Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1891-04-16

en- animated bundle of clothes with =
suggestion of femininity about il,
emerged from the inn-door. follow ! BY
the landlord.
Here's your passenger, sir." he cried.
adding: by gracious. but it's a cola
nightr
A mufied voice from out OF the bun
die of clothes said something that did
not quite catch; out ] made 10 reply to
either. The lady took her place in tho
sleigh, Isprsng in beside her. the land
lord and the hostler tucked in the robes.
babe US goodnight, and we were of
under the shining stars, with much
tinkling of bells, the sleigh-runners
singing over the frosty snow. 1t was
twenty-four miles to Brenton, and the
loneliest road in the State.
did not feel sufficiently reconciled
to having companion TO be much dis
posed TO conversation; but. as the wind
came with more than unusual fierceness
through an opening in the trees, in
quired of the lady if She felt cold. She
hesitated for almost a minute befor, q
plying, when she assured me by a curt
monosyllable that she was not. So
ciable-very. thought /, and made no
further effort to talk. The going was
heavy, but not especially SO, for the
way lay through the forest and was not
drifted. Four miles brought us to the
burnt land, long, wind-swept space,
where there were just enough fallen
trees along the roadway to catch the
driven show. 1t soon appeared that the
road here was a succession of drifts, not
deep, but solid, and that, if any teams
had been over it during the day their
tracks had long since been filled in.
Indeed, | could see in the bright star
light that fine snow, almost like ice
dust, was moving swiftly over the
great white surface spread out before
US. The horses could no longer trot,
but settled down to walk. the wind
whistling through the harness and blow
ing their names and tails till they pro-
jected almost horizontally. How cold
it was! In the northwest the bright
disk of Venus shone with wonderful
| splendOr, and the pitiless wind seemed
| to come straight from the star. There
| seemed to be merciless glare in the
| splendid planet, and longed for a cloud
| to cover it from sight. / shivered under
all my clothing and began to feel un-
4 easy for my companion.
Are you cold?" | shouted, for the
wind rendered it useless to speak in an
ordinary tone, muffled as we were, and
not facing each other.
She answered thatshe was, whereupon
told her to get as low down in the
sleigh as possible, which she did, and I
! pulled the robes over her head, she
nesting very close to me. Somehow
this was not altogether disagreeable,
and in my imagination | began to pict-
! ure what my companion was like.
concluded that she was young and
! beautiful. without any reason whatever
except that it would be vastly more
pleasant to be taking care of such a
| girl than of one who was old and ill
/ favored.
The wind-swept stretch of road was
six miles long, and when we had gone
about third of the distance the horses
stopped. Looking ahead / found that
the drifts had deepened and that they
were standing in it up to their bodies.
| I urged them little, but soon saw that
it was of no use. They only plunged
in manner to endanger themselves
and the sleigh. There was but one
thing to do-get out and break road.
Telling my companion to crouch low in
the sleigh | covered her well With the
robes, and going in front of the horses
began to tramp down the snow. The
poor animals stood shivering in the
wind, and l worked with all my speed
yet it was more than an hour, | Judge,
before | had track made for them.
When ] returned to the sleigh / was
thoroughly heated, and as wet from per
spiration as if / had been plunged into
water. knew was running fearful
risk in sitting down in that piercinc
wind, but there seemed to be no alter,
native; so, protecting myself as well as
possible from the blast, which seemed
to grow in strength, | urged the horses
along. AS they proceeded slowly my
companion threw the covering from hel
head and said:
You must have got heated, working
as hard as you did, and you will take
y
If you sit there till the cold strikes you
you will die"
The voice seemed to have a trace OF
tears in it, but that was doubtless due
to the fact thatshe herself was far from
comfortable.
II do not think there is any danger, -
I'said.
''But l know there is" she answered.
Then throwing down the robes she
stood up in the sleigh and added: Give
me the reins. Get down there out OF
the wind and cover yourself up"
II will do nothing of the kind, " re-
piled.
You must" she insisted, "or you will
die"
At this moment shudder passed
over me, and / realized what truth
there might be in her words. She Ii.
vined the reason for my silence and said