Year: 1874

He was doing his duty, and not like
me, searching for the little crushed
form of my darling IN the cruel rRins.
The people made me worse, for they
would talk aud say what they thought
so that could hear. One would say
she might still be alive, another would
shake his head, and so on when I kept
stopping, in spite Of all I tried not, lis
tening to what they said, sad it all
seemed so much lost time.


The engine-room wss now cleared,
and, IN spite Of my trembling and her
ror, SIS every big piece was disturbed,
nothing had been found but all at
once, as we were trying to clear behind
the boiler, and get down to the stock
hole, one OF the men gave a cry. /
caught at the man nearest to me, and
then lights, rubbish, the stEange, wild
and / should have fallen, only the man
held me up. and some one brought me
some brandy,


1 was myself again directly. ard
stumbling over the bricks to where
knot OF men had collected, and po-
liceman had his bull's-eye lantern open,
and they were stopping to look at some
thing that lay just under a beam they
had raised-to the left of where I ex-
pected she would be found.


g Smashed, I heard some one with
his back 10 me, say and then some
one else, 4" Poor little thing, she must
have run past here p


Then, with my throat dry and my
eyes staring, crept up and thrust two
men aside, right and left, when the 9th
ers made way for me without speaking,
and, when I got close up, 1 covered my
face with nv hands and softly knelt
down.


The policeman said something, and
some one else spoke eheerily but I
couldn't hear what they said, for my
very thought was upon what 7 was go
ing to see. And now, for the first time,
the great, binding tears came gushing
to my eyes, so that when I slowly took
first one hand and then another, was
blinded, and could not see for a few
moments =; till, STOPPING a little lower,
there, smashed and hattened, covered
with mortar and dust, was my old red
cotton handkerchief, tied around the
basin and plate that held my dinner,
dropped here by my little darling.


For few moments was, as it were,
struck dumb-it was so different a sight
TO what had expected to see and then
1 leaped mp and laughed, and shouted,
and danced-the relief wins so great.


"Come on - cried again and then
for an hour or more we were at It, work
ing away till the light began to come IN
the east, and tell us that it was day
break.


Late as it was plenty of people had
stopped all the time for, somehow or
another, hundreds had got to know the
little bright, golden-haired thing that
trotted backwards and forwards every
day with my dinner basin. She was
too little to do it, but then, bless you,
that was our pride for the wife eombed !
and brushed and dressed her up on
purpose. And fine and proud we used
to be of the little thing, going and COM
ing-so old-fa hioDed. Why, lots OF
heads used TO be thrust out TO watch
her: and seeing how pretty and artless
and young she vas, we used TO feel that
every enc would try and protect her;
and 1t was SO. Time after time, that
night, saw motherly-looking women,
that did not know, with their aprons
to their eyes, sobbiug and er7inRi and
thought didn't notice it then, ] remem- 4
bered it well enough afterwards-ah
and always shall; while the way IN
which some of the men wOrked-well-
to-dO men, who would have thought
themselves insulted if you'd offered
EN- FIVE shillings for their nights job
showed how my poor little darling had
won the hearts of all around. Often
and often since, too, I oould have stop
ped this one and shook hands with
that one for their kindness only there's
always that shut-upness about an Eng
lishman that seems to make him all
heart at a time of sorrow, and a piece
of solid bluntness at every other time.


Well, it was now Just upon morning, |
and we were all worked up to pitch OF
excitement that nothing could be like. !
We had been expecting TO come upon
the poor child all the afternoon and
night, but now there could be no doubt
Of it. She must be here for we were
down in the stoke-hole, working again
with more viRor than had been shown
for hours. Mems faces were flushed,
and their.teeth set. Thev didn't talk,
only in whispers and the stuff went
flying out as fast as others could take it
away.


g Easy, easy" the sergeant of the
police kept saying, as he and two of his
men kept us well lit with the strong
light Of their lanterns.


But the men tore on, till at last the
place was about cleared ont, and we
had got ont to e mass of brick wall
sloping against one side, and a little
woodwork on the other side, along with
some rubbish.


And now was the exciting time, as we
went, four of US, at the brick wall,
dragged ct it, and raised it, when some
women up above shrieked out, and we
stood trembling, for it had crUmbled
down and lay all of heap whore we
had raised it from.


"Quick % I shouted, huskily.


And we tore the bricks away till there
was hardly a scrap left, and we stood
staring at one another.


"Why, she amt there arter all F"
says a policeman.


"Tm blest, " says another.


But I couldn't speak, for I did not
know what TO do but stood staring
about as If I expected next to see the
little darling come running up again
unhurt


TRY there, says the sergeant.


Then he turned on his light into a
dark corner, where the bits of wood
lay. and darted across and threw back
two or three places, when gave cry
and fell on my knees again. For there
was no mistake this time I had un-
covered a little foot, and there was the
little white sock all blOod-stsined and
I felt a great sob rise from my breast as
I stopped down and kissed the little red
spot.


"Steady," said the sergeant and
then quickly. s knelt there, they
reached over me, and lifted piece after
piece away, till there, In the gray light
Of the morning, was looking upon
the little motionless figure lying there
with her golden hair, as 1 had fancied,
dabbled IN blood from a cut IN her little
white forehead, where the blood had
run, but now lay hard and dry. Covered
with blood and scraps of mortar, she lay
sire 5ched out there, and felt as if my
heart would break to see the little peace
ful face almost with a smile upon It
while, as If out Of respect TO my feelings,
the men all drew back, till knelt there
all alone.


And now far up in the sky the warm
light of the rising sun shone, and Il
was reflected down upon that tiny face
lighting It mp with almost heavenly
beauty and as ! knelt there IN the still
silence Of the early morn, I coald hear