The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1913-09-26
thebridge:
A Niqht LONG and Happily
Remembered
By ClARlSSA MACKIt

trolley car ut the corner of the village
street and helped Kitty Baker up the
high step to one Of the front seats.
Thank you, Mr.. Dearborn: good
night" cried Kitty. waving her hand
as he swung of the moving car.
Good night" he called back. adding
to the conductor as the rear Of the
car passed him. please let that young
lady of at Belmont street"
The conductor shouted back some
answer. and the almost empty car
whizzed away into the darkness of the
surrounding country.
GRANDMOTHER will scold." she
thought. turning up the collar Of her
coat and lifting her face to the strong
breeze that swept through the open
car. ''She will tell me that Bakers and
Witherams always rode in their "
carriages and that no lady returned
home ~unescorted from any merrymak.
ing. But we are quite poor now, and
our days Of splendor are past. As long
as l work side by side in the same
Office as Molly ! must use the same
vehicle that she does"
Kitty smiled a little as she thought
Of the errand that had taken bel to
Molly's that August evening. Molly
was to be married. and Kitty had gone
out to H%omedale to see all the dainty
details Of the rousseau and to discuss
the simple plans. She was to be brides
maid when Molly was married In the
village church.
The conductor thrust q caiiOuSed.
blackened palm under her pretty nose.
and Kitty fumbled for a nickel and
paid it. The bell tangled several times:
then there was nothing save the fash
Of the car toward the city between
walls of green trees on either side OF
the track .
Thinking Of weddings reminded Kit
ty of one that might have been hers II
her pride had not caused her to break
troth with Len Thornleigh when the
Baked fortune to smash at her
fathers death 1t had been Lens first
year ut college. and he had chafed bit
terly because he must wait three years
before he could leave and support her.
He wanted to break OF and go into
his fathers business without complet.
ing his college career but the great
magnate had demurred and held Len
to q promise made years before.
Kitty had not seer Len since she had
sent him that cruel letter that made
him see light at last. Nothing but
cruelty would have opened his eyes.
She closed her eyes now. and a stran.
gled sob rose to her lips az she thought
Of the last three years Of waiting.
They stopped at q little hooded sta
don and changed conductors. Kitty
Baker never knew 1t. She sat there
drowsily. her face very tender. think.
ing Of Len Thornleigh.
The bell ringing up fares reused her
q little. and she CROPPED for another Owe
cent piece. There ri nothing left In
her purse ave q silver quarter. She
held It in her gloved fingers. waiting
for the conductor.
When he came she did not look up.
He leaned across the intervening space
and held out bis hand.
Kitty stared down at the hand. 1t
was very different from the hand Of
the other conductor. This was q clean.
brown. muscular looking hand, with
we'll kept nails and q plain gold ring
on the little finger.
Il was y familiar hand. A sudden
hoFroP smote Kitty Baker. and she
thrust forward the silver quarter.
Somehow 1t spun away out of her 6n-
gers and went into the darkness.
''Oh!" she cried sharply. Il haven't
another penny with me-" Then she
looked into his face and saw that II
the hand was the hand Of Len Thorn.
leigh the face certainly belonged to
the son of the great anancier. His
eyes met hers uncertainty. steadied
and became bits Of gray agate.
1t could not be Len. for be did not
recognize her. 1t was a wonderful re-
semblance.
THAT was all the money l had"
apologized Kitty. What shall ! dol"
"You q pay me another time" he
said gravely and touched bis hat. he
rang up her fare and went away to the
hack Of the car.
Kitty sat paralyxed with surprise.
1t was Len T~hornleigh's voice she had
heard too.
Her good sense told her that this
was absurd-to imagine that this troll.
10y conductor could be Len ThOrnleigh!
Why. Len drove around In his own
high power motorcars. and she had
rcd only the day before that. his Il.
thef was building q great country
house Ut Marblehead.
The car whistled sl1riily n 1t went
down the steep incline that approached
! narrow bridge over the little river
~ Trey rumbled over the bridge thu
enr slackened speed and came to q sud
I'm standstin at the same Instant that
the lights went ont.
The conductor went forward and @,
DOWN with the m0torman, They talk
q together In low tones. Kitty look
- hack through the car and saw on
mAn stttinG alone on the ear seat. HI
~nnnaanod To ~ AeieAD alfh0u1h hl