The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1872-10-17
MY NIGHT IN A "BOX."

you call her, all alone here, to imagine all
sorts of horrid things happening to her
poor llttle boy Couldn't you stay at
home just for this enc night?"
Couldn't possibly dc it, nv love-" said
l, struggling into my greatcoat, and pes
sessing myself at the same time of my big
driving gloves, which M4y little wife was
absently trying to fit on her own little
hands. *s%G
mot If very much wished it, Willie Z?
Do you know | felt SO strange and lonely
last night, when you were away, that
could hardly make up my mind to 20 to
bed vt all; and to-alght I can scarcely
bear the thought that you should be SEQ
long absent. You know what foolish
little thing am y
Her arm quietly stole around me, and
she looked up TO my face, with q wistful,
anxious look, while tear stood glistening
Ia the corners OF the sweet blue eyes.
why you wee goose" said L. kissing
away the bright token of her earnestness,
what has put such absurd thoughts into
that wise noddle OF yours. Are you afraid
that the fairies will waylay me. and spirit
me away to their clfinIand? II they do,
| shall tell them that | have left fairy
at home, and not even the establishments
of the queen herself shall tempt ME into
their uncanny couatry.y But seriously,
Maggie there is nothing te be alarmed
about. shall be home by seven o'olpck
at the latest but since you are so lonely
| will call at fathers as / pass, and send
up my brother Bob to keep ysu company
aud stay in the house all night. Will
| hot Al
"No, don't do that it would look fool
ish, and Bob would only laugh at me
when be came; He does net understand
me. think no one does understand me
Except you, dear Win"
Thank you Mag think I do under
stand you. But here comes the gig; so
good by, and don't fret the short time
am away. shall be back long before
you are done dreaming" SO saying,
mounted the gig, and drove rapidly along
the frozen road. Bat my wife fingered
by the porch, following me with her eyes !;
and, so long as the house was in sight; |
could, on looking back, see her white
dress shimme-ing ghostlike in the light
which streamed through the open deer.
at the time which write was tele-
graph superintendent on the Wilton and
Longbank line of railway. OAe of the
clerks, who was en- night duty, had been
taken suddenly i'll, and being unable to
find a substitute, had taken his work
myself until such time as he should recov-
er l had only been married few months,
and was by no means reconcied to the
necessity of leaving my wife and home to
pass the night IN that "nasty old box" 40
Alag called it-and she was perfectly cor
rect in heT description. But know that
1T was necessity, and I knew, likewise,
that no grumbing of mine could mend
the matter.
A drive of about eight miles brought
me to my post. There was nothing very
extraordinary in the duty to which | had
been called away nor was it any new sx-
perience to me; but on that night nv
mind was filled with undefnable fears.
for which | tried In vain TO account The
night Was clear and MINDLESS, and away
In the northwestern sky the aurora bore
ais was fitting to and fro in a thousand
strange, fantastic shapes. As I watched
the shifting and quivering CLEANS, now
shooting in rapid succession from one lu-
minous center, and anon spreading and
rolling wave after wave across the starry
heavens, began to think of the disaster
Gus onens of war, plague, famine which
the olden times men drew from SUI b sights.
Somewhat OF the same emotion felt in
my own mind, and, reason, as | would,
felt 1t impossible to shake off the growing
sense of uneasiness and gIoen which mad
taken possession of me. On entering the
telegraph station, the clerk whom had
come to relieve was ready to depart.
"You won't have much to do tonight,
sir, said he. "The Instruments are quite
unavoidable no signals have been received
here for the last three hours Coed night. "
When | was left alone, found that it
was as he had said. The electric currents,
which are developed in the atmosphere
during most meteorological changes, had
rendered the wires quite useless; and
although the needles swayed ceaselessly
backwards and forwards, they made no
sign which tho wisdom of men could ia
terpret. Seeing that my office was likely
to be sinecure, [ drew my chair to the
stove, and taking down book which
saw upon shelf tried to interest myself
in the story. The volums which l had
discovered was "Jane Eyre" and though,
since that time, | have read, with tears
and laughter, it and other works which
came from the same true and loving pen,
yet, OF that night, the spell of her who is
so powerful to awaken our interest and
enlist our ympathy,-who has given US
Black Rochester, and chronicled with no
unkindly hand the vagares Of the three
eccentric curates, and won hearts ferProf.
Emmanuel Carl Pau, had no power to
quiet my wild wandering thoughts. While
-! / was turning listlessly over the leaves,
the stiffness was startled by tho sharp,
quick changing of the electric bell, the
usual signal to prepare to read off mes