River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1880-05-27
BY THE NIGHT EXPIRE. s.

By THE NIGHT EXPRESS.
A bitter December midnight and the
up express painting through its ten min
utes rest at Rugby. What with passen-
gers just arriving and passengers just
departing; what with the friends who
came to see the last of the departing
passengers or TO meet the arriving ones,
the platform was full enough, | assure
you; and had some difficulty in max
ing my way from carriage to carriage,
even though | generally find people (al-
most unconsciously pelhapsl move
aside for the guard when they see him
walking up or down close to the car
rage doors. The difficulty was in
creased too, by the marnavres of my
companion, a London detective. who
had joined me TO give himself better
opportunity to examine the passengers.
Keenly ne did it, too; in that SEEM
ingly careless way of his, and while he
appeared to be only an idle, lounging
acquaintance of my own. | knew that
undeE his unsupported scrutiny, it was
next TO impossible for the thieves he
was seeking TO escape-even in ham,
pers. didn't trouble myself to help
him, for / knew 1t wasn't necessary; yet
was as anxious as hundreds Of others
that those practiced thieves whom the
police had been hunting for the last
two days should be caught as they de-
served.
Sometimes we came upon group
which my companion could not take in
at a glance. and then he always found
himself unusually cold and stopped to
stamp little l;fe into his petrihed feet
OF course for me this enforced persist
ent questioning with which railway
guards are familiar; and in attending TO
polite uestioners who deserved ans
wering and i'm polite ones who insisted
on 1t, had not much time for looking
about me, but presently did catch my
self watching "a girl who stood alone at
some distance. A girl very pretty and
pleasing to look upon, | thought, though
her face and her dress and attitude
were all sad. She stood just at the
door of the booking otHce-a tall,
slight girl in deep mourning, with
quantity of bright fair hair plated high
upon her head, as well as hanging loose
ly upon her shoulders; with q childish,
innocent face and pretty bewilderipg
eyes. | wished l could have gone
straight to her and put her into one
the most comfortable-of the line of
carriages at which she gazed so timidly.
Just as | hesitated a very remarkable
figure elbowed it's way TO me-a stout,
grandly-dressed old lady, painting pain
fully and almost piercing me with a
pair of restless, half-opened eyes, that
looked out through the gold-rimmed
spectacles perched on her sharp nose
Two porters followed her laden with
bags, clOaks, umbrellas and flowers,
the only flowers in the station, expect,
that winter; and one of the men winKed
at me over her head, while the other
guarded the treasures with face of
concentrated anxiety and thought, en-
crossed by possible fees.
"This is the London train, it is,
ga'ad ~ she asked peeping sharply into
my face with her half closed eyes, as if
she found it difficult to distinguish me
even through her spectac!es.
From her whole attItdde | guessed
her to be deaf, but never guessed how
deaf until, after yelling my answer so
loud that the engine driver must have
heard eighteen carriages off, she still
remained stonily waiting for it.
deaf as a dozen posts" said the de-
tective aloud, giving the old lady an ex-
pressive nod in the direction of thd
train.
"Slow train?" she Intercepted in that
plaintivn tone which the very deaf often
use.
Mail r shouted, putting my mouth
as close to her cheek as | fancied she
would like.
"Alew she shrieked back at me, tine
spectacles shaking a little on her thin
nose. "Why should you want ale for
listening to civil questions that you are
paid to answer? Ale, indeed l believe
railway men think of nothing else"
Then she shook her head angrily and
waddled off, looking as acid an old
party as ever / should try to avoid. In
at every door she peered through her
glittering glasses, the two porters follow
ing her until she made a stop before an
empty secondhand class carriage near
my van, and with much labor and as
sistance cot herself and packages into
it.
When | passed a minute afterward,
she was standing in the doorway, effect
ually barring the door to any other pas
senger by her own unattractive appear
ance there, and prolonging with an evil
dent relish the anxiety of the obse quious
porters. l fancy that though the purse
she fumbled in wGs large, the coin she
hunted was but small, for passed on
and left her still searching, and still
asking questions of the men, but hear
ing nothing either Of their replies or
the loud asides in which they occasion
" INDUCED to each other. l had reach
ed the other end of the train, and was
lust about making way back to my own
van, when the young lady had before
noticed went slowly in front OF me to-
ward the empty first class compart-
ment near where | stood.
Gam | right for Euston" she ask
ed me, gently, as she hesitated at the
door.
San right, miss" said, taking the
door from her, and standing while she
got in. "Any luggage" For from that
very moment l took her in sort OF
way into my charge, because she was
so thoroughly alone. you see, not hav-
ing any friends there even to see her
off.
pes luggage, thank you, she answer
pleasant p,.g her little leather satchel
her on the seat, and settling
EkUF7 corner fsrthest from tue
p anywhere between here
II y stop again, miss, except for
minutes to take tickets" Then l
looked at her, as much as to say, "You
are all right. because I'm the qua d"
and shut the door.
1 suppose that, without exactly being
aware Of it. l kept sort of watch over
this particular carriage, for saw plain
ner e kent l boyefi5s about It and
boxing in. His inquisitive eyes had,
of course, caught sight of the pretty
Too - thora aIopa an1 I aN,,Ii 500