The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1890-03-02


reasons for wanting no young man as at
tractive in appearance as this one max
ing himself interesting to pretty Nellie
on their journey. She had already de- I
cided what was Nellie's future was to be.
Never. indeed, would she have taken |
her to the gay frontier station whittier
she was now on route, had not that fu-
ture been already settled to her satisfac- |
ton. Nellie Travers, barely out of school, |
was betrothed, and willingly SO, to the |
man she, her devoted elder sister, had |
especially chosen. Rare and most I'M
likely of conditionsl she had apparently
fallen in love with the man picked out
for her by somebody else. She was en-
gagged to Mrs. Rayner's fascinating
friend Mr.. Steven Van Antwerp, a scion
of an old and esteemed and wealthy
family; and Mr.. Van Antwerp, who had
been educated abroad, and had Heidel-
BERG scar on his left cheek, and dark,
lustrous eyes, and wavy hair-almost
raven-was a devoted lover, though
fully fifteen years Miss Nellie's senior.
Full of bliss and comfort was Mrs.
Rayner's soul as she journeyed westward
to reioin her husband at the distant
frontier post she had not seen since the
early spring. Army woman as she was,
born and bred under the shadow of the
flag, soldiers daughter, soldiers wife,
she had other ambitions for her beauti-
ful Nell. Worldly to the core, she her
self would never have married in the
army but for the unusual circumstance
OF a wealthy subaltern among thl officers
of her fathers regiment. Tradition had
it that Mr.. Rayner was not among the
number of those who sighed for Kate
Travers guarded smiles. Her earlier
victims We're kept a-dangling until Ray
ner, too, succumbed. and then were sent
adrift. She meant that no penniless sub
Rltern should carry off her baby sister
they had long been motherless-and q
season at the seashore- had done beI
work well. Steven Van Antwerp, with
genuine distress and loneliness, went
back to his duties in Wall street after
seeing them safely on their way to thu
west. eGuard her well for me-" he
whispered to Hrs. Rayner. 81 dread
those fellows in buttons" And he shiv
cred unaccountably rs he spoke.
Nellie was pledged, therefore, and thi
youth in the Pullman was not one o
''those fellows in buttons, so far as Mrs
Rayner knew, but she was ready Il
warn him off, and meant to do so, until
to her surprise, she saw that he gave e
symptom of a desire TO approach. 3,
noon of the second day she was as deter
mined to extract from him some sign C
interest rs she had been determined I
resent it. 1 can in no wise explain O
account for this. The fact is state
without remark.
"What on earth can we be stopping S
long here for?" was Mrs. Rayner's some
what petulant inquiry. addressed to II
one in particular. There was no reply
Miss Travers was busily twitching th
ears of the kitten at the moment an
sparring with appraised finger at III
threatening paw.
"Do look out of the window, Nell, an
see."
There is nothing to see, Kate-notl
mig but whirling drifts and a big wat,
tank all covered with ice. Br-r-r-r, no
cold it loobsr' she answered, after vain
nattening her face against the inner pan
There must be something the matte
though" persisted Mrs, Rayner. ~
have been here full five minutes, and V
are behind time now. At this rate we
never get to Warrener tonight. l
wish the porter would stay here whe
he belongs"
The young man quietly laid down i
book and arose. twill inquire, madam
he said, with grave courtesy. "Y'
shall know in q moment"
''How very kind of your said the lad
''Indeed must not trouble you. 1
sure the porter will be here after while
And even as she spoke, and as he W
pulling on an overcoat, the train run
bled off again. Then came an exclau
ton, this time from the younger:
"Why, Katei Look! see all these M
and horses! Why, they are soldiers
cavalry! Oh, how L love to see the
again! But, on, how cold they look
frozenI"
t'Who can they be?' said Mrs. Rayn
all vehement interest now, and gazi
eagerly lIbDl bAiS NIi0OW ~ lIt lcN u
heads of the horses and the mufiied
ures in blue and fur. 'sWhat can til
be doing in the field in such avn
weather? / cannot recognize one
them, or tell officers from men. Sur,
that must be Capt. Wayne-and II
Stannard Oh, what can it mean?"
The young man had suddenly LEAF
TO the window behind them. and v
gazing out with an eagerness and int
est little less apparent than her ov
! but in a moment the train had whisl
them out of sight of the storm beal
troopers. Then he hurried to the r.
window of the car, and Mrs. Rayner
hastily followed.
"Do you know them?" she asked.
Eyes. That was Maj. Stannard. ]
his battalion of the tn cavalry, {
hey have been out scouting after re
tade Cheyennes. Pardon me, nnadar
must go forward and see who h
boarded the train"
BE stopped at his section, and ag
she followed him, her eyes full of a
iety. He was busy Juggling at . fiasl
n his travelling bag.
4 You know them! Do you kno'
bave YOU heard of any infantry be