Wilmington daily commercial., 1875-09-25

"What is the matter Z" echoed on all sides in
the terrible darkness.
wretch The scamp Help me to hold him.
He is twisting my hand horribly
81 Let me co." growled the snaky young man,
and giving himself serpentine screw, adroitly
euded the nervous clutch of his captors fingers.
Hes gone! Do catch him" she painted
The widest commotion ensued. Every body
else feeling that it devolved upon each as men
and brothers to do something, and succeeding
only in creating inextrcable confusion. None
OF the passengers had the vaguest idea what had
happened. Each man grappled with his neigh
Dor, suspecting him OF some deadly villaiDy in
that Obscure night.
~ have got him" cried cheerful voice from
the door. proceeding from stout and valiant
traveller who, indeed, held in an iron grip slen-
der, wrthing form that Indignantly rebelled
against his assault But when light dawned to
a comforting brightness again the stout gentle-
man was found to hold captive an innocent and
much-injured newspaper and pop-co boy, who
had entered the car just i'll the nick OF time to
be made prisoner while the thief slid dnoiselessly
away to vanish forever. Then each passenger
was morally certain that the thief had crept past
him while he was pursuing the respectable gem
tleman opposite, and the newsboy was surest of
all that'he had propelled into their midst by
some unseen power on the platform The in-
evtable result Of much excitement was
chilling doubt il Miss Mayhews alarm had not
been only wonans scare after all.
Look at her for yourselves, she said, indi g.
nantly, reading skepticism on every side.
The old ladys appearance was certainly dilap-
idated and battered while her beautiful beads
were lying in her lap. Ruth replaced them pre-
paratory to her getting out at the crowded ter
minus where she changed ears. The old lady
futtered away almost before the train had
stopped, and when she had been gone fully five
minutes Miss Mayhem ratified he beads on the
floor with sudden crash. The thief had weak
ened the clasp in his efforts to secure them.
Something must bo done. In vain she appealed
to selfish men; they were not going to lose their
places. Much good but vague advice was vol
unteered about keeping the necklace until she
could forward it some time, which she cut short
with decisive
81 will go myself
The emergency required prompt action, and
she was equal to the emergency. Without a
moments hesitation she rushed out.
"How long do we stopW she inquired Of II
brakeman. who exhaed hot oil from his very
ccuntenance.
"Twenty minutes" replied the brakeman,
surely melted by the Evil ono.
Where, oh where will that brakeman go when
he dies? Was his conscience deadened as well
as his outer ear by the din of his hfe or did he
view with indifference the possibility OF any fu-
tnre atate being worse than the pandemonium
of his present existence? Our traveller was i'm
mediately beset by crowd of camorous hack
men desiring to drive her out of her wits, if not
to the end Of the earth. Escaping this snare,
she fell into another of babies and dusty par
ents. How many tender innocents she upset i'll
her haste, thus increasing the general uproar,
Ruth, although naturally humane, never knew.
Every where hopeless blockade of baggage,
trucks, and struggling humanity-every where
insane panic of hurry III the fear OF being left
behind. The bewdered woman could not ap-
proach within ear-Hhot OF the persplrlng ticket
master, whose suffused face glared yengefuly
through tho pigeon-hole as he snapped short
"a distracted
gers. If she could only ascertain where the old
lady had gone
(Which is the Locust Valley train 7" she asked
OF q baggage-man who was pausing to take
breath after lifting Saratoga trunk OF gigantic
dimensions.
The baggage-man, with agonizing deliberation,
rested his great hands OIL his hips, thrust quid
OF tobacco into his cheek, stared at his interlo-
cutor, and said,
'Hey?"
Miss Ruth repeated her question with the en-
ergy of despair. .-.-..,
baggage man, warily.
And then it became painfully evident fact
that where Miss Mayhem wanted to go and
where she was going were two widely sundered
matters for she beheld her train in motion. To
rush toward it to signal blindly-as If the nsen-
safe monster would stop to be held back from
jumping on board in gentlemanly fashion, and
then to be left gazing blankly into space-that
'''N
wind
~ will keep your things for YOU"
To inveigh bitterly against the deceitfulness
OF brakemen was an impulse which our unfortu-
nate lady checked with tue dignity of chaiac-
ter.
90 will lind the old lady at all events, she de.
cided, even though she should prove the pro-
verbal needle in that hay-stack OF depot,
There never were so mahy trains looking eX-
actly alike, and apparently headed in the same
Itpar nil thai
up and down. Oh the Satisfaction OF at length
beholding familiar face, spectaces on nose,
beaming behind window. Mias Mayhem DASH
ed frantically forward waving the necklace aloft.
Tho old lady started, felt instinctively at her
throat, and began to tumble no less franctically
at the closed sash. Varnish and springs dehed
her. Horrors The train after dawdling any
length of time, at this lnauspicous moment con-
cluded to move. 1t was pleasant sight to be-
hold Miss Mayhew racing along the platform,
casting dignity to the winds, and the old lady on
the verge of apoplexy within the car in her eff
forts to raise the window. How the people
stared, to be sure But Miss Mayhem did not
care. She was long past personal sensitiyeness;
and when the sash finally yielded just as she
reached the extreme edge of tho platform, she
throw in the beads, and retiring, seated herself
OH Il carpet bag to burst into tears. Her cour-
age completely failed her the weak, silly, femi-
nine sobs coutd come.
A gentleman had approached to claim the
carpet.bag. He was tall, bronzed, and beard
ed and he wore a scarf about his throat OF some
curious Eastern fabric. Miss Mayhem, the ten
sion of excitement having snapped was left as
weak as sn infant. Her pocket had been cut,
and her portemonnaie was gone. Had she, in
securing her companions safety. fallen victim
TO the snaky young man herself She now rose
making some confused apology for the condition
Of her late throne, the carpet-bag.
" Ruth Mayhem !" exclaimed tho stranger.
" cannot be mistaken Surely you wear my
gift, the little brooch, silver and poarls.
With q startled expression OF wonder she
looked up into his face, and read joy i'll the eyer
of her once young missionary. Tie locomotives
shriekcd, and the human tide surged to and fro,
yet these two saw nothing OF the confusion about
them. He was journeying toward the white
house on the hill, which was to be his first phi
grinage in his native land, and would have miss
ed her had she not pursued the old lady will
| the gold beads.
"How did you recognize me 2' said Ruth May
how, flushed and tremulous, all the independence
| of later years utterly gone.
II should have known You any where IN the
world, said the Rev. John Atherton, from Al
gers.
Entire nous, believe no recalled the familiar
brooch before he did the wearer. However ths
| is none of our affair, since she WAS perfectly
| satisfied with tho reply. The result of thii
meeting was that Aunt Harriet lost her nurse
and the Foreign Missions gained cheerful, ear
| nest worker, after all.
| ----.--s---------------------------