The Advocate and news., 1897-12-22
CHAPTER II.

frOm Frederic Cullen telling his father
he would join us at Lamy ON No 8 that
evening. / at once ordered 81 and 218
ON to the connecting train, and in an
hour we were back on the main line.
While waiting for the overland 10 ar
rive, Mr.. Cullen asked me to do some
thing which, as it later proved to have
considerable bearing on the events of
that night, is wcrth mentioning, trivial
as it seems When / had first joined
the party, had given orders for 81 to
be kicked in between the main string
and their special, so as not to deprive
the occupants of 219 Of the view from
their observation saloon and balcony
platform. Mr.. Cullen came to me now
and asked mo 70 reverse the arrange
ment and make my car the tail end. /
was giving orders for the splitting and
kicking In when No. 8 arrived, and
thus did not see the greeting Of Frederic
Cullen and his family. When joined
them, his father told me that the high
altitude had knocked his SON up, so that
he had had to be helped from the Or
dinary sleeper to the special and had
gone to bed Immediately. Out west we
have to know something Of medicine,
and my car had its chest Of drugs So l
took some tablets and went into his
staterOOm.
Frederic was like his brother in ap-
pearance, though not in manner, having
o quick, alert way. He was breathing
with scch difficulty that 1 was almost
tempted to give him nitroglycerin, in
stead Of strychnine, but he said he
would be all right as soon as he became
accustomed to the rarefed air, quite
poohpOohing my suggestion that he
take No. back to Trinidad. And while
1 was still urging the train started.
Leaving him the walls Of digitalis and
strychnine, therefore, went back and
dined sOlus on my own car, indulging
at the end in u cigar the smoke of
which would keep turning into pictures
of Miss Cullen. / have thought about
those pictures since then and have con-
cluded that when cigar smoke behaves
like that q man might as well read his
destiny in it, for it can mean only one
thing.
After enjoying the combination !
went to No. 219 to have look at the
son and found that the heart tonics had
benefited him considerably, On leaving
him I went to the dining room, where
the rest Of the party were still at din
ner, to ask that the invalid have q
strong cup of coffee, and after deliver
ing my request Mr.. Cullen asked me ia
join them in O cigar. This I did gladly,
for cigar and Miss Cullen's society
were even pleasanter than cigar and
Miss Cullen's pictures, because the pic
lures never quite did her justice, and,
besides, didn't talk.
Our smoke finished, we went back tC
the saloon, where the gentlemen sat
down to poker, which Lord Rallies ha(
just learned and liked, They did no
ask me to take a hand, for which I was
BLuVOluA, 40 OuO bulaLy VI 4HAAAOou ou-
perintendent would hardly stand the
game they probably played. And l had
my compensation when Miss Cullen
also was not asked to join them. She
said she was going to watch the moon
light on the mountains from the plat
form and opened the door to go out,
finding for the first time that No. 81
was the lender" In her disappoint-
ment she protested against this and
wanted to knew the why and wherefore.
"We shall have FAR less motion,
Madge," Mr.. Cullen explained. "And
then we shan't have the rear end man
in our Car at night.
"But I don't mind the motion, !"
urged Miss Cullen, "and the flagman is
there only after we are all in our
rooms. Please leave us the view"
II prefer the present arrangement,
Madge," said Mr.. Cullen in q very