The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1883-05-19
IkATIE'S LANTERN.

Truth to tell, the comfortable, old
fashioned farmhouse, at the foot Of the
narrow and rocky ledge, had a most
picturesque position. Away to the
southwark wound and SIN lied the for
tile valley, a goodly proportion of
whose acres appertained to Grandfather
CroWninshield, and along the edge
thereof swept the curves Of the railway
after what seemed it's birth in the clo-
ven ledge so very near to Katie Crown
inshield's home. AS for Kate herself,
with her sweet, fresh face and her mer-
ry brown eyes, the little valley and her
nesting home were all the world to her,
indeed, that she had ever known, for
she had been but q wee thing when
Grandfather and Grandmother Crown
inshield became father and mother to
her, i'll place Of those whose faces she
could now hardly remember. Neither
did 1T ever occur to her that she was in
any sense an heiress, for she seemed
rather to belong to the valley than the
valley to her; while the idea, if any
thing had brought it to her mind, that
her good cid grandparents were not to
live forever, would have turned the
brightest June day to the gloomiest
Deccmber.
But, in these latter years, one great
entity had painfully struggled into
kate's world, with an apparent mission
to unite the valley with that great un-
known, Which lay beyond the hills and
Lodges. Kate had seen the ragged rift
clovcn in the granite wall, watching it
listening for the dull reports Of the
blasting charges, until the barrier was
parted and the railway crept out and
found its way down through the valley !;
and, ever since the trains began to run,
she had connected with them the idea
or life that was almost human. She
had waved her handkerchief enthusias-
ncally to the very first train, and had
been literally responded to by passell-
gers and conductor; and, although she
had been then a little girl and was now
young lady, she had never yet dream
ed OF any unmaidenly boldmess in giving
the same white signal of welcome, at
times, when the great railway mystery
came rushing out of the cloven wall
There was one train in particular to
which Katie's attentions we're at last
pretty well restricted-a through-ex-
press, which went by at eight o'clock in
the morning, aud there was another
from the same direction again at eight
O'Clock at night. From the former,
just as easily as her OWN dainty good
morning " iluttered above the garden
gaze, 50 certainly would thcoo bu IL
tieeLlng flash Of white to answer her
from The platform of one of the cars, or
even from the engine itself, for that,
too, had happened. And Katie knew
very we'll that, in these latter days, at
least, her answer had always come from
the same hand. A tall, erect, manly
fai Jo -, Il, l.
cloth ; and Katie had been we'll aware,
for Il good while, that he was the con-
ductOr Of the train, but she had never
yet been near enough to speak to him,
or get amy clearer noLiOn Of his face and
its meaning than might be given her in
those swift but almost daily glmpses.
When or how he found his way back to
the beginning of his perpetual journey,
was question that Katie never asked
even OF herself. 1t was enough that,
every morning the swift train brought
] him out OF the unknown country be-
yond the hills; and added u something
that had grown to be very pleasant TO
the peace and quiet Of her day
Il There was something very noteworthy
4, even to railway mon, about the manner
q i'll which the road broke in upon that
HI valley. A deep cut, a sharp curve and
n heavy down-grado, combined to make
NJ the precise point where the conductor
S had learned to look for Katie's greeting
an interesting one and her White ker-
M chief may even have seemed TO wave u
81 species OF cOngratulatiOn ut his repeat
81 ell safe passage OF what might AZ any
"a time have shaped itself into Il danger.
u But that as it may, the railway ''cut'
Il had brought to Katie Crownlllsllleld.
4 among other results, Il shorter and
81 easier path to the home Of her aunt, her
Sssnother's sister, who lived just i. little
way beyond tie ledge, and who was
never satisfied il too many days passed
#by without bringing tho sunlight OF
katie's face across her threshold. And
ESQ Katie had gone and returned, many
sand many lime, by the narrow path
Ssbetween the granite walls. Nobody in
ssthat peaceful region dleamed of fear at
$$being out after dark and again and
3 had good Aunt Betsy detained
her pet until night had fallen, although
yys;sher only companion lioneward was her
sdslittle star OF u lantern.
SSS SSlS There came day when Katie's hand
kerchief tluttered in vain, and then an
Other, when even the reply she received
SSSHrom the train convinced her that there
lllad been change of some kind, and
that she would receive no more signals