Year: 1875

do not know ; doubtless it seemed
| to US much longer than it really


was. Then the young mother
seemed to come to herself, and
made a sudden movement as if she


would spring through the window
after her vanished darling, now fal
away. I caught her quickly fast
and held her while the kind young
lady who sat opposite to me
took the baby from her arms
and we all began to talk together
90 one listening to the other
about what was to be done for
her. Somehow we managed in
our excitement to do all that was
possible; the guard came, the
train was stopped, and the mother
without speaking to one of US, Or
even looking at US, left the train,
supporting herself on the arm of
the sympathising guard, while he
held the sleeping baby fast in the
other.


Of course the train must 90
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. "Tel-
egraph to US at next station" said
one Of the railroad functionaries to
the guard. "Yes, yes, do be sure
to do it immediately" cried doz-
en- voices; for in some mysterious
way the news Of the accident had
run through the train as if by
electricity, and, a long row of
sympathizing faces watched from
the carriage the disappearing Of
the mother and the guard.


"It will take her half an hour to
reach the spot, and it is just thir.
ty-fve minutes now to the next
station" said the stout gentlemen
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 sell
fish and disagreeable old gentlemen
possible scarcely answering a po-
lite question from a neighbor, and
then in the shortest and grufest
manner possible be had seemed
completely absorbed by his news
paper and his snuf-box, not hav-
ing noticed the little fairy in any
way except to glance at her now
and then with a savage expression
as her clear, childish laugh had
disturbed his reading. Now his
whole soul seemed to be fixed on
the watch before him, and he
"chided the tardy flight of time"
again and again in words more for
chile than ornamental.


There was q young would-be
dandy in one corner; light, straw.
colored gloves, a slender cane, an
infant moustache, and an eyeglass
stuck in one eye seemed to be, in
his own opinion, tokens of vast
superiority over the other travel
ers; and be spoke very little, ex-
cept occasionally to make some
supercilious remark or ask some
question about third class travel
ing, apparently to produce on us
the impression that he was a
young nobleman or prince, per-
haps, in disguise, seeing for himself
how ordinary mortals fared.-
What a change had come over
him now; the eyeglass hung dang
ling hither and thither; with the
kid gloves, of which he had been
so dainty, he had grasped the dus-
ty facing of the door, and was
straining his gaze, first backward,
until the poor mother was no long
er to bo seen, and then forward
to the next station, where news
was to meet US.


Now at last we are there; the
train halts, and one Of the guards
runs quickly into the little Office
over which Photograph" is paint
ed. Everybody who can possibly
get his or her head out of the win
dow on that side thrusts it out.
There is a moment of intense sus-
pense; here comes the guard
again with dispatch in his hand ;
be stands about midway between
the ends Of the train and begins
to read it out in his clear, loud,
official tones: "Child perfectly
sound; alighted on a pile of straw
in field, not two feet from a stone
WALL"