The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1889-01-31
MISS PAPA


there could bs = sen. arriving last of all
tail. sturdy iookin fellow. who led by ih'
hand little Girl. sssea OF eish, years old
The, .ere Michel Pisrroa and bis litl'
daughter.
Before srtiing bis feet upoa the plat (.
form Of The car b descend. the msn tool
The child 10 his sfms aud kissei her. snd
be, replaced bef on the ground. The 1T
tie one cried. Gooi.by papa ciaepei heI
hs IDS and kept repeating Tue siogle word
papa. aaiil sue sas sure that pspa could
no longer bear her. Then vent 90 10 the
school house close by. where she spent the
dav
When evening came. .she vas aIssys fir,
st the opening OF the shaft, and Michel
P.erron Was always the Hrs. man who came
up. Az his departure. be lifted tbs child
in bis srms. and she threw her arms around
bis neck, crying papa!
The miners had heard her repeat these
two syllabes 30 Often. aud had been so
struck by the strange passion which she
put into them. that they gave her the
name OF Miss Papa
And certainly no name vas ever more
applicable. Her father WAS everything TO
her. Her mother had been dead long
time; she had scarcely known her; she had
only him. All the memories OF her child
hood were filled with him. To her his
great rough hands bad been as gentle Ms q
woman's. For her, his hard, grimy face
had alssys worn tender smile. For her
this man had become woman and child
OF the same time.
Ab! bow she loved her father. and how
terrified she was every morning when she
saw him descend into that great black
hole, OF which no one could see the bot
tom.
One day miner held her over the
mouth OF the shaft and she had gszsd
down into the dark depths. Uttering q
cry Of terror, she drew back.
Papa goes down there, she thought. o.
II he should never come up.
Aud that day when Michel took her 10
his arms as usual and kissed her. she
cluug more tightly than ever to his neck,
and said TO him:
You will come up. won't you?
OF oonrse. my little one.
Is there any danger, tell me, pspsl
Why no, little coward.
Does any one can any ons--dis down
there?
Have no fear. replied Michel. laughing
l will not die without letting you know.
Ahl Good by papa.
All that her father said was gospel
trath to her. and she went to school com
plstely resssured.
Bat the memory Of that black gulf into
which ber eyes had plunged could not be
effAoed, aud from that time sae was afraid
every morning and trembled every even-
ing, she feared that her father would never
return from those mayteriou, depths into
which she had seen him descend.
Was it presentiment? Who knows?
One day the report suddenly spread
tha. an explosion had occurred 10 the nine
1t moments time crowd had gathered
ct the shalt. From oil directions. people
wild with terror. came focking to the
spot. OF al those buried far below there
how many would ever see the light sgsin'
Michel's daughter was ut school. She
knew nothing Of it. and besides. il any one
had spoken Of it before her she would not
have oomprehended.
Could she know, poor little one. what
an explosion was? No. But at her age
one knows already what death is; one un.
at her age, when one sees inan
innate, mutilated bodies extended upon
the ground; aud the approaches Of the
shaft were s,rewn with them when she Or
rived, that evening, to meet her father.
She WAS siupefed for . moment, and
then the truth suddenly flashed upon her;
she had seen those men 90 down living.
those men whom she knew we'll, who had
kissed her many . time, and now they
we're b ought up dead. Would they bring
up her father like them?
Tais thought distracted her. She be
gan TO ,uu wildly among the debris which
they had brought up from the mine, cry
ing.
Papal psps! pspsl
Thers we're. it 10 true, many Others who
cried aud who called Papa but no one in
,uch desparing accents, The others they
drove back, but no one could be found to
drive her away. They let her run. poor
,hill. from one body TO another. some.
lines stopping before . disigured face,
for . moment ss II sbe feared
that she might recognize her father.
No, he WAS not among the dead. She
grew calmer. and sought among the living
he was not tbere. She questioned every
,ne. bn, no one bad seen him.
OF the sixty miners who vent down 10
he morning. forty five had come up alive.
ourteen we're dead. There remained but
zee to be accounted for; that was Michel.
She had made them eiplsin all that to
,er and she understood. She clspped her
rand. Ioyiully. IS il they hsd said TO her;
ae IL all right You will see him again.
Abl how she hoped 10 see him. Then she
rscoiiec,ed the morning on which .
Ter father had said 10 ber; I
| will not die si,hout letting you kno~ /
=. Z
I. eeeded only tha. to give her the Ger
sin,y that be vas iiving
A chilis faith is strong. II is not easy 1
~. ..k A.. s.l