Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1877-01-18
Nnmurpns department,
A BOOT.HEEL ROMANCE.

"A
Recently, while two men, employees of the
Ohio and Mississippi Railroad Company, were
on their way to their work in the car-shop Of
the company, one mile west of this place,
their attention was attracted by boot-heel,
freshly torn of, sticking in the "frog" of the
railroad track, short distance from the
shops. They stopped moment to examine
it, and found that the hell was 80 securely
fastened in the iron ''frog" that it required q
smart blow from crutc6 Zone of the men had
lost leg) to remove it. Long nails protru-
ded from the heel, and all the evidence went to
show that it had taken considerable effort to
tear it from the boot
"It appears to me" said one of the men,
"that some fellow has had narrow escape
from being run down by train last night,
or else has been badly frightened and wrench
ed his boot-heel of when there was no occa-
sion for it, s-i 4 ,''
1T treminds me" replied his companion in q
low tone, "of little adventure that happened
to me several years ago on the Panhandle
road. was then young man, but it isn't
likely that I'll ever forget it, )" and he cast a
rueful glance at the empty leg of bis pants.
'The story is soon told" he went on, turn
ing the boot.heel over in his hand, as if to
find inscribed on it similar story to bis own.
II was walking on the track near Cadiz juno
ton, in Ohio. 1t was one dark and blustery
night in February, and heavy snow storm
was prevailing at the time. The snow and
wind beating into my face, was almost suffi.
cient to have blinded one, had it been broad
daylight I was walking briskly along, not
dreaming of any harm-in fact, was then
returning from visit to my sweetheart, who
had that evening promised to be my wife
when suddenly I found my boot-heel fastened
between two rails where side track joined
the main track, just as this heel was fastened
in the frog here at our feet. At that mo-
ment heard the shrill whistle of locomo-
motive, and looking up the track I saw
through the binding snow, light bearing
down upon me. I had passed the depot q
few minutes previous and had noticed several
persons standing on the platform. The per-
sons were waiting for train, and here was
one coming! It was an unusual hour for
train, and the idea of meeting one had not oc-
Cured to me before, but now the awful truth
flashed upon me- l made a desperate effort
to release my foot and the horror of my stu
ton was increased a hundred fold when /
found that it was securely fastened between
the rails. The light was so close that its re-
fection upon the new fallen snow blinded me.
As man will, in like situation, thought of
thousand things in an instant. 1 thought
of my aged parents of events of my past life !;
of my promised bride; and the thought that l
should be torn from her, or what was worse,
be manned for life, was infinitely more dread
full than the thought of death. But I'll not
trouble you with the painful details. What
! supposed to be the head light of locomo-
tive was blazing, like the fires Of hell, right in
my face 1t was this leg that was fastened"
he said, swinging his stump back and forth,
"and I just threw myself"
"Yes, yes," interrupted his companion, with
banched cheeks, "you threw yourself to one
side and the engine severed your leg from your
bodyv'
"Not exactly" returned the story-teller,
smiling blandly upon the victim. ''The
truth is, sir, am almost ashamed to say that
the light did not proceed from locomotive,
but from the lantern ola watchman who hap
pened to be coming down the track"
Anu Cne SnTlu WHISTLE IndC you nedFu'
'That, presume, came from one-horse
saw.mill not far off"
"But your leg-how did you lose that?"
GAS many another brave man has lost his, %
came the answer, accompanied with heavy
sigh, far-away look as if to recall the
scenes of some field of battle, "I fell under
moving machine and had it chopped off,"
"Well, all I have to say" replied his COM
panion, somewhat disgusted at the turn the
romance had taken against him, "all I have
to say is that hope your girl went back on
you and married an ax-handle maker, or some
on else who could make her happy"
"She stuck to me" said the romancer,
"stuck to me through good and evil and mar
ried me-married me one rapturous evening
in the merry month of May, and now," and
his voice grew husky with emotion, "and now
I'd give the top of this bald and beetling pate
if she hadn't"
He turned his face away to hide the tears,
and the two walked slowly to the nearest sa'
loon.
Too WELL PRovED.-A lawyer had a
case on the docket, in which, among other
things, he wished to prove that his client had