Smyrna times., 1890-08-20
"Can they walk ?"

cry. she tried to get interested again
in the pretty girl who read and read,
but her glances returned to the Ger
man dumplings in spite of herself,
and she was forced to continue her
queries.
"Were they born in this country ?"
"Oh, yaw, yaw-Pennsylvania," was
the distinct reply.
"DO they ever cry?"
"MOsht as never" said the woman,
tossing them into shape again dey
eats dere thumbs for a living"
Dolly turned away to laugh and,
in spite of herself, she continued laugh
ing at the odd idea. Presently the car
stopped again. The German woman
looked out; there was a shop in the
station. Possibly, in the dim haze of
the windows, she saw pretzels and
beer; for, all at once, she rolled her
babies over in the opposite car seat.
"YOu see to them one minute ?"
she queried, laying he heavy hand On
DOlly's shoulder.
"Oh, yes" said Dolly, quite cheer
fully, and she began poking them back
that they might not roll over or the
floor.
She watched the moving mass of
plaid shawl disappear in the shop door
way, and at almost the same moment
the cars started.
Dolly looked wildly up, wildly out
of the windows. The storm was
worse, the sky was darker, the cars
were going, and the woman was gone.
"They must be intending to stop"
said Dolly to herself; but no, they are
not going to stop; and there lay the
twins as placid and bewilderingly alike
as ever. Dolly grew little frighten-
ed. The mother was left certainly
and there were the babies, a fixed
fact. Again she heard the mOnOto-
rattle of the train, again she saw the
great rain drops FLASHING against the
window.
The conductor came along, he was a
new one, and the train had stopped
for him, but Dolly did not know it.
"Oh, sir" said Dolly as she handed
him her ticket, "the woman has
gone p
What woman ?" he asked, looking
at the delicate young face, and then at
the babies.
"Why, the German woman-the
mother of these twins. Do you be-
lieve she left them with me on pur-
pose? ?"
This was Greek to the conductor.
"Did she get out at the last stopping
placer" he asked.
Eyes, she did. 1 think she went out
for refreshments"
"We can never stop for refresh
ments short of Wenham," he said.
"What shall do with them ?" asked
Dolly, and clasped her hands.
"I'Dl sure I don't know, miss" and
the conductor trembled with suppress
sed laughter.
In spite of DOlly's distress the situa-
tion was inexpressibly ludicrous. She
grew white an faint at the prospect
before. Perhaps the conductor did
not believe her. What should she
do?
Meantime the darkness fell, and the
babies, too-asleep. They lay there
with no mother to shake their chubby
limbs into order-lay there still with
their very queer nourishment in their
mouths. Dolly began to be afraid to
look at them. There was something
horrible in the way they held on to
their thumbs.
The hours sped on; the lamps were
lighted and Dolly's courage was Civ
ing way. What should she do? she
repeated again and again. The train
| was dAuAOo1 az JUG Clu VI It's JOuIu0y
she couldn't steal out and leave the
babies, for she promised to see to them
Dolly had remarkably tender con.
science.
In despair she sat still as the train
stopped and the crowd went out. A
brakeman found her crying, and wher
she sobbingly explained the matter he
called from the cars:
"Here, Bill ~
"What's the matter ?" asked Bill.
"SOme one has gone and imposed or
this young woman and left these two
boys on her hands. Just take 'em into
the station"
Bill tucked one under each arm, anG
Dolly will never forget the tableau i
she lives q hundred years. Those
awful babies never cried, and when the
man deposited them on the seat they
were still open-eyed and working away
at their thumbs.
Dolly received all kinds of advice
but she never faltered. She stayed by
the twins. The station-master's wifi
who lived overhead, took her and thu
babies upstairs. cr
Dolly thinks she slept some that
night, but is not sure. She remember
hearing a great noise in the gray of th'
J morning, and on rising and looking
out saw the bundle of plaid shawl ges
ticulating and trying to explain he
loss in awful English.
, "Here are the babies I'' cried Dolly
J She could have screamed with de
light.
! The German woman looked up, gavt
one cry of relief, and disappeared
/ Another moment, and the overjoye,
mother was shaking and patting tn
} twins and praising Dolly lin her owl
: unmusical tongue.
| The station-master's wife got ther
| all a substantial breakfast and sen
Dolly off to her uncle's in fine style
} and 1 think that Dolly was very mue
pleased with her relatives, and the
} with her, for she never regretted gOin
there.
But the two children, who remaine
in the city, and whose mother foun
: her out to thank her again, were a.