Year: 1875

It was . third class carriage. She
was pleasant faced young woman,
going, / think, for the FIRST time after
her marriage, to visit her parents in
her old home, to show them their
two nice grandchildren. AT least,
this was the little history built up
for her in my own brain from word
or two that heard between her and
her young husband at the station, as
he put her into the carriage with an
affectionate farewell. | always
watch with great interest the fare
wells and greetings Of my fellow
travellers, and have fashion Of
thinking out for myself the whole
story Of their previous lives from the
little hints that | get in this way.
1t is to me as ifI were permitted to
open the second volume of an inter
esting romance, and allowed TO read
but one short scene in this, and
asked to guess as nearly as possible
from the one scene the previous
course Of the story and the charac-
tiers of the actors in it.


The Youngest child was an infant
of about three or four months Old
very quiet and good; the other was
y pretty, restless little girl of three,
who could not be still single mo-
ment, and kept the careful mother
busy by her questions and wants and
childish prattle. She was not at all
bashful, and soon talked to US all in
such . natural, coquettish, conde-
scending way that we were quite in
love with the charming little lassie,
and begged her mother not to check
her innocent advances to us.


When we had been travelling to-
ge;her for two or three hours and
began to feel quite like old acquaint-
snces, while the train was going at
full speed, the mother half rose from
her seat to place the little girl, who
had left her place, again on the op-
posite seat. How it happened !
have never understood; it was one Of
those accidents which seem impossi-
BILE, and in fact, only happen once in
u hundred thousand times; but just
as she stood half erect, holding her
sleeping babe upon one arm and her
little frolicksome maiden somewhat
awkwardly on the other, the little
girl made one of her sudden, quick
movements, and in an instant she was
gone from our eyes,


What moment! The poor moth
er stood fixed and rigid in exactly
the same attitude, her arm still bent
as though around her child, gazing
with wide open, fixed eyes at the
place whence she vanished. She
seemed literally suddenly turned to
stone; with the rest OF US the case
was almost the same. How long
this lasted l do not know; doubtless
it seemed to lis much longer than it
really was. Then the young mother
seemed to come to herself, and made
q sudden movement as if she would
spring through the window after her
vanished darling, now far away. l
caught her quickly fast and held her,
while the kind young lady who sa,
opposite to me took the baby from
her arms, and we all began TO talk
together, no one listening to the
other, about what was to be done for
her. Somehow we managed in our
excitement 10 do all that was posi-.
bic; the guard came, the train was
stopped, and the mother, without
speaking to one of US, or even look
ing at US, left the train; supporting
herself on one arm of the sympathiz-
ing guard, while be held the still
sleeping baby fast in the other.


OF course the train must go with
increased speed to make up for the
moment Of delay, SO there was no
chance for Us to see more of the poor
bereaved mother. "Telegraph to us
at the next station" said one of the
railroad functionarles to the guard.
"Yes. yes, be sure TO do it immedi
ately," cried dozen voices; for in
some mysterious way the news of
the accident had run through the
train as if by electricity, and long
row of sympsthizing faces watched
from the carriage the disappearing
forms of tho mother and the guard.
sit will take her half an hour to
reach the spot, and it is just thirty
FIVE minutes now to the next sta
tion," said the stout gentleman in
the corner, taking out his watch and
holding it open in his hand, his eyes
fixed upon it. He had struck me as
one of the most selfish and disagree
BILE old gentlemen possible; scarcely
answering a polite question from q
neighbor; and then in the shortest
and grufest manner possible; he had
seemed completely absorbed by his
newspaper and his snuff box, not
having noticed the little fairy in the
way, except to glance at her now and
] then with q savage expression as her