The Red Cloud chief., 1884-10-24

hours moved on. She VIDE eve. and
plump. with pleasant b~lupresepce a.
brown hair. . wholesome n Of clean |
the hearthstone. in her gowjpen collar
chocolate calico With her hd
and scarlet cravat/ Top. Senfof' M
noticed and praiSi the red rioooa-
He comprehenx.d that il WAS put on
10 please him and Junior. both OF whom
liked IN see Mother fixed up. In
this life. thev were her MI. and she &C
countad thar life full and .ich.
AZ she sewed she heard the SOW pat
ter OF February rain on the sheii outside
OF the window. where her howers $1,000
in summer. The great CHS was SINK
inc into such half sleep rs 1t took be-
tween midnigh and dawn: the shr elk
and rush Of incoming and outgoing
trains grew less frequent. She dad not
fire, over the disagreeable weather.
Ton. Senior, hal often said that such
made home and fire and supper more
welcome.
At Juniors BEDTIME he was eighty
miles away. walking up and down the
muddy platform o. che principal station
of Agapolis. stamping his feet 5. each
turn in his promenade to restore the
circulation. HIS was a fast express
train, and he stood during most of the
run. on the alert to guard again>t acct
dent. There was no more careful en-
gineer on the road Fireman and
brakeman were off for supper in or
near the station. He slOuched Is he
walked, his hands thrust deep into his
pockets: his overcast was too heavy
and too loose even for his bulkv figure.
He had taken it OF the hands OF an
engineers widow whose husband was
dragged from under a wrecked train
one night last summer. Mother
used to looa grave when Top. Senior.
began to wear it. but she was not q
mite nOtiOnal-Mother wasn't, and she
was glad now that poor Mrs. Wilson
had the money and he had the beaver
cloth coat. His face was beyrimed
with smoke. his beard clOgged with
cinders and vapOr. A In y. travel
ing alone, hcsitated visibly before
she asked a question. looked surprised
when he touched his Ia. and turned
to 90 half the length Of the platform
that he Nigh. point out the parlor-car.
He observed and interpreted hes tation
and surprise, and was good-humoiedly
amused.
IL S pose | don't look much like what
Junior calls Il hero" he medidated
with a broader gieam. What n cute
Young one he is. Please God, he'll
make a better figure n the world n MS
father hes done. / hope that lily-iowcr
o. hisn will be open in the mornin'.
Seems if / got softer-l.earted bout
hevin' tibet boy disappointed every day
| live. Come summer. he shall hev a
run or two on Her every week. Mother n
me hes got to make up TO him for what
he loses in not bein' strong an like
other chilren. Mother--she's disposed
to Spite him Jest a~Icetle. Bot dear me.
whas a fustrate fault that is in = WON
an She did look good in that ere red
neck-tie. tonight, an she was always
pretty"
The rain was fine and close, like a
slanting mist that pierced the pores,
when the express drew out Of the sta
ton, and as it fell. it froze. Stokes
growled that ''the track would be n
glare of ice before they got her in He
was inclined to be surly tonight. an
uncommon circumstance with the young
fellow. and after several attempts to
enliven him, Top. Senior, let him alone.
He was not in a talkative mood himself.
The tea-table chat ran in his head and
set him to dreaming and calculating.
In five years Junior would be seventeen
old enough, even for a lad who was
mot strong" to earn his living. Ii all
went well there on mt to be n hundred
and fifty dollars in the bank 10y then.
There might be something in mothers
idea of setting him I'D As u florist. And
mother could help with the flowers.
Hello. ole Teller. look OUT"
Stokes had stumbled over the fuel in
the tender. in repleni,hing the boiler
fires. Hc recovered himself with an
oath ut the slippery rubbish Some
thing had. upset his temper, but he
neither spoke nor looked like a man
who had been drinking. The teasing.
Oh ling driz<le continued. The head
light OF the locomotive glanced sharply
from glazed rails and embankments;
tho long bareback of the eng ne shone
as with fresh warn sh.
"D'ye know that on a night like this
she beats out the tune o Home. Sweet
Home" S plain as eve you heerd n
band pay ftp" sa d Top. Senior. cheer
ily out of the thickening damps. 1T
makes me see mother n the boy clear
as ken be. rs = great thing fur imam
TO he, a comfortable home, N . good
woman in it "
Stokes burst out vehemently ut that:
r''This is worse than = dogs life. We
YOU n mc-arc no more to them self
ish creturs in there nOdding back
wards ut the passenger cars--'then the
inyine that draws EN-. I'm sick o
fiee,in' an slavin' an bein' despised
bv men no better n | be! How a man
of any srerr.t n ambition ken stan it
fur twenty years rs YOU hev, beats my
onderstandin'.'
He will always remember the pause
that prefaced the rely. and how Top.
Senior. patted the polished lever under
his hand rs he spoke: ''She's a pretty
respectable cretur, take her all IN all.
When you n l run into the las dark
deepo that's waitin' fur at the end. l
hope we'll be able to shows good still
kits as hern. Here's the bridge! Wen
be soon home. now"
1t Was a long bridge. built far out to
be above high tides. As they touched
it the ~furnace-doOr few open. Some
said. afterwards that the door was not
properly secured. others spoke OF \
'.back-draft." others suspected that the
fire was Over-fed. The volume of flame
that leaped out licked the very faces of
the two men. They recoilei with a
bound and made y simultaneous rush
] for the air-brake in the forward passen-
20 stop the train and check the
d sweep OF the blaze. The
rS. seeing the flash and near