The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1884-02-07
A CHANCE ACQUAINTANCE.

You are sure you have forgotten
nothing, Kitty?''
81 think not, Jane, making a thor
ough examination of the contents OF her
handbag. u have my trunk receipt,
and my KEYS, and my ticket, and a shoe
hook, and black and white pins. and
my purse for small change, and a pocket
comb And, o yes, '-investigating
more freely the small mirror. and
three--four extra handkerchiefs, and
my bottle of heliotrope. | really can t
remember anything that ! have for
gotten. mcditatively, except perhaps
IT might be the coupon for the sleeper,
and John is getting that"
II is the afternoon of a damp, dolefuI
September day. The place is, unromnn-
tically enough, the Chicago depot. The
speakers, Jane Spencer and her sister.
Miss Kitty Warner, who has been visit
ing Western friends and is about to take
the next Eastern train for home. To
say that Mrs. Spencer is i'm q state Dor
dering upon distraction Is simply to gid
refined gold. Originally a simple I'M
Su5pectiug country who has
been introduced rather late in life to the
evils of Il great city as cNcmplifed in
certain experiences with burgiariOus
serving men and maids, and daily diet
upon the pot-poTri of crimes served up
by the press, n.ue hundred mile Jour
ney for her young, pretty and unpro-
tcCtcd sister seems 10 her mind an I'M
dcrtaking fraught with the most terrifv-
ing dangers. And many and solemn
are the warnings which she bestows
upon Miss Kitty anent the perils to be
avoided End the precautions to be taken
until She reaches New York.
II am so sorry that our train starts
10,
fully with tears in her eyes. If il
We're not for Aunt Eunicc's telegram
JOHN and | might have staid over till
to morrow, SO as rs to have seen YOU
fairly off. = And the nervous little wom-
an shakes out a fresh handkerchief and
brushes rising tear from her left eve
Just rs her husband comes up with the
depressing intelligence that the plan of
the sleeper on the Pennsylvania Rail-
road will not be visible for twcntv-eight
minutes yet-iust a quarter of. an hour
after their train is TO leave.
This last calamitous piece of news has
n paralyzing effect upon Mrs Spencer;
and she looks ON in distressed silence
while her husband gives Kitty few
parting instructions, as together they
pore over q railway guide.
" have novel somewhere for YOU
to read on your journey, Kit" John
says presently; and reaching over to his
light Overcoat, which is thrown care
tcssly across the back of the nearest
Settee, he produces dun colOred volume
from one OF its CapaciOus pockets. And,
. mcklcss John! in his explorations he
brings to light something else. Two
letters, which he produces with tremb-
ling hand, and delivers to their re
spective owners his wife and his sister
in-law
Whereupon the spell of silence that
has been laid upon Mistress Jane Is
broken, and she eNClaims, in a voice of
rcproachful tone: "'Weu, Jonathan
spencer l actually don't believe that
You could remember the day that you
were bornr'
No matter, Jenny. At any rate l
never shall forget the dav that | was
married, rctorts her amiable spouse,
with a Righteousness that under the cir
cumstancrS is odiouS, for a skillful
CroSs-cNamiuatiun discloscs the fact that
the wretch has carried these letters i'm his
pocket for nj least three DAYS.
But before the long-SUtiCring Jane
has time to properly rebukc him passen-
gers for the Southern train are warned
that time is up. So Miss Kitty. hastily
thrusting into her bag the letter which
q glance tells her is from her brother
Edgar, desccndS the steps with her rela-
tivcs, and chats with them upon the
platform as cheerfully as Jane miSriv-
ings will permit until the last gono,
strikes, and they enter the train lust as
Jane is in the midst of recountinr n tale
that she read in some newspaper about
n lady whose pocket was picked by n
gentlemauly-appearing man who polite
" helped her off the cars.
"Now remember, Kitty dear" she
whispers. leaning from the window
and speaking in a deep, impressive
tone, you are to trust nothing to APP
pearanCeS. The bcSt-drcsscd men are
invariably the ones TO be suspicious OF!
BE careful of your tickets and money,
and here the cars are fairly in motion
write rs soon rs YOU reach New
York. And, oh Kitty Beware OF drum
mcrs" And with a theatrical wave of
her gray-kidded nand. Mrs. Spencer
draws in her head and disappears from
her sisters view.
In spite of herself Miss Kitty feels
rather lonely as she returns to her seat
in the waitiug-roOm. and seeks cOnsola-
tion in her brothers letter 1t bears
date nearly a week back. and is about
rs illcgibe as an unusually careless
legal hand and an eNCCrable Colorado
can make il. But Kitty is thoroughly
familiar with her brothers scrawls, and
bv skipping n word here. and guessing
one there, her mind eventually graspS
the drift of the welcome entertaining
home news and airy gossip with which
the sCreCd abOundS. The CONCLUDING
paragraph reads like this:
90 received a letter from my friend HaSel-
den, last evening IN which he tells mo that he
is TO bc in Chicago this week and part OF next.
~ S0 o Town win wire hin, Your address ana