The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1912-05-15

taking slam. And then Kathleen
came flying backwards and landed in
q heap on both Of them.
Several of the other passengers
We're just, returning from breahfagt
and they were shot and scattered All
oyer;the car as II great chain OF hu-
man beads hid burst. q, Gl5isi3
Women screamed, men yelled, and
then while they were stilI struggling
against the seats and one another, the
train came to halt.
Thank God, we, stopped 10 timex
Mallory tsusped, as he tried 10 dfsen-
gage himself and Marjorie from Ksth.
leen.
Tine passengers began 70 regain
their courage wfthYtheir equilibrium.
little Jimmie Wellington had flow n
the whole length Of the car. clingtns,
TO his wife as II she were Francesca
da Rlminf. and he Paolo, lifting
through Inferno. The flight ended at
the stateroom door with such thump
that Mrs. Fosdfck was sure detec.
tive had come for her at last, and
with q battering ram.
But when Jimmie got back breath
enough TO talk. he remembered the
train,stopplng excitement OF the day
before and called out:
Has Mrs. Mallory lost that pup
again?" ..4,f
Everybody laughed uproariously at
this. People will laugh at anything
or nothing when they have been
frightened almost to death and sud
denly relieved of anxiety.
Everybody was cracking a Joke ut
Mar1orie's expense. Everybody felt a
good-natured grndge against her for
being such mystery. The car was
ringing with hiIarity, when the nor.
ter came stumbling in and paused at
the door. with eyes all white, hands
waving frantically, and lips tapping
Ike flannel, in vain effort 70 speak
The passengers stopped laughing ut
Marjorie. TO laugh at the porter. Ash
ton sang out: N
What's the matter with you. por.
ter? Are you trying to crow" Il.
Everybody roared Mt this, till the
porter finally managed to artIculate:
T.t.t.train rob.rob-robbers!"
Silence shut down as If the whole
crowd had been smitten with paraly.
SIS. From somewhere outside and
ahead came a pop-popping as OF fire.
crackers. Everybody thought, IKE.
Volyers!" The reports were mingled
with barbaric yells that turned the
marrow In every bone to snow. FL
These regions are full OF historic
terror. All along the Nevada route
the conductor, the brakemen and old
travellers had pointed out scene after
scene where the Indians had slaked
the thirst OF the arid land with white
mans blood. Ashton. who had tray.
eied this way many times, had made
himself fasgnatingly horrifyiug the
evening before and ruined several
breakfasts, thai morning In the dining
car. by regdllng the passengers with
stories OF pioneer ordeals. men and
women mastered in burning wagons
or dragged away to fiendlsh cruelty
and obscene torture. staked out supIne
on burning wastes with eyelids cut
on. bound down within reach OF rat.
tlesnakes, subjected to every misery
that human deviltry could devise. 4
Ashton fad brought his fellow pas pas.
sengers to a state OF ecstatic exc;t4
ability, and, like many a recounter OF
burglar stories at night, had tuned
his own nerves to high tension. 6.
The violent stopping of the train,
the Notwithstanding yells and shots ont.
side, found the passengers already apt
to respond without delay to the an.
peals OF fright. After the first hush
OF dread, came the reaction to panic;
Each passenger showed his own
panic tn his own way. Ashton whirIet
round and round, like horse with
the blind staggers. then. boTted down
tile aisle. knocking aside men and
women. lie climbed onaSseat, pulled
down an upper berthaand, scrambIiYS
into 1t, tried TO shut. tt4ou btmseR.
Mrs. Whitcomb was so frightelssd that
she assailed Ashton with fury, and
Selling hts feet, dragged, him bSak in.
to the aisle, and beat him wfth her
fists, demanding that he protect her
and save her for Sammy 81 suke.
Mrs. Fosdick. rushing ont or her
stateroom and not finding her lus.
cious.eyed husband, laid hotds OF Jim
mie Wellington and ordered him to
go to the rescue OF her spouse. Mrs.
Wellington tore her hands loose, cry
ing: Let him 30, madam. lie has
wife Of his own to defend"
Jimmie was trying to- pour out dy.
Ing messages. and only suffering, for.
getting that ahe had put his watch in
his mouth to hide 1t, though It's cham
was still attached to his waistcoat.
Anne Cattle, who had read much
about Chinese atrocities to mission.
aries, gave herself up to death, yet re.
joiced greatly that she had provided
timely man to lean on and should
not have to enter Paradise q spinster,
providing she could manage to con.
vert Ira in the next few seconds. be.