Whig and tribune. [volume] (Jackson, Tenn.) 1870-1877, 1873-12-13

! ryIng step Tor step. She hau ne
thought or dread that the wreckef =
? had seen her, or would follow. Neith
!. er was il at all likely; but Katie5
! brain was too full of her purpose 81
! admit a thought Of self, and she he'd
out her lantern, fearlessly enough
now, that she might be doubly sure
, of her footing on the ties and gravel
. And now she was out in the opsn
! air, beyond the upper entrance, and
she could see the peaceful light st.ll
|, shining from Aunt Betsy's window.
! But there was no time to go there for
help.
The train must be so very nearl
Katie did for a moment think of kiHl-
; ling a fire on the track, but that would
take too long, and the great ruin and
horror would come before even a
small fagot would be well ablaze.
There's nothing but my own It
tie lantern" almost sobbed poor ka-
tie. MAY be he will know it WHEN
he sees it, but he must be warned be-
fore he reaches the cut"
The lantern shone like a frosty liz
tie star determined to be seen as Kate
sprang forward up the track. She
had not far to go, for the train was
ahead of time that night, instead Of
being behind, as would have been
more desirable under the circUn-
stances. Never had anything appca--
ca to Katie CroWniashield more sUd-
denly than did the great, glaring
eyes of the locomotive headlight that
now gloBed upon her out of the over
shadowing night, and her lantern
seemed to have instantancously van
ished.
at is so small, she cried, in agony,
"and he will never see il.
Nevertheless, on q low mound of
| earth and stones, close by the side of
the track, Katie took her post of char
| ity and danger, and swung her little
lantern frantically to and fro, while
she now tried to make her sweet
girls voice heard through the roar
and clamor of the rushing train.
On came the railway giant, tugging
with him his precious freight of hui
man life, and it flashed upon Katie
/ CrOwninshield's mind what an awful
capacity for suffering that train might
have on board. On, with the great
glare and the all-absorbing torrent of
sound, and almost before Katie knew
it, the object of her hope and fear
had dashed ruthlessly past, and was
quickly swallowed up from her sight
in the rocky jaws of the deep cut.
With cry of grief and disappoint-
ment on her lips, and a strange thrill
of pain at her heart, the poor girl
sank upon the ground and buried her
face in her hands, while the little Ian
tern dropped neglectedIy beside her.
Only for one brief instant, however,
did Katie yield to the terror and the
trouble of it, for in another she had
picked up her starry friend, sprang
to her feet, and darted away down
the railroad track toward the cut.
She was light of foot as any fawn, and
there were sad wings to her speed,
but it seemed to her rs if she should /
never get through the cut. She
paused a moment, when the lower end |
was reached, to gather breath and to |
brush the salt mist from her eyes, be- |
fore she looked upon the awful scene |
she knew must be prepared for her.
And then-why, there was the train, |
the rear car rising close in front Of /
her, while the others (and there were |
but few of them that night) stood all |
erect upon their wheels beyond-not !
all upon the track, to be sure, but all /
apparently safe-all, except one great, |
dark mass, whose polished metal gilt |
tered in the varying lights that flashed |
upon it, and whose hOarse throat |
screamed angrily with the escaping |
steam, for the locomotive had come to |
grief pretty decidedly among the !
granite powders that were heaped On |
the track by tho fieaci5 Who had plann- |
cd The wreck. The passengers we're !
swarming out of the cars, and none !
of them seemed to be hurt at all, nor /
did Katie hear sound that told of |
pain as she swiftly threaded her way
among and past them. She had |
caught a glimpse of a group away be- |
yond even the shattered locomotive, |
however, which forbade her lingering |
for an instant. Right down toward |
her own garden gate four men were |
carrying a heavy burden, and others
were following, and Katie heard them |
say, as she darted by:
"Who is it?"
"Why, it's the conductor. He was
thrown from the platform of the for
ward car"
SIS he killed."
''They say so. Nobody else was
hurt. He was a splendid fellow"
A tall, handsome, bearded man, in
dark blue clothing, but his face was
CHASTITY pale when they laid him on
Grandfather Crowninshield's own
bed, and the surgeon, who had been
among the passengers, bent gloomily
above him.
Head all right, muttered the man
of science. "Only cut or so. All,
there's a rib, two of EN-, and his left
arm below the elbow. Struck the
ground so, that's clear, and the other
bones are likely to be all right. Must
have been leaning out to look ahead,
l should say: "HulO, what's that
light on his face?"
The light in the room, what with the
crowd and the country candles, had
been none of the brightest, but just
at that moment a clear, golden CLEAN
was poured down on the face of the
injured man, and slowly, as if the IA
dance itself had wakened him, he
opened his eyes and looked dreamily
about him.
The surgeon heard a sigh that was
half a sob close behind him, aud
looked up to sec that and the
sudden light came from Katie and her
lantern, but Just then the questioning
eyes of the wounded conductor fell
upon her face, and he exclaimed,
| family but earnestly
81 knew it wis yOu. There was hard
ly room to stop the train in, but we'd
have all gone to pieces if it hadn't
been for you and your light. You've
saved them all, God bless you!"
And so Katie Crowninshield sud
denly found herself heroine, with q
swarm of grateful people around her,
very much to her discomfort. They
| would have made her a present if she
would have allowed them, but the on
/ ly really welcome words she heard from
any one were those of the surgeon:
''What, killed? y man like him?
Nonsense! he'll carry his arm in
sling for a month or so, but he'll be
/ up again III a fortnight"
OF course, no time was lost in re-
/ pairing the track and forwarding the
| passengers, and a few hours only saw
the old farmhouse as quiet and peace
| ful-lOoking as ever. Even the sur
geon had done his work and gone.
| The engine lay battered and helpless
among the bOWlders where 1t had
forced its willful way. The cOnduc-
tor lay still on Grandfather Crownin-
shields bed, and the fitful slumbers
the surgeons opiate gave him were
starry with signals that white fingers
held up before his dreaming eyes. As
for Katie and her lantern, the latter
had fairly burned itself out and
asleep on the little table III Katis's
own room, and she herself had by no
means clearly comprehended, as yet.
the happy consequences of her rail-
way signaling. 1t was very much like
dream to her, for Katie was no pro-