The Grenada gazette. (Grenada, Miss.) 1885-18??, 1886-10-02
that followed IL Twas full Of wild 70

saw a million defects in my plan.
With agony l realized that my flight
DESTROYED the theory of innocence. l
could see a dozen ways that l might
have remained upon the car-now
that it was too late. My journey south
was through innumerable h~ardships.
and the ever-present and sickening APP
prehension of pursuit. In the camps
where hunger drove me it seemed to
me that every body looked strangely at
me. If a man turned his head my
heart bounded with panic. Twice
was lost on the arid, sage-grown
plains, and once l wandered without
water and burning with fever for two
days.
l had ninety-four dollars In my
pocket when l jumped from the train.
but when l finally made my way to
Guaymas I had less than fifty cents.
There l was forced to come into town
and 90 to work. Tan and tatters had
pretty thoroughly disguised me, but ]
was still haunted by the fear OF
arrest. 1t was a long time before
| could look at a newspaper at all,
and when l finally plucked ur
courage to open one, it was with the
gingerly caution Of a person who lifts
a garment expecting to find a snake
underneath. l had q terror Of seeing
the details of the tragedy in print, and
l believe, much as it might have aided
my escape | would not have had
the moral courage to read a paper con-
tanning them.
After a good many months a great
longing seized me to see my own coun'
try again. The adobe houses and the
foreign chatter to which | could never
train my tongue wore on me like q
nightmare. was miserably poor, but
managed to make my way to Paso del
Norte. On the other side of the Rio
Grande is Ell Paso, the American
town, and, although l never ventured
over. the sight Of visitors OF my W
nationality delighted, excited and
frightened me by turns. l hung about
the place, living from hand to mouth
until one day a great event happened.
=, At the end of the main street is the
principal curiosity of the town-the old
cathedral. 1t is y venerable pile, built
time out of mind, and falling into de.
-. liberate and respectable ruin. The
, white stucco that once covered the
walls has peeled off in places and given
it an air of picturesque d~ilapidation,
and inside are curious effigies of saints
:. and the cruciiicd Christ. In a word,
it is the objective point of all tourists
=, and visitors, | was in this place n
8 afternoon in August, half doing on n
of the old carved benches, when g
party of ladies and gentleman came in.
Back of me was the h~oly-water urn,
and they were inspecting it when ]
looked up. At the sight of one of the
ladies | felt as though l had received 9
galvanic shock. | tried to rise, but
could not, Ishut my eyes and opened
them again to lind her still there. Ii
was no Authorization, no apparition, il
was Miss Paxton.
"Why, mamma. heard her say,
1.-THE gentleman is unwell. | believe
You are Miss Paxton.' l gasped.
YES, sir" she replied, with a little
start.
who was on the Southern Pacific
train going to Los Angeles a year
ago?"
''Yes, sir.' Then she suddenly
turned and SAID in a low voice: ''Why,
| believe it's the conductor who ran
away with the company's money thai
night!'
"Who ran away with the company's
money! 1t was a construction of my
flight | had never thought of. l con.
trolled my impulse to shout out, and
said:
"Were you not in upper FIVE tina,
night"
Let me see,' she replied. "Ithink
| was. Yes, remember; | was in il
for a while. and then the jolting made
me sick and l erawlod down with
mamma"
rushed out of the cathedral like a
mad man. / seemed to walk on air.
My past life appeared as vague and
unreal to me as the fabric of a dream.
l laughed and cried and went along
the streets talking IL myself. That
night | slept on the other side of the
river. Perhaps the reaction was too
much tor me, for | have not been very
well since, and these fits of nervous
ness have pulled me down to what you
see me to-day. 1t seems as if there
were chords twanging and quivering
through me now and then, and that is
when my ideas get side-iracked and
wild trains 60 sailing over my mental
railroad. But may be that's the bro
mide.-San Francisco Chronicle.
COULDN'T GET IN.
Why an Honest Changers Exhibit Was
Not Wanted at the County Fair.