Year: 1873

! two of the cars.


She knew very little of railway matters,


but was not 50 dull that there was any
special mystery to her mind in such 4
thing rs Il change Of trains by conductor
! She did not let Grandfather or Grand
mother CroWninshield see her, however,
fire neNt evening when She again crept
ont to the gate, almost smothering her
| little lantern; for she had a halt tlutterno


sort Of Y dread that This second expert
ment might fail


Fail? No; the greeting from The train
was as ready rs was kate'S own good
evening" and the little lantern was likely
| thenrctOrtli to he The very foremost OF
| prime tayoriteS with its mistress And
now, while 1hc October days Grew cooler
and The glorious evenings longer Grand


mother Crowninshield began to grumblc a
little At the disposition her darling eyinced
| to pay 81 very many visits to Aunt Betsev
it Il long walk for You, child, she
said land its through the cut, TOO
| What il 4 railway train should come along
before Nou could get ont p


80 grandmama, that'l never happen.


laughed Katie ''thr railroad and are
Very good friends.


( =" Ion ought to be" said her grand-


mother. Il never saw any living being
care more for a dumb thing than You've
always done for that there train


But grandmother was nearer right than
Katie; for only a night on so after that
| ii must have been that Aunt BetSy's clock
was slow-tor Katie was in the very mid
die OF the cut when her ears were suddenly
| filled with the Shrek and roar with which
the train dashed i'll at the upper end
Her heart heat quickly for moment,
but not with fear; lor, as She sprang
lightly upon Il projecting rock that She
| had often before noted as Il very available
perch, She gathered her tuttering dress
| more closely about her and exclaimed


"'rhere. I'm safe enough but 10 thnl;
Of lis coming 81 near


Near enough indeed. and Katie leaned
back hard against the crag behind her
for it seemed rs if She could teel the breath
of the iron monster on her check. In one
hand She clutched more tightly the fold,
| Of her shawl, and IN the other she raised
her lantern, as il itS feeble star could be
of some protection, and then her grasp OF
il GREW >uddenly very tight indeed; for.
leaning ont 4 little from the platform of Il
| car, and looking forward. as il impatient
for the train to clear the cnt stood Il tall
handsome, bearded man. in dark. blue
clothes, with a lantern in his hand, and
his eager, Watching, cNpectant face, came
so VtxN close To her own


Ii was like Il flash of lightning but
Katie knew the face and She knew also
that She herself had been seen, aud she
had even marked the swift pa!ing Of the
bronzed yisagc Us ii recognized her and
then swept on into the darkness beyond


lie was afraid | would he hurt. =" she
Thought; and then She said aloud But
he must have seen how safe | was M
here on The rock don't believe he swung
his lantern al our garden gate Tonight


Katie did not relate her adventure even
to her grandmother and ON her visit to
Aunt B1tSN~ she was careful to come away
in time


II don't want 10 get home Sovery much
too early,7 She said to herself us She
finished her visit and hurried her dcpar-
turc: ''b,l don't like being caught in the
cut nj all. I'm Glad I'm 50 sure not To
meet anNhohN believe I'll want 10 hide
away from a stranger, Tonight, almost a9
much aS from a railway train.


1t WAS indeed an unusually dark and
gloomy night, but Katie was drS inrd to
be disappointed IN her hope OF getting
through the cnt without seeing anybody
As has been said, the granite ledge had
necessarily been pierced on 4 curved line,
50 ili:lt NO one standing at one end of the
cut. moderate rs We're its dimensions.
| could soc more than half way through
Aunt BetSpV's house was some little dis
tance from the upper entrance, and the
approach t. the latter was gloomy enough
that night, even for one who knew every
inch of thc way as we'll rs Katie did; but
her little lantern shone out checrlv against
its bright reflector, throwing lis radiance
ahead. us if it We're trying to tell her
"l'hcre dear that's it don't be afraid,
now. I'll show you the track = But Katie
remembered, Just then, that il was getting
later every minute and She tripped brisk
ly into the cut, wondering why the lantern
light should make it look so strangely
high and narrow. She had not gone far
however, before the granite walls brought
to her ears, all the way from the lower
end :lne round the curve, rs if the cut had
been 4 speaking tube, the sound of voices
that were evidently meant to be low and
guarded. There were other sounds mingled
with the voices, and Katie could not make
oul more than 4 word or 50 here and there,
but there was something about it all that
startled and frightened her. At first she
was half inclined to turn and make the
best of her way back to Aunt Bctsey'S
but that seemed foolish, and Katie was
really a courageous little soul She hid
her lantern under her shawl, however,
and stepped very lightly and swiftly for
ward trying to remember if there We're
not a rock or hollow where she would be
as safe from men rs she had been from the
passing train She did not think Of or find
any such place, and, after all the persons
whose voices troubled her We're not in the
cut, nor We're they coming to meet her
She was very nearly through, herself, be
tore she could any way make out what il
all meant but, as she paused in the deep
shadows of the rocks and peered timidly
out toward the now dull and mutfled
sounds with which the voices were no
longer mingled, a broad, quick CLEAN, rs
from lantern suddenly shaded or eN-
tnouished, shot across the track not many
yards below. and then all was darkness
and silence.


But that one moment Of illumination
had revealed extraordinary things to the
keen, excited vision of Katie Crowninshield
There We're men, three or four, she
would not say Just how many, but rough,
fierce, wild, and Notwithstanding, and be
fore them, on the railway track, from
which the rails had been pried away Just
there, was a confused heap of heavy granite
beulders and fragments. Katie understood
ii as clearly as if those men had taken her
into their confidence, and had told her in
words.


1t was u plot to wreck the train.
No matter why-whether for revenge,
OF plumber, or in the utter malignity OF
lost soul Katie never paused so much rs
to ask herself question, but turned and
fled back through the cut as for life and
death, for both were with her, side by side,
and hurrying step for step. She had no
thought or dread that the wreckers had
seen her, or would follow. Neither was
at all likely. but katie's brain was too full
Of her purpose to admit thought of self,
and she held out her lantern iearlessly
enough now, that she might be donbly
cnrp of hpl. tOotinU on the ties and Gravel