Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1876-12-28

| crooheu, cahtanherOns cusses when they
don't want to, but where it is works of
goodness or mercy call on EN- and they re
right there, No. 20 took hold on that re-
verse with grit never see In no engine
afore. She put all there was in her into
every turn. and the whole affair took less
time than I'm a-tellin of 1t till the danger
was by.
Wen we stopped within twenty feet OF
the light, which was swinging still. back
wards and forwards, slowly across the
tracd, sez to Crazy. who's got that Ian
ternT Knew it couldn't be the trackman,
for we'd just met him three miles behind,
snd except him there was nobody nearer'n
ten miles at that time of night. So gifts
down from the machine and runs up the
road. As comes up sees a little figure
in white. II was still swinging of the
| light, backwards and forwards slowly
| across the track. He was in his night
gown, Just as he got out of bed. hadn't no
hat and was barefoot. The sleet had froze
in his hair and his nightgown was stiff
with Ice. comes up to him-well, | was
took that way | couldn't speak. And he
J Kept swinging the light, backwards and
forwards, slow ly across the track. and he
sez to me. he seq. You and me is pards,
isn't weF looks at i'm a mint. His
| eyes was open and looked queer. He was
dead fast asleep. Crazy ketches me or I'd
gone over which 1t were my knees seem
ell weak like. Then | sets down on the
| rail- and Crazy picks up the child n hug
gin OF i'm up busted right out a erwin he
| did
The conductor and some Of the men gtJt
out of the cars and came where we was.
II was sleetn' still, n CROWN bitter cold
Inc boys carried the baby into the bag
/ gage car, where there was stove, and
.Al OF II. H.
up In blankets and great coats. There was
doctor on the train, and he ses if We Kin
git i'm back 10 bed without wakln of i'm
up, p'raps IL wouldn't hurt i'm; but If he
was 10 wake, what with the wet and the
cold, and the fright. Ike as not il might
Kill i'm. So the boys takes i'm up to carry
i'm TO the house, and follered along, but
couldn't hev carried kitten. The doc
tor he tells EN- to be keerful and not wake
i'm, for It was as much as his life was
worth. SO Crazy takes i'm, and two of em
| holds a blanket over i'm 10 keep the sleet
of, and one goes ahead with lantern,
and two or three more about with lanterns,
so as to light the way. Wen we got to the
break It was just as | expected Track.
road, culyert, everything gone, clean as If
cut out with a knife. The water was
ptchln down the rua six feet deep, carryin
biz rocks and bouders that bounced and
bumped from side 70 side and up into the
air, clear out OF The water. IL was awful
: 10 look at. How the child got over the
gap, which was at least twenty feet wide
don't know. A tree he'd come down and
lodged crossways, and suppose he must
hev gone over on that. Wen we come to
IL we was most afraid to try il, for If you
slipped off the log il was all day with you.
| didn't like 10 trust the boys, and ses to
hah
will you: He points down into the break
and ses, Latham, we'd all been down
there, every mothers son OF US, but for
your little pard. I'd drop my soul first
Well, we got i'm home safe at last.
Mary was asleep when We got to the
house, and was scared as bad a me when
she heard what was up. We put i'm back
In his bed and sure enough he never walked
up. Next mornln they threw trestle
over the break and trains was runnin agiu
But the doctor stayed with us. Jest our
Of his own head, you know, bat he seemed
anxious Seemed as though he took to
the child. Don't wonder at that, neither
Most everybody did.
watched by him all that night, and to.
wards day got out all his old Christmas
things and set them on TO Il table near the
bed, where he could see them the first
thing. But fever came on him, and wen
he woke up he was out OF his head.
speaks to him and ses, How goes it. Pard?
But he didn't know me, That was Thanks
giving Day, you know and sat there by
him, hopin every mint as he might come
round, so | could give him his things and
We could have our holiday jest as we used
10 do. But he kept gettin worse from hour
10 hour.
He was sick Jest a week and waaderin'
and wild from first TO last. | stayed with
i'm all the time, for | hadn't wits enough
lett TO handle machine, and the boys sent
word not to bother myself about business,
n they'd see me through. So between EN-
they did tuy duty and No. 20 went up and
down In her reg'lar runs jest as IL was at
the lever myself. You know | was tel
lin about the water tank near the house.
II Didn't use to be used much but that
week seemed as though there wasn't a
train, either way, that didn't git out o Wa
ter just there, and some of 'em would come
over 10 see about the boy. Aud their wives /
kept sendin' nice things-and they was all
poor people. too. You see. somehow 1t |
travelled about fast what little Pard had
done, stoppin' the train that night, n he
sich a mite Of a child An it got into the
newspapers, and TIE President of the road
came up to see i'm and all that. But he
just went on from day TO day, for Death
IIu lfOtIl tue uTSt moment as lie /
stood there in the winter rain.
From his talking while he was delrious
we found out pretty much all how it was.
| reckon he heard the storm in his sleep
and the roarin' of the run and that set i'm !
to dreamin. OF course he knew it was my |
night, n | had often told and had often |
told him what bad place it was and what |
to do if anything happened-never think
ing that he'd 90 to doing OF il hisself. But |
he gifts up in his sleep, takes his lantern
and goes out to meet me. Id be u sitting |
there watching of him by his bed, and he'd |
begin first, jest kind of muttering, and I'd !
hear him say. softly like, as eff he was talk
ing to hisself:
'Pard's due at the rdn in twenty mints.
| kin git there in time
Feared like it was all going through his |
mind agn and he was doing over jest what |
he did that night. We could tell wen he |
got to the place where the road broke, for
he ses, Kin | git over on that log? Ell | |
don't my pard will be killed
Then seemed as though he was going |
down to the curve where we found him. |
And he'd shver like, as eff the cold rain |
was striking him.
You see we could mostly foler him by |
watching him and ketching what he said. |
Onet or twict he shook right hard, and his !
teeth chartered. We thought it was the |
cold he was feeling agin as he felt it out
there in the night with nothing on him.
Then he keeps still while like he was a |
waiting and listening for the train, and |
you'd see him hold his breath fearing he
couldn't ketch the sound. Pretty soon he
speaks agin. gently like, and ses,
Kin he see the light in time?
N he waits bit. Next he jumps right |
up in bed on his knees and screams out at
the top of his voice,
Stop her, Pard Stop 29r
Stranger, I've seen frightful things in my
time, but never see anything so awful as
that was. Pale and wild. with the fever on
'im, that mere baby was trying to make
me hear, and the wind howlin' and the
train roarin' the way it was. An we'd try
to keep i'm still, N his mother would coax
him, and I'd try to quiet him N he'd scream
agin,
'Culvert's gone! Stop her, Pardr
An I'd lake i'm in my arms n he'd be all
of a quiver. Then it seemed like he heerd