The Progress., 1888-09-22

had been caught among the fallen
timbers below in such way as to save
me from drowning, though, as it was,
it cost me dear. My spine was so in.
jured by the fall that I have never.
walked a step since.
One OF the first things I asked,
when ! was able to talk of the matter,
was about the train. Joe Varnish, the
engineer of the express locomotive,
who was off duty while the bridge was
down, was by me at the time and. told
me the story. "A
. How comes it that you are here,
Joe, instead of at the bottom of the
river, you and the whole train?"
asked.
st He looked at me with queer look
q moment, and then he stopped over,
and took up from the floor red lam
tern. Isknew it the moment I saw it,
as the one had carried that night,
and remembered dropping it as I:
began to fall.
: It's that that saved us!'' said he.
Il was puzzled both at his manner
and at what he said, but ] was more
puzzled land startled, too-when he
went on to explain:
We were coming down the road "a
little late, full drive, at forty five miles
an hour said he, sand had just passed
the station, and had whistled for the.
crossing, when I caught sight ahead of
us, and not q great way off either, Of a
danger-signal, the red light It was
right in the middle of the track, and
evidently approaching, moving up and
down quickly, as though the man who
carried it was running with all his.
might. ],
'''Of course, reversed and whistled
down the brakes in an instant; and it.
wasn't half minute, may be, before
we came to u standstill, with the light.
now almost upon us. And almost be-
fore we were fully stopped, I jumped
down and ran ahead to meet it, and
learn what was the matter. It was
some rods ahead yet, and / could still
see it swinging from side to side, as
though the person bringing it had now
slackened his pace to a walk. A sec
ond later. it seemed stationary, and
seemed to be waiting for me to come up.
AS | came close upon it, you may imag-
inc my astonishment to find it set down
in the middle of the track, and not a
soul to be seen anywhere around.
''I spoke, and then called aloud and
then shouted, but got no response.
And before this, had not heard any
sound or football. And when, a mo-
ment later, the conductor and some of
the train-men came up with lights, we
searched out, and could not find any
traces of the person who seemed to:
have left it there.
'Ihen we went on down the road; !
and there we found the bridge gone.
AS we approached, your dog COM.
menced bowling, and we found him on
the edge of the embankment, and in
ferred that you had fallen down the
embankment. We searched at once,
and found you almost dead, though / :
am very glad to say not quite that
.sThat was the way Joe told me the
story. And when he had finished, I,
lay there thinking it over for some:
time. At last said:
6 Joe, how could it have got there
the lanternp'
'.Joe shook his head.
" 4 can't tell, said he. sAll I know,
about it is, that it was there, and It'll
saved the train. But I'm sure it wasn't
done by any human hand!'
II thought it over for some moments
longer. I did not believe in ghosts, or;
spirits, or any thing of the sort. Some
body or something living must have
taken the lantern from the spot where,
I dropped it as fell down the embank-;
ment, and carried it up the track to:
the place where Joe Varnish first found
it. And all at once was sure I had
solved the enigma.
".Joe,' said I. i have it!'
sssHow is that?' he asked.
"'There were three of us that went
down, and found that bridge gone
said I.
sThreeP' repeated he, more mysti-
fed than ever.
- Yes said I. Myself, the Ian
tern and the dog. Now I could not
have taken the lantern up the track.
And it couldn't have taken itself up
there. Therefore, it must have been:
the third one of US don't you seep'
Joe stood a moment puzzling over
it. Then his face broke into a broad
smile, and he nodded his head:
Yes, he said, at length. Yes, /
see. y
The old fagman ended his story,
and looked up at Harry and me as we
stood there, not quite comprehending
even now just how it all had happened.
''What! Don't yoat see either?n asked
he, and he laughed heartily to himself,
for a moment. Then he put his fingers
to his lips, and gave shrill whistle.
The next instant a large lack dog
came bounding down the road, and
came to the old fagman's side. His