The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1873-11-29
as KATIE'S LANTERN
BY w. o. sToppARD.

Toned farmhouse, DIT the foot of the narrow
and rocky ledge, had most picturesque
position. Away to the southward wound
and smiled the fertile valley, a g6odly pro-
portion of whose acres appeTtained to
Grandfather Crowninshield, and along the
edge thereof swept the curves of the rail-
way, after what seemed its birth in the
cloven ledge so very near to Katie Crown
inshield,s house. AS for Katie herself,
with her sweet, fresh face andth merry
brown eyes, the.little valley and her nest
ling henae were ALI the world to her-ah,
indeed. that she Had ever known, for she
had been but a wee thing when Grand
father and Grandmother CroWninshield
became father and mother to herr in place
Of those whose faces sheseeuid hardly now
remember. Neither did it ever occur to
her that she was in any sense an heiress,
for she esseemed rather tesbeleng TO the val
ley than The valley to her; while the idea,
if anything had brought it to her mind,
that her GOOD old grandparents were not
to live forever, would have turned the
brightestsJune day to. the gloomiest De-
celnber.er = s5E. IL
-But,inathese latter years, one great entity
had painfully struggled into katie's world,
with an apparent mission TO unite the val
ley with that great unknown, which lay
seen stl1aHapge6ls rift eleven In the granite
wall, watching it curiously from door or
window. and listening for the dull reports
= of the Blasting charges, until the barrier
was pierced and the railway erept ont and
found its way down through the valley ;
and, ever since the trains began to run, she
had connected with them the idea of a life
that was almost human. She had waved
her handkerchief enthusiastically to the
o very first train, and had been literally re-
spondtd to by passengers and conductor
and, although She had been then little girl
and was now young lady, she had never
yet dreamed of any unmaidenly boldness
in givingsthe same white signal of welcome,
at times, when the great railway mystery
came rtEsfing goutof the eloyen wall. There
was one train In particular to which Katie's
attentions werea last pretty Wei restricted
IA throughexpfe which went by at eight
O'Clock in the mornings and there was an
other from the same direction again at eight
o'clockeat. night, With the latter, for 8
very long time. Katie had felt no sort Of
sympathy, since it could, as she thought
neither see nor acknowledge courteous
greetings, while from the former, just az
easily as her own daintyfs'goo morning y
fluttered above the garden gate, so certain
~ would there be a fleeing flash of white
TO answer her from the platform of ont
of the cars, ,koF even from the engine
itself, fer that, too, had happened. Ant
Katie knew very well that, in these latter
days, at east, her answer had always come
from the same hand. A tall, erect, manly
fellow he was, dressed in dark-blue cloth
and dxatiezhad been well aware, for a goot
while, that he was conductor of the train
but she had never yet been near enough Il
speak SO him, or get any clearer notion o
his face and its meaning than might b.
given her in those swift but almost dali,
glimpses. When or how he found hi
way back te Che beginning OF his perpetua
journey, was a question that Katie neVe
asked even of herself. 1T was enough tha
every .masaiag the swift train brought hin
out of the unknown country beyond tn
hills, and added a something, that hat
grown4to beRery pleasant, to the peace AM
quiet of the day.
There was something very noteworthy
even teFallwa en-, about the manners il
which the road broke in upon that valley
A deep cut, n sharp curve, and a heav,
down-erade. mbined to make the sprecis
point Whefestiae conductor had learned t
look for Katie,s greeting ian interesting
one; and he1f white kefchief may eve
have seemed to wave species of congratu
lation at his repeated safe passage of whs
might atany time have shaped itself into
danger. -
Be this as it-may, the railway t'cut" ha
brought to Katie Crowninshield, anon
other resultssa shorter and easier path
the home of her aunt. her mothers sistel
who lived Just little way beyond th
ledge, and whe was never satisfied if to
many days passed by without bringing th
sunligft of Katie's face across her threi
hold. And 80 Katie had gone and n
turned, many and many d time, by til
narrow paths Between the granite wall
She had learned to walk the rails like
rope-daneer. md she knew the time of ever
train too well as she often told Aunt Bets
ever toGetsaeFself caught in the cut. Eve
If she Should, She said. there were ever
many places where she could chamber Il
on efocbssa at the side. and be entirel
safe.s Nobody. in that peaceful regio
dreamed of fear at being tout after dark
and again and again had good Aunt Bets
detained her pet until night had fallen, q
though her only company homeward ";