River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1879-08-21

In snow back TO the God who gave it.
at was one Of the fairest, pleasantest
faces ever see when they brought him
here. John Wilbur stood out there in t G
wind it'll the tears freeZin' onto his pale
cheeks as he was telhn the dretful story
Just TO think ont said he, that half an
hour ago this man vas full of life and
hope as any one Of us. 1t goes to show
us how near our railroad runs to the gate
of the other world
"Wall, we laid the unfortinte man out
| decently in the freight-house office, and
tn n VI telegraphed right and left, tryin'
/ To find out somethin about him. The
only clew we could git hold on vas that
an Englishman had been askin for work
up at Brackcnbaro' the day before, and
| had been directed TO the steam mill here
| But in the breast pocket of the poor Teller s
| short Jacket was d little letter with no en-
to il, much vorn with many readins :
| knew it by heart. 1t said, Dear Johns
! Baby Mary gross finely, and as soon as
/ she is strong enough to sail over the sea
! | Will join you at Brackenbnro'. The old
! grandfather IS sad at the thought of our
| leavin hlm behind but / comfort HIM
| even day with the KIND words YOU wrote
/ at when we had a root of our m with
! a willow tree at the door, he should sit in
/ the shade Of it and sing to the children
| the songs of cid England.
| lit was the letter of one not used to
! writin, guess with no address, but The
/ Willows, England 1t had no date, and
was signed Alice Leigh The corners
| jury brought in verdict OF AN unknown
| man killed, with no fault of the road
though 1t was plain enough 10 me that
the man was John Leigh of England.
We buried him up there on the company 5
! land"
IAN Uncle Sammy praeyd for the untor-
TINT like hero-I We heered EN- say that
war there" put in the square little girl,
who still stood by with dilated eyes,
drinking in every word.
There bein' no minister here, that was
my dooty,n SAID the old man gravely;
"and { laid away the poor, little worn
letter in my wife's upper boory drawer
that beln my dooty hke~ise. Wal, we
didn't hear nothin' about any friends of
the unforunit. and should "A well nigh
forgot all about him If Frecman's wife
hadn't seen his ghost off and on, when
the wind blew, or the air was full ofsnow,
or most any time wnen news was skulse
and there WASH much to talk about.
Zone dark, RAINY night after the man
had laid out there alone nigh onto wear,
Frank Rays freight run into a washout,
down the road there by the GlenbroOk
culvert ] was in Freemans wife's
Kitchen that cyenin'. warmin my
hands, and she was te!iin' me that the
unfortnit stranger vas mighty uneasy
for some time, that he had been lookin'
iuto her windows off and on all the eve
min till come There he is no Y, poor
fellow, said she, but looked and didn't
see nothin', Of course. Jest then Frank
Rays engine come shrlekiu' into the
yard.
1T seemed that the machine run over
the break safely, but the cars went down
through and piled up promiscus' enough.
The conductor and two brakemen was
killed, and two passengers that was in
the cabOose, probably. That was all the
passengers there happened to be on that
night, They always brought more or less
that had missed the yong OWL down De-
low. Twas dretful sad time. My wife
went down to the wreck with the wives
of the men that was killed. and Sas there
when the saboOse was rlghtcd up. There,
quite dead in one cornerof the short blue
car, holdin her pooty baby girl to her
heart, vas as handsome and pure-taCed,
golden-haired little English woman as
ever sot eyes on, 18th e smile restin on
her sweet face rs if she had been q cooling
with her last breath to the baby who was
smim back at her.
"My wife land 'em out as deccntly as
she could'in the freight house o.dce, jest
where the poor dead man had laid-and
what do you thinkl She found pinned
into the bosom Of the little mothers
dress an old purse with few pieces, and
a letter dated lit Brackenboro a full year
and a half atore. | know that letter, too,
by heart-that part ont that wasn't di-
rectiOns Tor her about comm to Brack-
enboro 1t said 'Dcae Alice Praise
God, I've got here ali safe, and please
God I'll soon have h me for thee and
the baby. Comfort the Did grandfather,
and tell him he all come to us by and
by and sing the songs of Merry England
to the children, and that when / get a
home | will set out "a willow tree by the
door for the sake OF the old home in Eng
Ian. The poor, bad-wntten, SLED letter
WIS Si2nEu- OuI tdtlitlul anu iONliil
husband, John Leigh
Il was as weak as a rat when | first
read it, and my wife said it was the true
love in the poor young husbands heart
that heart that WAS the but a handful OF
dust-that drew this sweet, constant little
wife straight to him. that God in his
great kindness would not leave her to
face 50 great a disappointment, so he gave
her ana the BABY quick, painless death
and joyful meeting in Heaven. Wal IN
the face Of the fact that | knew well
enoug the woman's name, the coroner's
jury brought in verdict of unknown
woman killed and no fault of the road
rs before, and we made a grave up there
in the white sand and laid her in it with
her baby on her breast to sleep aside OF
the man that had not doubt in my
heart was her husband.
AN Uncle Sammy prayed bOotiful,
too, for the souls that had all got home
at last, We heard lin say so,--he was
my father put e square little girl,
eagerly.
THAT was j roty agin, there bein
no minister, he old station agent,
humbly. wa ut that letter long
with the other and | made it my
dooty. too, those weepin' willers
close by the graves SO they might have a
shade-tree of their own growing over
EN- after all"
"Now MANN" said Uncle Sammy,
drawing long breath, sail this I've ted
We is stranger, stranger than any thing
evel found sot down In books but it amt
no where nigh as strange as what came
next, this is what makes the whole thing
look as though it was a made-up story
The poor unfortunates slept for matter
of year or so, in their lonely graves
peacefully, only Freemln's wife used TO
say she saw EN- in ho1, dry weather a
waterin' the roots of the wilier sot out,
with their tears, ami that would set all
the children in Shanty village carryin'
water to it from the brook, and the tree
grew and iourished till We see it's beau
ty.
"Wal, one summer time, there come up
through here a great company of Nor
mons from England on their way 10
Utah. The agents shipped 'em about as
if they were cattle, and took EN- on ex-
ira trains SOS to connect with The Grand
Trunk The engines was to be changed
here at this station, and lot of folks had
gathered to look at the Mormons, as if
they was wild animals instead OF pack
of poor, deluded human beins.
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