The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1875-11-22
THE PRESS.
IN DREARY DAYS.

comfortable in the northwestern humidity of
Lincolnshire. Winter and summer through,
in the night, the whole neighborhood is
wrapped in the dense embraces of the fen
fog, that lays hold on the earth with a cold,
clammy touch, like grasp of the hand of a
dead nature.
In the morning, when the priestly sun
comes with his exoreisms Of light and heat
TO drive away the ghostly mists to their
stronghold in the stagnant pools and the sick
ly willow marshes, Boggleswade shows itself
to the eyes of the wanderer as vulgar col
lection of houses, scattered at intervals over
the monotonous levelness of the dyke divided
pasture land.
There are no trees, no hedges, 10 relieve the
oppressive sense of inevitable fatness; only
here and there rise the primitive windmill
pumps OF the farmers, that put forth their
perpetual diibbling of mud polluted water.
You hear no song of the brook dashing
over the stones in noisy impetuosity; there
is only the river Witham tortuously crawling
along its sedgy banks in Shiny torpidity. Life
hereabouts seems but to be a halt dreamy vi
tally. The very humanity of the neighbor-
hood appears to partake of the wet and
spongy nature of the soil, and there is a re-
port that the true natives of the district are
born webtooted. For the truth of this state
ment should not like to be held responsible,
nevertheless, certain it is that damp atmos,
phere hangs about the presence of a Bogges-
wadian wherever he may be; when he
speaks, his voice is choky and husky and
thick with the cultural toughness of impene-
trable fog.
1t was in this town of the dismal swamp
that for three years l was soiourner-three
years of unmitigated WEAKNESS that 1 can
now only look back upon as upon The phan-
tasy OF some over protracted nightmare
three years of moral and mental deafness,
that came upon me like penance for life
of peculiar variety and excitement.
There is small house, standing Oh the an
gular island that is formed by the confluence
of the Witham and the Grand junction, Shef-
field and lancashire Canal, and little strait
connecting the two. This was the prison of
my sorrows and hopes for nearly forty weary
months; it had no name, and l in my bitter
ness called it Noah's Ark, for it stood so low
in its surroundings of desolate waters. Was
it damp? OF course it was; the green weed
moss chung to the outer walls, and from its
inner ones the paper peeled off and refused
to do its duty, hanging in disconsolate strips
of limp and fOrlorn sickness.
Why had come here? My father, poor
incumbent in Cornwall, had with struggle
been able to send me to Cambridge, where
my life was the mere repetition of the tale of
thC pun ludh piONiSoi3 phoo OCSdh WIN ga
cess and ended with rustication. A brief and
idle sojourn at home led to my marriage with
a village maiden who, if she did not combine
all the perfections of the Graces in her per-
son, at least possessed sufficient attraction to
win my rough, corrugated heart back to hui
manity, and to change the whole tenor Of my
life.
You must suppose from this unglowing de-
scription that Ada Winterton was a dowdy.
She was simply not beautiful, not ethereal,
and not radiant. Her features were decided
ly pretty, but her nose was LOO retrousse to
have pleased the sculptor, and her dark
brown hair hung IN luxuriant folds about her
head, and refused to be plated in the elabor-
ate twists of modern couture. Her fortune
consisted of a few pounds that her parents
had left her, sufficient, when we should set
tie, to buy our furnituress and well start us in
housekeeping.
Urged by my new responsibilities 1 used
every means in my power to gain some occu-
patton, but for a long time my efforts were
made in vain. My college friends had all for.
gotten me- all except one, and he wrote to
me letter, apologizing to me for the hum
bleness of the post he offered, but proposing
that should seek, under the protegeship of
his father, for situation in the service of the
Great Lincolnshire railway company.
Needs must when somebody drives, and
was, in the course of few weeks, appointed
10 the Office of clerk in charge, or station
master, of the important junction of Boggles-
wade, near Marlborough.
To travellers, Boggleswade Junction is
simply bugbear. Whether they are going
or returning on a journey, no matter how
important their business, they must accord
ing to the laws of the Great Lincolnshire
railway company, change carriages at the
I'M finrn no foot, Nf
this transmigration is that every train goes
out of the station exactly two minutes before
every other train enters it, and the conse.
quence is that there is upon its platform much
kicking OF heels, and crashing of teeth, and
internally muttered condemnation.
Ada lived in Noah's Ark all alone during
the greater portion of the day, for the resi-
dence was too far from the station for me to
go regularly home to my meals; all alone for
time until there came little Ada to share
her anXieties and cares.
We rejoiced at the birth of our babe; but
when, in the course of time, two other little
'children of the mist" as 1 called them,
came to bless our hearth, and as the stipend
of my office did not increase with my expen-
ses, we grew nervously anxious for the
future. Moreover, an official OF high position
in the service, who had originally been a
barber, grew repugnant at the idea of "a
stuck-up, certified chap as he urbanely
called me, holding the post that l did, and
gave me SO much trouble, by petty persecu-
tions of hundred natures, that my patience
almost failed me; and again and again l took
up my pen to write my resignation Of the
thirty weekly shillings and the glories of
Noah's Ark; but the faces of my little ones
were before me, so Wallowed my indigna-
ton and toadied the barber.
1t was Christmas time. 1t didn't look
like Christmas down at Boggleswade, for
there was no snow, no frost, no holly; the
roads were sloppy; and from three O'Clock in
the afternoon the fog had it all its own way.
Nevertheless we were determined to make as
IAerry time of it as our small means would
Christmas Eve left my wife busy with
little Ada, picking the fruit for the morrow's
pudding.
had just reached my Office which the 4 rs
express from London came into the station.
There was great commotion evidently GO
ing on, on the platform, and heard many
anxious inquiries for the station master.
Hurrying to the spot, found, lying in the
arms of porter and two passengers, an
elderly man apparently suffering from the
most acute pain Ordering his immediate
removal to my office where we propped him
up with cushions, l inquired what allied him,
violent spasmodc attack.
SIS there any hotel near here that can be
removed ?" he asked.
None nearer than Golden Lion at Mud
borough, and that is nearly seven miles,"
/ replied.
''What must do?' he moaned, for the
pain came on again in continued paroxysms.
what shall 1 do? want to undress and
lie down; I should be better then.'
left his bead resting on pile of rugs we
had put for pillow, and rushed home. NY
wife was all anxiety, and resolved 20 return
with me TO the invalid. 1t was treat to
see how quickly her gentle ways soothed his
pain, and how quickly and firmly she gave
her directions.
'He must be carried down to Noah's Ark"
she said, "and we must do what we can to
doctor him.
And so it was. All night she tended on
him as carefully as she would have done on
me if ! had been i'll.
In the morning the invalid was consider.
ably recovered, and well enough to continue
bis journey. then had better opportunity
of observing his appearance. He was a
short, stout man of sixty, and was dressed in
the garb of a gentleman; but his clothes
were much worn, and he lacked the rugs and
overcoats of rich traveller.
Before he came down stairs, Ada said to
me: Frank, I want you 10 promise me