The Bennington banner. [volume] (Bennington, Vt.) 1858-1894, 1893-02-24

If the story did not come from the
highest possible authority we could not
believe it. Indeed, we doubt if we could
accept all of it, anyhow, authority or no
authority. were it not for the fact that
long and, we trust, sympathetic study of
the Locally Marvellous as it manifests
itself in America has brought us to the
point where we can believe almost any
thing. We are far from rejecting the &C
counts of local occurrence simplyO on
the tiimsy ground that 1t has every APP
pearance of being a carefully planned
lie. Ia the little town of SwantOn, Ohio,
just west of Toledo. lives q young man
named Arthur Plunkett. He is deeply
enamored of young lady named Amelia
Harrison. 1t further appears that these
young people are very fond of sleigh rid
ing, and the lady has an especial liking
for riding fast, so the constant endeavor
of the devoted Mr.. Plunkett has been to
get the horse which could make the best
time. Last Saturday afternoon they
started out for another ride. ~ do
hOpe,". remarked Miss Harrison, that
you haven't got pOky horse this time"
I'VE got the best horse old Wilkinson
has," returned the young man, proudly.
They proceeded five or six mics into
the country at a good rate, though the
young lady seemed to think that they
might well be going a little faster, and
then started 20 return. When about half
way back it was necessary to cross the
railroad track. 1t was a deadly grade
crossing, of course, and just as the horse
| got fairly on the track, the runner of the
cutter caught on a plank of the approach
and one of the traces of the harness
broke. At that very instant the Chi
cagO limited came around a curve not
| fifty yards away. The horse plunged
forward. broke the other trace at the
| shoulder and dashed away, the thillS fall
ing across the track. There was no time
to even jump, and young Mr.. Plunkett
clasped the woman be had hoped TO
make his wife in his arms and awaited
the worst. So far this is a plain Ohio
tale which oven a child could believe.
But now comes the really extraordinary
part which requires the trained mind of
the specialist for its acceptance.
The heavy train rushed past, sweeping
away the thills and toessing the ends of
| the broken ira es in the AIR. Just as the
last car passed, one of these traces fell
and in some way caught in the coupling
chain which dangled below the rear plat
form. The trace was still attached to
the sleigh, which gave lurch and
bound lighted fairly between the rails,
bounced into the air again and then set
tie down and tore away along the track
at the rate of sixty-fye miles an hour,
the train being little late and attempt
ing to make up the lost time. A weaker
young man would have lost his head,
Plunkett did not. lie kept both arms
tightly clasped around the young lady
and asked her if she was going fast
enough to suit her at last.
Much that is valuable is often lost by
rejecting the simply improbable; the only
safe rule is to reject nothing, For two
hours these interesting Ohio young peo-
pie skated along behind the New York
and Chicago limited. The heroic Plum
kett never for moment relaxed his hold
on the delighted Miss Harrison. We say
del GIFTED because she was having sleigh
ride at a gait which she had long con
ceived to be about right. When they
had proceeded some fifty miles the con-
ductoT discovered them and came out ON
the rear platform and somewhat brusuue-
ly asked Piunkett why he had tied ON
behind without getting permission. The
young man explained the circumstances.
The conductor then demanded two fares,
but Plunket of coure refused on the
ground that he was not riding on the
train. The intelligent official then went
forward into the baggage car, where he
carefully searched through the index of
his book of instructions for the heads,
Towing Sleighs, Catching on Rear of
Train, Skating Behind-HOw Punished,
and variOns others, but finding nothing
concluded that there was rule against
it, and did not disturb the young people
further. At the end of two hours the
train stopped at Elkhart, Ind, and Plum
kett got out and diseRtangled the trace.
1t was now dark, and they were lis
miles from home. The prospect was not
encouraging. The train went on. Just
then the fast mail, headed east, drew uD
on the opposite track. There was only
one thing to do, and he did it. Turning
the cutter around he attached it, under
cover of the darkness, to the rear of the
fast mail. In five minutes they were
speeding away to the east. The moon
soon arose aud shed soft radiance over
the hurrying landscape. By holding
close to the young lady Pluhkett kept
her from falling out The conductor APP
peared, but they only laughed at him
and told him 20 drive faster. In little
over two hours they dashed into Swan
ton. Plunkett leaned over and cut the
trace, and they came to stop within
two blocks of home. They walked over
to the Baptist church and we're only ten
minutes late for the Young Peoples
Helping Hand meeting.
'Let u.s." says Spencer, "eXamine the
improbable, for we may find it the prob
able, and have the deep pleasure of plac-
ing it in the proud realm of established
fact. IN. Y. Tribune.