The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1884-04-24

but hlcharde new tricycle. ran 6mootn
ly. His heart was in his mouth. as tho
country folk say, as she began to glid,
rapidly off. She turned her head, an6
! flashed back merry defiance my
uncle, the chemist at Rochester, usec
to say" Then the wicked spark,
faded suddenly, and she called quick
and clear: ~Can you stop me, please
The brake is stiff; 1 can't make it work
it's running away"
Poor Richard of the faint hearth II
seemed to die within him. The next
second she darted forward, but it wa.
Just one second too late. The check
she had been able to put on the heavy
machine with the treadles ceased to
keep it back, and faster and faster it
tore down the perilous road.
In all his life to come Richard will
never know any minute so long as that
next, while tho straight, slight figure
flying through space seemed to swim
before his eyes, and his knees knocked
together as he stood.
On, on-iaster, faster! She managed
somehow to cling to the steering handle
and keep the machine in the middle o
the road, but the mad pace grew more
desperate She could never turn thai
fatal corner by the railway embank-
ment; over it she must go. And il
was just then that Richard and she,
both together saw the puff OF snow
white smoke from the hillside, that
tod them the evening express was out
Of the tunnel. and laundering down
that very bit of line.
1t all flashed over Agatha in one
rush; would the fall kill her, or would
it be the train? 1t must be one or the
other; the next second or two would
settle that: and q swift prayer was on
her lips, but what she never quite
knew, for even as she breathed it,
some one or something in brown tweed
knickerbockers, hurled itself over the
roadside stile before her, stout stick
darted into the flying wheel, and with
one quick swerye the tricycle. crashed
into the ditch, and lay there, a confused
mass of spinning spokes AZ mutilated
tires, while Agatha flew out from it's
midst like ball, and alighted on o
grassy bank yard or two away; and
the express rushed past with wild
yell on the line just below, and vanished
round sharp curve that matched the
road above it.
Then, and then alone, did Richards
legs regain their power of motion, and
he set off as fast as they could carry
him TO where the little black figure lay.
Somehow it took longer to run down
that hill than the last descent would
have led one to think, for when Richard,
painting and breathless, reached the
scene of the accident, the little black
figure, very much out of its usual trim
neatness, was seated on the grassy
tangle that broke her fall, busily bind
ing up with her own small handker-
chief deep cash in the hand of the
lnickerbockered person who knelt at
her side. 1t was very pale face that
looked up at Richards, with the sort
of awe that any human creature must
wear who has just been face to fac,
with death, but her great grey eyes
had a wonderful flushing light i'll them.
"The poor tricycle." she said; II am
so sorry. Is it very badly hurt?' And,
in the fervor and relief of his gladness,
Richard could find words for nothing
but:
Bother the tricycle."
He was ready enough to say some
thing, however, presently, when he
found himself obliged to stop and see
its remains dccently cared for, while
Capt. Hardwicke took charge of Miss
Travers return to the rectory. She
said she was none the worse for her
fall. but perhaps she was q little
shaken; but Capt. Hardwicke kindly
offered her his arm, and she took it..
Richard hurried after them before
long, his whole heart aglow. That awful
minute this afternoon had taught him
that life without Agatha Travers would
seem poor and worthless thing, were
she factory girl. He hurried after
them, therefore, and came in sight OF
the rectory gate as two hands, one very
neatly bandaged, unclasped over it, and
q small dark head raised itself swiftly
from brown tweed shoulder, where it
seemed to have been resting.
Good gracious" was all Richard
could utter, as Agatha vanished, and
Capt. Hardwicke, looking odiously
radiant, sauntered toward him.
"Ah, Allerdyce, old fellow, caught
us, have you? Then I may as we'll tell
you all my tremendous good luck at
once, and take your congratulations
Perhaps yos've heard how Miss
Travers' nursing saved my life last year,
and when, of course, fell in love with
her, as who wouldn't? She would have
it it was only gratitude, and refused to
let me make what she called mes
alliance, just because there's that brute
of title coming to me some day.
told her thought all that rubbish was
obsolete, and offered to drop the title
altogether If she liked; but nothing
would do, and we parted rather out OF
temper. L heard she was down here,
and ran down to see my uncle, hoping
he would talk her over, but began to
think it was no use. And, do you
know, L was frantically jealous of you,
old fellow! j saw she liked you. and ]
almost believe you could have cut me
out early in the day, if you'd had the
pluck to try, she was so set against me
But to-day she. made it all right, and
she thinks I've saved her life this
time, so we're quits. Well, old man,
am not the luckiest man alive?"
"But-but-" stammered the wretch
cd RichaSd, surely, her family"
"She's an orphan. Oh, L see what