Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1885-10-09
4 FAMILY AFFAIR
BY HUGH C0NW AY,
4utior q Gated .'ael' a,d Dark Days.
CHAPTER l.
A IITTLE pERELCT.

| ~ E$2ss-~T/~/2 2 Is
WIN MI 7 Twasa dreary, dismal
n N\>%|5 wintry afternoon. Al
IL \NE the lights Of Padding
~ ton Station were ere
damp fog which filed the arched ezpansc from
end to end. The bread platform teerned with
the motion and baStle attendant upon the de
I,3rtll~e Of Il train: The newspaper boys alone
/ ejc having comparatively 6un time of It
as the first act of every passenger, upon tax
ing his seat, WAS 10 pull up the window and
shut out as much fog as possible. declining &c
let the sash down for any one, except other
travellers who. having paid their fares, claimed
their right to seats il. the trsa:n-a proceeding
which 70 the first installed passenger, always
seems supremacy seltiS.L The new conner, OF
corners, might cheese some other compart-
ment than his.
The moving rack which bears the lamps
reached the extreme end Of the train. The
StronS-ar1ncd official below hurled the last
crystal globe 10 the nimhle official who runs
along the top Il the carriages, and leaps Sc
recklesSly froEl one to another, Dett as an
Indian iuggler, he caught tie cleaning mis-
sile stamped il into TIE last socket, and sprang
incontinently from the already moving train.
The guard shut the last door, which some
bodv's carclesSneSs had left open, jumped into
his van Us it swept by him, and punctual &c
the minute, the five o'clock train left London
and began its race TO PenZance.
In one of the tirst-claSS compartments We're
three passengers although the railroad COM
pany would only benefit to the extent OF two
fares. one of these passengers being a child
still young enough to be passed off as child
in arms BY all save. perhaps. those tender
al who Snlh cnnSplpnCp money
to the chancellor of the eNchequer The two
travellers who augmented the company'S rev.
enuc Were man and a woman.
That they were strangers was evident, and
it was also evident that the man was an old
Traveller As soon as the train was in motion,
and he felt insured fer some time TO come
against disturbance, he arranged his wraps III
the most approved fashion, donnCd n soft cap,
Lit a lamp and buried himself i'll book He
was young man: but as he appears in this
tale only TO disappear, a detailed description
would be superliuous 1t is enough to know
he was a gentleman, well dressed, well-to-do
III appearance and looked quite i'll his place
in a tirst-cl;Ss carriage.
1t was a different matter with the woman.
There was no obvious reason why she should
not be able aud willing 10 pay thrcepence-
hafpenny instead of 4 penny n mile for the
privilege of being WhlsECd to hSf ocStlilliloh'
Vet one could imagine a cruSty old director,
who travels free himself, and is therefore
anxious to prevent tie company from being
dcfraudetl. calling to q guard and suggesting
that the wo,nan's ticket should be examined.
Or, from purely benevolent reasons, u per-
son who knows what mistakes wCmCn r.akc
i'll such matters, might with proprictv lave
remarked: How comfortable these first
class carriages are" For my part, should
most certainly have done so-not from be-
revclence but to save myself, who had paid
lust fare from feeling swindled If, at the
Journeys end, Il good-natuved ticket collecto:
let of the victim of such Il comfortable ms
take.
Vet there was nothing remarkable i'll the
,son3aGs appearance, except the utter absence
81 Individuality il displayed. For any s5uid
aq,e h2Y iool; gave, she might have been
rich ur poor young or old, beautiful or ugly,
noble or simple. Had her travelling Gem
pancr been Us curious as he was at present
indifferent about the matter. he might have
IT opposite to her from London to the Lands
End vet not have known how to classify her.
She as dl csscd i'll plain black-and black, like
Charity and night, coNercUh and lndcth mnrh.
NJ scrap Of bright ribbon, no Nc,ti2e of
color. broke the sombre monotony of her
attire, and thick black veil hid the upper
| part of her face. She sat like one III
| thoughtful frame of mind. Her head was
bent forward and so threw her mouth and
chin into the shade Her hands being gloved,
it was impossible to know whether she wore
wedding ring or not