The Republican journal., 1883-10-11

dDOdTu.
Why had he not thought of this before I?
A wild thrill of hope ran through his
heart; he could scarcely wait for the
train to come up; why should he he
could run down to the Tuck junction
and get on the cars there so off he went
again at full speed, and boarded the
train the instant it slowed
SIS my little Lotte aboard he called
eagerly, turning a white, worn face and
hungry eyes towards conductor Smith,
who stood in the caboose- door.
"No, sir; nobody but them you see
sttin' before you," smiled the conductor
quite unaware of the agony his answer
gave the eXpectant father.
MIR. Park dropped into a seat that was
luckily vacant close beside him. There
was no child there, but small boy of
about Lotties age-a boy as black as
black could be, who turned and looked
at him with grin.
Mr.. Park laughed he was so tired, so
anxious, SO cruelty disappointed, that he
laughed aloud, but it was a laugh worse
than a cry.
Everybody turned to look at him, but
the train stopped, and being close to the
NOOl+ IC SOp Oul lllOl, NouU ONtI w lllt
freight-stati sat down Oh a cheese
box and leaned his head against beam,
entirely worn out.
The freight t-master asked some trivial,
kindly questions, but the poor man shook
his head silently; he could not speak so
the other went his way and let him alone.
He saw that something was the matter
he could neither meddle with nor help,
but he told his wife that night that he
did wonder what allied Park; for he
never saw such a face in all his life as his
was that day.
1t seemed as if the afternoon never
would go by; he heard three o'clock
strike from somebody's house near BY
and as the minutes wore on he thought
that the clock had run down, but he
pulled out his watch and it was quar-
ter of four. Almost time for the West
ern tram to come in; then rose the Ques-
ton in his mind whether the suspense
would be shortened if he got on that train
and went down to East tIartland to wait
for the evening train out. He would
know sooner but what would he know
Was horrible certainty easier to bear
than suspense?
a
tentative at once, but be Shrank from it,
partly because he was weakened and
worn with the terrible strain of the last
few hours, and actually felt unable to
make the exertion; partly because, like
more than half the other people in the
world, he wanted to delay a shock that
was probable as long as it could be done
The train steamed iii he heard the
hotel-porters crying out their short, sharp
Invitations; he heard laughter, the buzz
of tongues, the driving off of carts and
carriages, the clatter of an unruly horses
hoots, and the objurgations of his driver
but he never lifted his weary head
His thoughts took new turn he went
back to the day Lottie was first laid in
his arms, a little, helpless, tretting baby
of a day old. But how proud he was of
his girl, even from her baby hood how
he had watched every new trick, and
laughed with delight at the broken baby
language. how scared she was at the
locomotive the first time he took her
down on the platform, hiding her fair
head in his breast and sobbing with ter
Tor.
Poor little soul he wondered if she
had been frightened when she fell from
the train, or if she had been spared the
terror by instant death He shuddered
at the idea, and made great effort to
control himself, and dispel the dreadful
tances that haunted him. He got up
and walked up and down the freght-de-
pot, then he went over to the waiting
room, picked up a New York paper
somebody had left behind, and sat reso-
lutely down to read it. There was a
great deal OF news in that paper, but he
never knew it, All he saw was
''LOtre dear little Lottie lost Lottie y
The words seemed to dance up and
down the columns everywhere. A boy
came along with apples he bought one
Of them and tried to eat it, but it chOked
him.
Time would fail me to tell of his efforts
to make the day fly; but it only crept
the slower His very agony wore itself
out at length he was dull and dumb,
like one who walks in bad dream.
At last the halt-hOur after five came,
and he rose from the box where he had
been sitting on the street side of the
station, and went around to the railway
platform where the cars would come in.
The wind was in his favor; it blew
from the southeast. When he had stared
at the clock-tace in the waiting room,
through the window, at least fifty times
and counted out ten minutes, he heard
distant shrek of the whistle, and his
heart stood still. Only ten minutes
more for the train was due at $50 p. NJ.
But what minutes! Ten there were
ten hundred Of them at the least. and
then-there it came--slowly, carefully
up to the PLATFORM, and there was Tom
Scott's pleasant face, and his athletic fig
ure at the door of the car ready to hand
out trunks.
"TOm, Tom Scott !" cried strange,
hoarse voice, as a man pushed fercely
through the astonished crowd to the
baggage-car, "Where's my girl where is
Lotte ;"
'Iottie!" calculated Tom, pausing in
the act Of sliding big trunk to the plat
form.
'Lottie why, man alive, where do you
s'pose she is to home, aint she? where
she'd oughter be"
"Did you fetch her-send her. mean
on the 2:lO train ?"
''Bless your crazy soul. | never took
her When | see you didn't get
aboard this noon, jest took an dropped
her into Georges arm-he stood there a.
loOkin' on; and ses J, Take her hum,
George; he amt agoin' today, as see
SO he ketched her and went off with her
Didn't she kick, though !" and Tom Scott
laughed a. the recollection.
Mr.. Park would have liked to knock
him down on the spot; but the relief;
the revulsion, was so greet he had scarce
strength to drag himself up into the car.
A few pants of the engine, short tug
up the heavy grade, and they were at
West Waring station, and there running
across the street, towards the station,
rosy, dancing, smiling, came lost Lottie ,
Youths Companion.