Knoxville journal. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1874-1986, 1875-02-11

drunkr he exclaimed, pulling in his
head and addressing his companion.
Perhaps he is only asleep responded
Madam, with true womanly charity.
Well, If he isn't tight the horses are"
the lawyer replied; "just see how the
carriage goes from one side Of the street
to the other!n
My goodnessr' exclaimed Madam,
gazing out through the fog, "this isn't
our neighborhood! Where are WEEP
Blessed II know" answered the at
torney, with deep caution. "Say, you
Bill! John! Bob! George! Henry Angus
tus! Driver! Wake up, confound your
But there came no reply.
Then the lawyer let down the narrow
sash at the front of the carriage and
peered upward to the drivers seat II
was vacant! Blanknation! there's no.
body on the boxm he roared. The two
stared at each other for a moment. the
horses meantime keeping up their monot-
onous trot.
"WellI" sighed he.
She sighed without saying "welln
Blessed IT there is but one thing to
DO" he exclaimed, and in a jiffy, to her
horror, she saw her cavalier souirming
upward through the narrow window.
"Oh! supposing he should stick therern
she said to herself. with hopeless groan !.
but he didn't stick-he was not con.
structed on the principle of Daniel Lam
bertrand after a fearful struggle suc-
ceeded in reaching the drivers place and
oDtainlng possession of the reins. He
stopped the horses, and then followed a
consultation, he talking from the box and
she from within, the result of which was
tnat ne turned the horses and drove back
over the route they had come. The fog
was dense and bitterly cold, and the i'm.
Promptu driver was arrayed in lavender
KIDS and suit of light broadcloth, the
coat being of style known as clawham-
mer He had driven about ten minutes
when Madam felt that the hack had
come TO standstill. The next moment
the door opened and she beheld her
guide, philosopher and friend, his teeth
fairly chattering with cold.
b "l-i-i-s there an-n-n-nything / can
wr-r-r-r-ap myself i-i-i-i-ns" he asked !;
Its a lit. title coolish outside" She
uncolled the nubia from her head and
wrapped it about his neck and chin.
Thanks" he murmured from under the
layers OF split-zephyr, and again re-
sumed the position of hack-driver with
out license. 1t lacked twenty minutes
OF two o'clock a. m. when he discover red
the residence of his charge and pulled
up the horses at the door. She led him
into the house. His face was generally
blue, but flaring red knob shone forth
where his nose commonly had place; his
eyes dripped water, his hair was damp
with fog, and he shivered with the cold
from head to foot. She made him sit BY
the fire, kind woman that she is, and
made him hot Scotch toddy, which
seemed to dash into every portion of his
frame and cheer his blood with its ting
ling warmth; and when he had been half
thawed and half dried she brought for
he declared that he must drive that hack
back into town. a pile of great coats and
shawls and wraps, in which she so en-
veloped him that when he babe her good.
by 1t was with difficulty he could climb
on the hack, SO swathed and bundled
was he.
1t did not take long for him to drive
those horses into the town and leave tho
hack at livery stable "to be called for"
and up to this day the sleepy hostler
who opened the stable-door has not
ceased to wonder who was the gentleman
in lavender kids that drove hack into
the stable at half-past two o'clock in the
morning.
1t was just after the hack had driven
away from the house of Madam that her
husband, worn out with the task of the
evening, came home. To him, as he
slipped his tumbler of grog, she told the
whole story, and when she had finished
she said: -" 1t was such a narrow escape!
Just think! We might have been upset
and killedn
Indeed you might" he replied, his
face solemn at the possibility.
"And oh, Ned" she continued; "I'm
so glad you didn't go to the wedding"
care you, dear, and whys"
because, love, you never, never
could have crawled up through that lit
tie hack Window" And she patted his
broad back and filled another glass of
grog for hlm.-San Francisco Gall.
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