The Penn's Grove record., 1893-10-06

I that dark, narrow staircase she never
\ knew. She flew rather than ran. Once
outside, she forced her way through the
crowd, shouting:
''Stop that man coming down the
| escanet He has murdered the fire
MANI
The cry was quickly taken up and
| the mob, only two eager for excite
ment, set upon Hiram Davis with
| tiperish fury as he reached the bottom
| of the ladder. They would have torn
! him to pieces had not the police in.
tervened and, indeed, the wretch, mad
! with drink and fear and remorse, gave
himself up to the constables as a pro-
lection from the crowd. =,
In the meantime Alice, having said
her say, thought no more of him. She
pressed forward toward the burning
house, but was kept back by the iiremen
and the police.
'Let me pass!' she cried-"for
heavens sake let me pass! My hus.
band is in therel He has been pushed
into the fire and must go to him!"
Some of the men knew her and the
news was quickly whispered round that
this was Joe L~angford's wife and that
he had been murdered by the man
who was in custody, and then they
instinctively fell back and made way
for her.
She went boldly up in the burning
house, without a thought of fear for
herself, and the men began to follow
her, as they had not dared to do on
their own initiative, in very much the
same spirit with which Joan of Arcs
enthusiasm was caught up--a spirit
of shame that men should not follow
where a woman has led the way.
She fearlessly went up two flights OF
stairs which were nearly intact. Here
she paused at the front room door, and
for the first time her heart failed her,
she dreaded what she might be about
to behold.
II know he is in there" she wills
pered,
"Keep back, Mrs. Langford; it really
amt fit for you t be here" said n of
the firemen, gently pushing her aside
as he passed in front of her.
They attempted to open the door, but
it was so blocked up on the inside that
all their efforts were for a long time
unavailing, and they were at last COM
PEELED to batter it down with their axes.
AT length it fell in with a crash, and
they paused on the threshold, stopped
by the huge mass of debris which barred
the way, choked by the dense smoke
that issued from within,
''Harkl he is there! Looki-that
way!-Thank God, he is aliven' Alice
Langford exclaimed, pointing into the
gloom, for her ear-or perhaps her
heart-had distinguished a faint groan
proceeding from the farther end of the
dismantled apartment.
Hastily she seized upon an ak and
struck out more hravely than any of
them, hewing her way through all OBJ
'~stacles, for it was love that nerved her
arm to labor. 1t seemed to be n Her
culean, almost impossible task, for,
ever as they forced a passage through
fallen woodwork and plaster and great
heaped up masses of broken furniture,
still more obstacles seemed to oppose
themselves at every step; but there is no
doubt that it was the example and
dauntless bravery of that one woman
amongst them which urged on these
men upon their perilous course. :
AT last they reached him. He was
wedged beneath some fallen ~rafters,
charred, blackened and manned; an
unacceptable mass of humanity.
She had been preparing herself fol
this, or worse, so no exclamation broke
from her lips. She quietly accompan-
led the others as they carried his mani
mate form to the street below, sustain
ing her presence of mind with wunder-
full fortitude.
They took him away from her then
to the hospital, where he lay for many
long weary weeks in the disputed border
land between life and death.
During all that time she might only
see him twice a week, and at first he
was unconscious of her visits.
When at length his recovery was an
accomplished fact, and he returned
home-albeit broken and Frustrated in
health-there was a day of quiet but
heartfelt rejoicing at those lodgings in
the Southwark borough opposite the
house where the fire had been seen.
Yielding to his wife's urgent entreat-
les, Joe Langford left the brigade to
adopt less perilous pursuits; but he
would have granted her more than that,
for he had heard all that she had done
upon that night mot from her own lips,
be it understood), and so had been able
to test the measure and the greatness
Of her love.-Spare Moments.