Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1873-11-20

HlgHl udu lalien, aItnOugh her only COM
pany homeward was her little star of a
lantern. 1t was neat little lantern, with
a sort of piquant and winning character
of its own, like everything else that be-
longed to Katie Crowninsiield, and she
herself was half inclined to make con-
fidant of il.
In fact, Kate's lantern found its own
occasion for putting on almost the SEM
blance of a personal friend. There came
a day when Katie's handkerchief fiuttered
in vain, and then another when even the
reply she received from the train con-
WINGED her that there had been change
of some kind, and that she would receive
no more signals from the same hand. 1t
was odd enough, but her long -accustomed
bit of morning pleasure seemed suddenly
turned into something childish and. unin-
teresting-s worn-out amusement that it
was time to put aside with her discarded
dolls. And so she sadly prepared to give
it up, in the first fit of genuine blues she
had ever INDUCED in; but, few even
ings afterward, she fingered at the garden
gate little, after her return from Aunt
Betsy's, to see the night-express go flash
ing by. 1t was grand sight when it
came, incomparably more interesting and
mysterious in the darkness than ever in
the day, and Katie wondered she had
never thought so before; but she almost
unconsciously raised her little lantern,
and swung it around her head as she had
used TO wave her handkerchief
Could she believe her eyes.
She almost refused to give them any
faith at first, but then there followed a
quick flush in her cheek and warm
glow at her heart; for she was sure there
had been an answering light, and she
could almost picture tall form in dark
blue clothing, standing on the platform
between two of the cars.
She knew very little of railway matters,
but was not so dull that there was any
special mystery in change of trains by
a conductor. She did not let Grandfather
or Grandmother Crowninshield see her,
however, the next evening when she
again crept out to the gate, almost smoth-
ering her little lantern; for she had a
halff1uttering sort of dread that this Sec
ond experiment might fail.
Fail? No; the greeting from the train
was as ready as was Katies own good
evening"" and the little lantern was like
ly thenceforth to be the very foremost OF
prime favorites with its mistress. And
now, while the October days grew cooler
and the glorious evenings longer, Grand
mother Crowninshield began to grumble
a little at the disposition her darling
evinced to pay so many visits to Aunt
Betsy.
"1t's long walk for you, child" she
said; land it's through the cut, too. What
if railway train should come along be.
fore you could get out?'
go grandmamma, thatll never happen, +"
laughed Katie; the railroad and | are
very good friends"
"You ought to be,' said grandmother.
81 never saw any living being care more
for q dumb thing than you've always
done for that there train"
But grandmother was nearer right than
Katie; for only night or so after that
it must have been that Aunt Betsy's clock
was slOw-for Katie was in the very mid
die of the cut when her ears were sudden
ly filled with the shrek and roar with
which the train dashed in at the upper
end.
Her heart beat quickly for moment
but not with fear; for, as she sprang light
ly upon a projecting rock that she had
often before noted as a very available
perch she gathered her futtering dress
more closely about her and exclaimed:
"There, I'm safe enough; but to think
of its coming SO nearw
Near enough, indeed, and Katie leaned
back hard against the crag behind her
for it seemed as if she could feel the
breath of the iron monster on her cheek.
In one hand she clutched more tightly the
folds of her shawl, and in the other she
raised her lantern, as if its feeble star
could be of some protection, and then her
grasp of it grew suddenly very tight in
deed; for, leaning out little from the
platform of car, and looking forward, as
if impatient for the train to clear the cut,
stood a tall, handsome, bearded man, in
dark blue clothes. with lantern in his
hand, and his eager, watching, expectant
face, came so very close to her ownl
1t was like flash Of lightning; but
Katie knew the face, and she knew also
that she herself had been seen, and she
had even marked the swift paling OF
the bronzed visage as it recognized her
and then swept on into the darkness be-
yond.
HE was afraid | would be hurt" she
thought; and then she said aloud: "But
he must have seen how safe / was, up
here on the rock. / don't believe he
swung his lantern at our garden-gate to-
night"
Katie did not relate her adventure even
to her grandmother, and on her next visit
to Aunt Betsy's she was careful to come
away in time.
II don't want to get home so very much
too early" she said to herself as she fin
ished her visit and hurried her departure
"but don't like being caught in the cut
at all Pm glad I'm SO sure not to meet
ANYBODY. believe I'd want to hide away
from stranger, tonight, almost as much
as from railway train"
II was indeed an unusually dark and
gloomy night but Katie was destined to
be disappointed in her hope of getting
through the cut without seeing anybody.
AS has been said, the granite ledge had
necessarily been pierced on curved line,
so that no one standing at one end of the
cut. moderate as were its dimensions,
could see more than halfway through.
Aunt Betsy's house was some little dis
lance from the upper entrance, and the APP
proach to the latter was gloomy enough,
that night, even for one who knew every
inch of the way as we'll as Katie did; but
her little lantern shone out cheerlly
against its bright reflector, throwing its
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