for him
self what l was dyin, to ask tor, the
privilege Of accompanying them home.
But Mr.. Wayne remembered with
gratitude the service 1 had done him.
Three days afterward I received
letter from the President of the Shore
Line and Point Pleasant Railroad,
saying that l could have the situa-
tion Of station agent, and signal ten
der at Bachly's Bridge. The salary
was a liberal one considering the du-
ties to lie performed, and I was in
debted for the offer Of the situation
to Mr.. Wayne, who was g. personal
friend of the President. 49,
Of.ceurscI accepted the position.
l wasin, need Of employment, and
this place would pay me better SAL
ary than l could hope to earn any,
where else by manual labor alone
It was trust Of responsibility, but
I prided myself on my punctuality
and integrity, and had no fear in re-
gard to being able to do my duty.
The management Of the switches
came under my supervision, and also
to the ordering of the "draw," which
had been fixed in the bridge to allow
vessels to pass through. BY day we
used balls as signals-if tho draw
was open, two green balls were hoist
ed from the standard few rods be-
low the draw-if it was closed, and
all was right. two red balls signiied
that fact to the engineers.
BY night, rcd and green lanterns
were substituted for the balls. So
you will readily understand that any
failure onthe part of the station mas
ter to attend closely to his duties
might send some passing train to des-
truction in the twinkling of an eye.
For two months everything went
like clock work. / had an efficient
assistant in John Stitson, porter
who had been employed at the bridge
for ten years, and knew "all the
ropes.
saw Florence not untrequcntly-
she often went to the city and al
ways came into the office for her tick :
ct. Once when the carriage did not
come for her from the cottage, /