Republican news item. [volume] (Laport, Pa.) 1896-19??, 1910-02-03
The Mail
Agents Story

mail agent on the Great Southern
Railway. 1 use the term Great South
ern" advisedly, since I have no in
tention of locating my story, and II
you look on your railway maps for the
name of any of the towns mentioned
herein, your quest will, doubtless, be
a vain one.
Axtell was the agent, and l acted
under his orders. We ran only on the
night express.
One foggy night, as we Stacked up
for water at Rowley station, Axtell
said to me:
81 shall have to give you the charge
tonight, Gregory. / am off to Pelham.
Little engagement, you know"
"He laughed, and SO did l, for his
sweetheart lived at Pelham, and
from the unusual redundancy Of Ak
tells necktie | had little difficulty in
concluding that he was going to visit
Kate Vernon. And as l had my own
dear Helen on board the train then,
travelling to Fairbridge under my es-
cort, of course l had a fellow feel
ing with Axtell, and was quite ready
to accommodate him.
1t was just falling dusk, and prom
ised to be a dark night. There was
a cold mist in the air, and an east
wind growled sullenIy through the
lui nf
station.
81 wish you JOY Of your ride, this
nasty night" said /, as he moved OF,
and pocketing the key Of the mail car.
which he gave me with the remark:
81 left the car unlocked with Joe
to stand guard. You'd better hurry
up"
He sprang to the platform, for the
train was already getting under head
way. AS we were moving off, Harker,
the telegrapher at Rowley station,
came hurrying out with slip of paper
in his hand.
Hello, Gregory" said he, breath
lessly, "be good enough to give this
to Johnstone. Telegram just came
down from Derby Junction. Impor-
tamil"
/ caught the last words without see
ing the speaker, for we were leaving
Rowley behind in the gloom.
l thrust the paper into my pocket
and hurried off to relieve Joe, sleepy
headed fellow, who acted as brake
man, stoker, lamp-lighter, porter, or
whatever he might be required for.
1 wanted to put the mail car under
lock and key the first thing, and
felt a little vexed with Axtell for his
carelessness in leaving it unlocked;
but for that / could have spent a
cozy ten minutes by the side OF Helen
before 1t was time to change the mail
at Burkesville.
It was not like Axtell to be care
less, but he was so deep in love with
dashing Kate Vernon that at times his
head was not quite level.
found Joe, as l expected l should,
fast asleep, and snoring almost as
loud as the putting Of the locomotive.
/ sent him about his business and en-
tered the car to see II all was right,
pulling the door to after me. l heard
1t lock as it closed, for it had spring
lock-one Of the devils own inven-
tions Never mind, l said to myself
had the key and was safe enough.
/ opened the bags of papers and
letters, sorted out the parcels for
Burkesville and placed them in their
appropriate bag. We merely left the
40
without stopping-generally the train
made no very perceptible slackening
there. And as we were a little be-
hind time that night, Of course there
would be no lessening of the speed,
and l must be ready to throw of
the bag promptly. took up the bag
and applied the key to the door Of
respect like the key which fitted that
complicated lock. l looked at it more
carefully and saw that it was nothing
but a common trunk key. Axten had
made a fearful mistake.
l was a prisoner! and the worst
of 1t was, there could be no escape
for me until the train reached Fair
bridge. No one but Axtell and myself
ever came near the mail car. And
here We were, rushing along at the
rate Of forty miles an hour, with 8
noise like the thunder of Niagara, and
! felt, without making any attempt
at realizing the fact, that all the voice
in my lungs would never penetrate be-
yond the walls Of that strongly built
car.
Like lightning we whizzed past
Burkesville. Through the narrow slit
which answered for window l saw
the station-master in the attitude of
expectancy gazing after us, but we
were miles away, probably before the
disappointed man got his mouth
closed from the cape Of anticipation
with which he regarded the train.