The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1872-11-15
A Good Story Wen Told.

awe stopped at Syracuse, y. y, for
dinner. You remember the railroad de-
pot, centrally situated, with its
eastern and western entrances exactly
allke-as much so as two ends of car.
After we had dined, the depot master
Informed us that we had seventeen min
utes TO spare before the departure of the
eastern train. This, thought /, will
give me an opportunity to see the city,
and a glorious chance for q smoke, pro-
vided clergyman could be tempted
into such piece of worldly and wasteful
amusement. / sauntered forth, and af-
ter an absence Of exactly thirteen min-
utes, having enjoyed a delightful and
soothing stroll, was returning, watch
in hand, when, to my astonishment, |
beheld the train slowing gliding out of
the other end Of the depot, and increas-
ing It's speed at every pull of its
gigantic locomotive. Here indeed.
was a 'calP that admitted neither cor
respondence nor delay, there was no
time for taking it into consideration
80 without conferring with flesh or blood.
l put of like sky-rocket with a double
fuse: For a moment / thought had
1t all my own way; / thought was
gaming ground, although knew I was
I losing wind. L was encouraged in the
race by sundry helpful fellows who kent
crying out as / passed, Go il, gaitersp
/ 'plucky boyu 'he aint left, O no. and
other well-meaning and benipnant
eXhortations. Though they intended.
/ perhaps, helping me over the course, /
/ found that the more they shouted
the less inclined / was to run, and the
more decidedly did the locomotive make
I terrible headway against me. To give
I up the chase; TO submit to the chagrin
OF being left to lose my party and my
| passage; to meet with disappointment
and not to meet with friends. all this
was bad enough; but the thought of en-
cOuntering all the way back to the de-
| pot, that line of interested individuals
who with their cheering exclamations
had so feelingly encouraged me on my
outward jOurney-this was the bitter
est pill in this unexpected dose. But il
must be done, so tapering off gradually
/ gave up the contest and turned back
to meet my fate, and-if / could find
him-the depot master, whose blunder-
ing statements were the cause of all my
trouble. Without search that individ-
ual advanced to greet me with the bland
recognition of fact that no one could
well deny, well, you got left, did you?'
If looked like / tried to look, my photo
graph taken at that instant would hard
ly be chosen to grace an album gallery
Of eminent divines.' Several bystand-
ers seeking Information, asked, with q
show Of confidential interest in my case,
on what wise the the thing had hap
pened; and others wishing TO point a
moral advised me to 'be on hand lit
tie earlier next time With returning
breath relief and words came together,
n nd errrrarnlxr al, !
official with all the blame. / spoke of his
incompetency in no measured terms,
recalling how that after had placed NV
party in the car he had assured me that
there were full seventeen minutes to
spare before the train went out; while
here said /, with triumphant exhibit
ton of my watch, the seventeen min
utes are even now barely up, and yet
the train is gone and out of sight
After no little hot shot cast back and
forth, with the usual variations aud final
perorations of you did and you didn't
you're another ETC., L asked him
whether / would be risking another
chance of being left if depended upon
him to give me exact hour of the depart
ure Of the aeIt Eastern train. East
ernp exclaimed he. yes, Eastern re-
piled I, with a decided upward and sar-
castle infection. Why quoth he, the
train you've just been chasing with
such poor luck wasn't an Eastern train,
but the Western Expressp With much
ana Increasing confusion and excite
nent stammered out, Then where in
99,oppa IS the Eastern train? why, !
dle Slefe 1t is replied he, Just getting un-
or way, way at the end of the depot; leg il, |
n No.tli Seu.li lose that If ever did make |
t riS6t tte, TINE, i made it then. passed
I feIt ~ through that depot like the wind. |
boTre'lssi 11re as II | was all legs. One glance,
as yves va, at the rear door of the last car
much fo for nearing ear il, came near being TOO
of NV Ion%n me l discovered the group !
forms and f,cne iohg lost friends, whose
'N ''''es seemed bursting with