The Somerset reporter., 1888-03-14
SELECTED.
DETECTIVE AND PRISONER.

DETECTIVE AND PRISONER.
Two men sat together in the rear sea
of smoking car ON one of our railroad
and chatted Familiarity of the ups an,
downs of miners life, the topic bcin!
suggested by a landscape dotted with coal
breakers and furroWed coal roads.
The freedom and interest of their con
yersation did not seem to be dampcd by
the fact that the younger of the two car
ried "A revolver, while his companion wor,
a pair of those uncoycted articles of Jew
elry which are known in criminals circle
as "braeclctS."
The few passengers who had observe,
them learned from the confidential brake
man that they were noted detective aut
his prisoner on the way to trial. As fal
as ages went, the pair might have beer
taken for father and son, the fine era,
head of the one contrasting strongly will
the crisp brown curls of his captor.
What crime had been committed, tn,
brakeman did not know, but hazarded ;
! conjecture that it "must have been
pretty bad one, or George MunsoI
wouldn't have took the trouble to pu
them things on his wrists"
Presently the brakeman and the con
ductor satisfied the joint demands of Ell
quette and curiosity by stopping to ex
change few words with the detective
the former then perched himself upon the
coal-boX directly behind the prisoner, anC
the latter dropped magniiiccntly into the
scat in front, The train was sweeping
around Il curve and past ruined trestl,
on the hill side at which both Of the pass
cngcrs looked with some interest.
al rpmpulbnr Int D1apn - said tho p11al
man
so do T. responded the younger; "a
was born there. Came near being buried
there, too, he resumed, after n moment,
pause
GLOW was that
its pretty long story, said the de-
tcctive, "but guess wei have time fol
it between this and the next station,
Way up their Oh the slope is the little
settlement where | made my debRt, so t.
speak; from it to the bottom of the hill
there used to be gravity road-a long,
winding track reaching from the settle
mcnt down to the top of n blank wall of
earth where a slide occurred the year |
was born. On both sides of the track
grew saplings that had sprung up since
the disaster (what am telling YOU hap
pencd five years later, and they crowded
the road and hung over the old rusty rails
on which the coal cars used to run. You
must remember that the houses were
built near the mouth of the pit-that was
one of the first mines worked in this
country, and one of the first to be aban-
doned Time | am telling about, som,
men were walking up track, and a lot OF
children playing near the top, little bovS
climbing in ana out of an old ear which
had lain there since it made its last trip
with the broken spraggs still in Its
wheels.
The men were miners, all but one of
them, who questioned his companion
about their work and the countrE they
| lived in, He was evidently stranger
! probably a newspaper man,
"Presently as they talked, shout from
the top of the slope attracted their at
tention, and they looked up justin time ii
see the ear begin to move slowly down
| the grade.
There was an inpatient exclamation
the oldest man in the party. Them bratS
is always up to some mischief. he said,
They have started that old thing of at
last; I've been eNpectin' to see it 90 any
time this five year. They'll be breaking
their ncckS yet with their tomfooling.
And another of the group added; we
must dust out of this lively, unless we
want to get our own neckS broke; she'll
either jump the rail or 90 to pieces at the
bottoms lucky there ain / no one aboard
of her
The stranger was looking anXiously
up at the approaching runaway His
quick eye had caught sight of something
round and golden above the black rim.
There's child in that car. he said,
quietly,
at was a second or two before his com
panions realized the awful meaning of
that statement. \ child. That was, as
if he had said that in a few moments
some une--perhaps one of themselves
would be Childless.
"With one impulse they turned to look
at the broken rails by the edge of the
vault, Shuddcring, they fixed their eyes
again on the approaching mass, then
hOpelessly ON each other. They could
not dream of stopping the progress of the
car. But quick As thought almost, the
stranger took hold of Il sapln@ and bent
it down till it nearly touched the track,
Hold it, hc said. to one of the men, 1t
will help to check her. rod further
down another and then third and fourth
were held in the same way. SO four
of the party waited for a few GREATNESS
seconds, while the two remaining ones
hurried further down, but one more cf-
fort and the car Was upon them The
first obstacle was whipped out of the
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m" ohsnnnies / mcon-nrd if was foupJ
mot II. ,,.n. onl, rrfnnloJ for Hfe
.rha miners folts NOT easily moved
were enthusiastic abont the affair. and
oove snch testimonials AS they could. to
show thcir uratit de and anprrciation.
one of these expreSsions took the form
of n souvruir signed by every man i'm the
place and stating in very srandiloqucnt
language what the poor fellow had done.
Ills quick wit seemed to them more won