Stephens City star. (Stephens City, Va.) 1881-1883, 1882-06-10

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"The story was only a poor Frame
work after all. I'll fill it in tomorrow" {"
And sleep came.
The train went early. Stone was in
the habit of rising late. Bladeley had
been walking nervously up and down
the sidewalk in front of the hotel for q
half hour before his friend appeared.
They were too late for breakfast they
were too late to walk to the train they
might fail to reach it even by hack, for
it was nearly two miles from the hotel
to the station. Stone talked almost in
cessantly all the way. The train was in
sight when they arrived, and Stone was
just concluding,
"Ihave as large fortune as wish !;
more isn't. worth trying for. neglected
to tell you last night that have the
loveliest Of women for wife. I've an
elegant home, congenial neighbors,
perfect servants. I wouldn't say so to
anyone but you for man with no bus
mess and no ambition would be looked
down on in this rushing age of which you
are type; but I have nothing left to
work for-nothing to look forward to
no desire ungratifed."
The hack stopped. No one had
ever called Charley Bladeley super
stitious, but he glanced at his friend
with much the look he might have
given had ghost leered at him over his
friends shoulder. Stone never noticed
it he was slowly and ponderously get
ting out of the carriage. Bladeley,
always in a hurry and always nervous.
rushed away to attend to his baggage,
The nervous lines in his face had deep
ened in the last few minutes. Stone,
who was never in hurry, and one of
those fortunate individuals who can
travel anywhere without luggage, set
tied with the hackman, and sauntered
slowly across the platform. Bladeley
looked up from his talk with the bag
gage master to follow with a look of
anxious admiration his friend, who was
SO entirely his opposite in every respect.
He turned back again, and finished his
business with the agent.
There is always hustle and confusion
at station at train time. but Bladeley
turned toward the train with his checks
in his hand with the impression strug-
Cling into prominence in his mind that
the confusion was greater this time than
usual. There were hoarse cries and
commands; rush forward-a shrinking
ba *. A fainting woman was helped
toward the waiting.room a pale man
reeled against ths wall of the building.
Bladeley moved forward. Some one
said, "They came together" and the
crowd silently opened and let him pass
-dazed as yet to the reason why he
should be given privileges in city
where he was stranger. Yesterday he
had gone unwittingly to meet his friend
for the first time in twenty years now
he went to meet him for the last time in
this world. No one knew how it hap
pened. and no one ever found out but
four men were bringing Andrew Stone
up the track, up from under the train
where he had met his death. He smiled
at Bladeley, muttered slowly, "not
friendless here-I am lucky-one friend
-Bladeley-tell my wife that" and it
was all over. And Bladeley, on his
knees beside his dead friend, groaned,-
"My God felt ii coming"
No clew to Stones home or family or
friends was found on his person
Bladeley could give no very definite
description of the friend he had known
for only one day in the last score of
years and no one could attempt to
describe what the cruel wheels had left.
So Bladeley was the only mourner who
followed Andrew Stone to his grave two
days later. Afterward, advertisements
were of no avail. The description was
faulty; perhaps the name was not an
uncommon one; possibly his home was
in some distant land. At any rate, the
man who had always conquered fate left
no potency to his friend after him. No
word was ever heard from the friends or
family of Andrew Stone.
If the chambermaid who swept the
room in which Andrew Stone told his
all too fragmentary story of his life had
saved the scrap of paper she put in the
ash-barrel, Bladeley would have given
her more money than she had ever had
at any time in her life before. If the old
woman who took it from the ash-barrel
and kindled her fire with it had saved
it, she might have had better food than
she had ever known. AS she watched it
slowly kindle into fame she spelled out
the following words written on it =
So Won see. dear Bladeley. I have