The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1891-09-26

NzMHA >IW% Iarm servant
~ ! ~ holding by q
&H halter u large
md uncouth ploughhorse, stood be
fore the shut door of a battered wood
en- building, tho surroundings o.
which Mt once proclaimed it to be Il
smithy, although through the chinks
in its weather-beaten walls no forge.
fire cleaned nor CHEEKY hammer rang
The plough man, astonished to see
the place shut Mt an hour long after
that ut which the blacksmith usually
started work, retiredin pace or two
and gazed up Mt the chimney; md
not seeing even the fnintest trace OF
smoke issuing thence, he turned and
looked about him with puzzled cx-
preston on his face A man break
ing stones on the other side OF the
road noticing the farm servants he.
acknowledgements, and ,atterthe
usual morning Sanitation, proceed
ed to explain what had become of the
blacksmith. We will give that ex-
PLANTATION in our own words:
Hamilton Armstrong was the name
OF the blacksmith in question. His
workshop was stun ted close to n
Uayside station on the main line of
one of the great Scotch railways but
at a considerable distance from my
town or village. Being, however,
kept pretty busy Mt work for tho
neighboring farmers, and being con-
sequently well-to-do, and having,
moreover, rs his nearest female neigh
Dor very pretty girl tho daughter
of the porter mt the station, it was
tho most natural thing in the world
that he should wish to make her his
wife. Unfortunately, this was more
ensily determined on than done, for
he had rival This rival was tho
driver of n goods train which was al
most daily shunted into the siding
near Sarah's house, to allow ofa ras
senger express passing, and he took
advantage ofthis momentary respite
to chat with the porter's pretty
daughter. Whether it was because
he was fnr-nw ~ bird that his feath-
ers seemed fairer than Armstrong;
in Sarah's sight, or whether he was
intrinsically man of more worth,
the gossips-for there were gossips
even in those solitrdes-were not
agreed. Rightly or wrongly. kowev-
or, Sarah gave him the preference.
Having made up his mind to ask
Sarah to be his wife, Armstrong was
not long in finding an opportunity
for doing so. Though he knew he
had n rival, he was hardly prepared
to hear from Sarah that she had al
ready promised to marry Duffy, the
engine driver. But Armstrong was
not going to yield without making u
special effort to win her. Hepleaded
long and iervently with her to retract
her promise to his rival, whom he
was persuaded she had only accepted
because he had been the first to ask
her. But Sarah was quite sincere,
Duffy being really the man of her
choice; and Armstrong pleaded in
vain.
For the next week or two the
blacksmith moped about, and did
scarcely any work. On the day
on which Sarah's riape was to
take place no left the smithy in the
evening, and went wandering in
to the country, returning late Mt
night. Next morning he went away
again, now walking with uneasy step
along the quiet country lanes, and
now sitting dejectedly by the road
side, muttering to himself. The
neighbors soon came to hear OF his
strange behavior; and it was whis-
pered that he must have gone out of
his senses, as an uncle of his had
done under similar affection.
"That was yesterday" the stone
breaker wound up, "and he's away
along the road by the railway this
morning, They should look after
him, or he'll be lying down in front
of some train, OF jumping down into
the deep rock.cutting and breaking
his neck"
II Hamilton Armstrong had not
gone mad, rs the people supposed,
he certainly acted like mailman.
Stung to the quick by his rejection,
he had no heart for his work. He