The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1879-08-14

there, coming from Macoupin County,
Illinois. One trains in from St. Louis.
you know-the one you came on-and
she wasn't on that. There's another
one due at 10 80 though. l reckon she
will be on that; but don't feel easy
about it at ALL
He went to the door, and looked
eagerly out along the railroad track
eastward; and then, returning, he
added
"We're to be married tonight, that's
the truth of it; and we've Is miles to
ride in the country after she comes. 1t
would be too bad if we didn't get there
in time, with the license bought and the
preacher all ready, and the folks waiting
and notioning about us. 1t would take
US down so, you know. Is it much
trouble for woman to change cars by
herself at st. LOUISE"
"Not much,'' I assured him. "No
doub. her ticket was over the other road,
and she'll be here, all right, when the
train gets in.' .-....
"Yes," he replied, in dubious tone,
''if she didn't get left, or if there hasn't
been an accident On the way It's fool-
ish, 1 suppose, but do you know 1 can't
help being shaky about it? And the
shaker feel; l do, really. Things are
so uncertain, you know, specially rail-
roads," and he tried to laugh, but it
was hollow mockery.
Glancing towards the man Markley,
l saw that he had spread out before him
various documents, full of queer paral-
lei lines and plentifully sprinkled with
figures, from which he was interpreting
to my friend, "Mr. Wabash" as he had
named him, the marvellous growth of
Kansas-sa growth which nobody would
credit" he remarked, "were it not for
the records, which l have here in black
and white''
"The population of Kansas" he went
on to say, "grew from one hundred
thousand in 1860 to over three hundred
and sixty thousand in 1870, gain of
nearly two hundred and forty per cent.
in ten years, against an average increase
of less than twenty-five per cent. in the
. whole country; and more than four
fifths of it came during the latter five of
those ten years. 1t doesn't seem possi-
BILE, does itP Aud now, in 1S7S,the pop
ulation is certainly three-fourths of a
million, at least. More than doubled,
you see, since 1870"
These were indeed striking figures,
we readily agreed; and sought, with
the best intentions in the world, to win
the young man waiting for his sweet
heart to an interested notice of them.
But the effort was provokingly futile.
He was not looking for land. He had a
home-in Kansas, too. He was telling
the pale little lady in black alpaca, who
sat near him, all about it; how he had
pre-empted it five years before, and paid
for it with two years. crops, and built q
. snug house of three rooms and ga
beauty of buttery;" and how the front
yard was sodded and evergreens put out,
and wisterias planted by the south porch
He was telling her, also, of the young
, woman who was to be queen of all this,
! and who was coming that morning tc
claim her crown, if she hadn't got left
, or the cars didn't run off the track, OF
something else didn't happen to her.
, "Maybe you saw her at st. Louis
, Did you notice young woman there il
, drab gown, cut goring, and a sleeve
! less Jacket, and brown hat with TIVE
. red roses and a bunch of wheat-heads OF
: it-artifcial, you knowp That's tn
way she wrote me she was going t.
q dress"
s "A smallish young woman, with larg
Y hazel eyesp" asked the little lady in al
S paca.
: "Yes, yes" he replied quickly an
d fondly.
O "I did see such a person lookin
d among the baggage" returned the littl
# lady in alpaca. "I remarked her, n
member, on account of her elegant lii
!; tie feet. Are your young woman's fee
ie very small and trim-about twos,
y should sayP"
2 He dropped his head, blushing, an
l. said in kind of hesitating undertone
le the big, bashful, simple-thoughted fe
d low--"I never noticed Clara's feet.
" No. indeed For aught he knew, {
', cared, her drapery might have concea
at ed the finny wonder of mermaid. IS
le worshiped her, that he knew and ST
1T was unspeakeably sacred to him; and I
t, course he had never noticed her feet.
K "She gave some one letter to ma
for her" .....-...-. = -..-...
LES, uo iuuoIlupoou ohe'o " ''' 1,
Ie me. No, it couldn't have been for m
le either: she wouldn't have sent me a lie
le ter when she was coming right on he
J" self. No, it wasn't for me, and he 81
~ peared lost in puzzle of though
10 Then, directly, he looked up again, ar
i'd remarked, with quiet earnestness. g
Id don't think that was Clara"
ne "But to drop generalities, and con
y, down to details,'' heard Markley So
is ing, "in these six counties with the n
i'd marks around them, there were in 1S'
only about 100 settlers, and the
,g was little of any thing raised but Il
ne hair of casual Immigrants who fell in
Il the hands of the Indians. Now the
sy are more than $1,000 people livir
ed there, and they have in cultivation ov
100000 acres of land, and own gos
nd houses, with books and pianos in ther
ed and the woman folks wear pull back
ch and all that sort of thing" Just her
k a jaded, pinched, and calico-clad o
e. woman came in with a basket
~ o,,,l,s opd fhic affnrdod Markl