The Press., 1886-06-24

I ne, amt there no medical man on thG
 train P And when we said no he just
 gave q groan. Then she must die, he said. Great heavens why did bring
 her on this fatal journey
 Perhaps the young lady1l have some
 remedies, suggested one of the porters
 for we'd all got into the way already of
 turning to the young lady whenever things
 were wrong.
 Well, went for her, and you never see
 anyone so level-headed as she seemed to
 be- She knew just what to do and she
 had the right medicine in her bag and in
 less than an hour that poor lady was quite
 comfortable, and her husband the most
 relieved man that ever was. Then the
 young lady come along to where I was
 standing-there wasn't nothing for me to
 do, but was waiting, for I didn't know
 but there might be-and said she, 'Mr.
 Scott, I am growing anxious about the
 fuel. Do you think there is plenty to
 last ? Suppose we were to be kept here Q
 week P
 Now, just think of it not one of us
 dumb fools had thought of that. You sec
 we was expecting to be relieved from hour
 to hour, for we had telegraphed both
 ways, and the snow had stopped by that
 time, and none of us had any notion it
 was going to be the job it was to dig us
 out. Only the young lady had the sense
 to remember that 1t might take longer
 than we was calculating on.
 Says I, If we are kept here a week,
 there won't be shovelful of coals left for
 any of the fires, let alone the engine
 Then don't you think, says she, in her
 soft voice, that it would be n wise plan to
 get all the passengers in one car, aud keep
 a good fire up there, and let the other
 stoves go out2 It's no matter if we are a
 little crowded, says she.
 We'll, of course it was the only thing to
 do, as we see at once when it was put into
 our heads. We took the car the sick lady
 was in, so's she d not have to be disturbed,
 and we made up beds for the children, and
 somehow all the passengers managed to pack in, train hands and all. It was a
 tight squreze, but that dtdn't matter so
 much, because the weather was SO awfully
 cold
 That was the way come to see so much of the young lady. hadn't anything to keep me about the engine, SO kind of detailed myself off to wait on her. She was busy all day long, doing things for the rest. It's queer how peoples charac- ters come out at such times. We got to
 know all about each other. People stop ped sir-lng and ma'am-ing and being , polite, and just showed for what they were worth. The selfish ones and the shirks and the towards, and the mean cusses who i wanted to blame some one besides the Almighty for sending the weather-there , want no use for any of them to try to hide themselves any more than 1t was for , the other kind. The women, as rule, bore up better than the men. It comes , |, natural, I suppose, for a woman to be kind a of silent and pale and patient when she's a suffering. But the young lady wasn't that
 sort, either. She was as bright as a button l all along. You'd have supposed from her
 face that she was having just the best I kind of a time
 9 I can see her now, standing before the stove roasting jack-rabbits for the others f. supper. Some of the gentlemen had re- ls volvers, and when the snow got crusted J over, SOS they could walk on it, they used n to shoot 'em. And we were glad enough n of every one shot, provisions were so O scanty. The last two days them rabbits d and snow water melted in pail over the if stove was all we had to eat or drink if I suppose there was nothing for you tC ,t do but wait, said Miss Vaughn. y No ma'am there wasn't nothing at al 't for me to do but help the young lady now
 and then. She let me help her more than the rest, I used to think She'd como tc b me and say, 'Mr. Scott, this rabbit is for n you and the conductor She never forgot ~ any ybody-except herself. Once she asked ,s me to hold the sick little girl while shc
 took sleep. It was mighty pretty alwayl n to see her with them children. They
 never seemed to have enough of her. All a of them wanted she should put them tc "a bed, and sing to them, and tell them sto ,r ries. Sometimes she'd have all five swarm 2 ing over her at once. I used to watch ,0 them.
 70 70 Well, how did it end P asked Mis-, o Vaughn, as the engineers voice, which 10 10 had gradually grown lower and more
 dreamy, came to a stop.
 'Eh What Oh p-rousing himself I Ia ended when three locomotives and a relic .a train from Cheyenne broke through to ui rs on the eighth morning after we was block if aded. They brought provisions and coal sr and we got ou first-rate after that. Dic ,, the sick lady die ? No, ma'am. She wal lo living, when last heard of her, down tC ie Santa Barbara. Two years ago that was. re And what became of your young lady ,S She left at Sacramento. Her brother t or some one was down to meet her. l sav ,s him moment. He didn't look like her. 1r And you never saw her again YoI , ~. never heard her name2'
 "a No, ma'am never did, m The engineers voice sounded gruf anC aa husky as he said this. He shoveled il Ie ., cuals with needless energy.
 J' Are you a married man 2 asked Mis- ai Vaughn. The question sounded abrup 's % even to herself, but seemed relevant {, DO ao something in her mind.
 'ss No.
 % ~, John Scott looked her squarely in th 1S tv face as he replied. His countenance wa , " rather grim and set, aud for a moment sh " feared that she had offended him. Then 4 as he met her deprecuting gaze, he reas 70 sured her with a swift smile. n No, ma'am, aiu't; and never shal -' be as know of, he added. 'Second-rat er wouldn't satisfy me now,'I guess H Sa pulled the cord which hung ready to hi ,r hand, and a long screeching whistle ran nd out over the plain, and sent the prairi aa dogs scuttling into their burrows.
 ,t This is a feeding station we're comin ho to, he explained. Twenty minutes her he m for supper, ma'am and it ain't bad suT 'at per either. I reckon you'd like to hay ;f me help you down, wouldn't youT hb f,s .D,,,, A,,,n o rszS,,I ,,,.x,