Montour American. (Danville, Pa.) 1866-1920, 1901-11-14

/ TURNED AND SPRANG PROM The CAB.
was very extravagant In her ways and
was given to fits of sulks when re-
proved 1t was also said that she was
fond of going to parties and balls and
was being generally criticised. Every
week for many weeks | heard some
new gossip, and, while realizing that il
must be exaggerated, there was enough
truth to make me anxious about my
old pard's happiness, | hated to be-
lieve the tales, and yet / found many
others limiting that the young wife
was not playing a straight game with
the trusting husband. Such an AFFAIR
Is one Of the meanest on earth 10 med.
die with Ii IS none Of your business
even If you are a brother, and yet you
feel that II is and want 10 do some
thing. | wouldn't have had old Jim
deceived and yet how could | go to
him with the gossip
By and by a passenger engineer
named Frazer came to live at the Hill
He was a man OF %, good looking,
good company and free handed. BE
knew Jim well, and he soon got &C
quainted with the wife. | threw my
self IN FraZer's way one day and told
him what public gossip said and left
It to him whether he shouldn't stop be-
fore the home was wrecked. He laugh
ed in contempt. When / became lndIg-
nant, he became defiant, and the result
was fight in which battered him up
g,, Ial Old
Jim was sure to hear OF the row, Of
course, and the day after it happened
he looked at me IN queer way as we
took our engine out of the stable. |
felt sure he was going to speak about
the fight, but he checked himself after
a word or two. He had not only been
told about the scrap, but what had led
up to it as WELL and there was only
one Of two courses for him TO take. He
must either bid me mind my own busl.
ness and let him attend to his own do
mestic affairs or take IL for granted
that was acting in friendly spirit
and be put upon his guard for the fu-
ture. Wien he remained silent, knew
that he had adopted the latter course.
l do not know what man or woman
my chum took into his confidence. but
It was some one who kept him thor
oughly posted. He must have reproyed,
argued and commanded, but the girl
wife either openly defied him or slyly
deceived him Frazer was less bold
after the row, and for time 1t seemed
IS II harmony and happiness might be
restored II was all a trick, however,
on the part Of an infatuated, vain
minded young wife on the one hand
! and an unprincipled man OF the world
on the other, man who cared not
what wreck he left behind him.
We We're Just leaving our western
terminus one morning when old Jim
received a telegram. He opened the
telegram with steady hand, read the
message without q tremor and then
twisted II up and lighted his pipe with
IT, And yet | came 10 know that the
telegram told him thar his wife and
Frazer were eloping together and had
tickets for the day express bound
west His imperturbability deceived
me, and | did not give the message u
second thought \ man must have
nerves Of steel to con a message like
that and never blanch. At noon, when
we reached Thomasyille, we got orders
20 run to Bascomb's aud there side
track for the express. We could DO j.
with three or four minutes 10 spare
BascOm's was not even station, but
a siding half . mile long on the prairie.
and we must do our own switching
For three miles beyond r. was a
straight track, and then It went curv
ing ana turning among the bills and
over q brawling creek. When we hao
come within a mile Of the siding, !
looked for Jim to begin to slow up, but
he made no move. Half a minute and
he even increased the speed, aud when
shouted IN his ear he waved me back.
We passed the siding at clip Of "a
I miles an hoH and gaining on that ey
ery minute and as ! at last grabbed