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CHAPTER VI Continued
A dreadful railway accident has
taken place on the Southeastern rail
way A goods train from London to
Maidstone which contained two wag-
ons loaded with petroleum barrels
9i through some mistake in the signals
ran into the 430 up train from Do
ver at the point where the lines cross
The engine tender and three first
class -carriages have been smashed up
and burnt by the petroleum
ty three passengers are either dead or
dying
The perspjratlon stood upon his
brow as he read thisthis grim and
ghastly paragraph over and over
again
How could I possibly let them see
this he groaned to himself They
would go out of their minds with the
horror of it And yet the thought
struck liim what is to prevent them
from reading it all and more beside
in the morning papers Though of
course there is hope there must be
a gleam of hope Some must have
escaped How slow this train is And
yet why should I want to travel fast
er How do I know what awaits me
at my journeys end
When the train reached London
Bridge a little before ten he found
all was bustle and confusion T
news of the accident had spread like
wildfire and a momentarily increas
ing throng of agonized friends and
relatives besieged the officials at
tacked the telegraph office and hurried
hither and thither backwards and
forwards in search of something defi
nite in the shape of information
Ted Burritt forced himself through
the crowd which was gathered round
some person in authority and put
the same questions which burst from
so many lips at once
Was anything more known about
the accident When would the line
lie clear and when would a train be
allowed to run to the scene of the
disaster
ZTETSZEZEZSMSBSMmi
fHE FATAL REQUEST
ORFOJ N D- O U T
By A L Harris Author of Mine Own Familiar Friend etc
Copyright 189 1 by Oat sell P ubllthlny Corny any
Copyright iaa2 by Street cfc Smith
clue no possibility of recognizing or
identifying any
Ted Burritt approached and looked
down upon one then staggered and
nearly fell
Are these all ho asked in a
dreadfil whisper The man who was
in charge of thi3 ghastly detachment
answered briefly There be a heap
more on em in the church yonder
CHAPTER VII
In the Vestry
There was very little sleep for any
one at Magnolia Lodge that night
Mrs Burritt was at last persuaded to
go and lie down upon her bed where
she was ministered to by her daugh
ter and the cook
So in lamentations and torturing
suspense together with brief intervals
of broken rest the night wore away
The servants with scared faces crept
about the house and prepared the
breakfast which nobody touched
May Burritt came down stairs about
eight oclock and the first thing that
she saw was the daily paper lying in
its accustomed place beside the urn
Ah she gasped now to know
the worst
The account she sought was as
signed the most prominent position
and was headed in large capitals
Terrible Railway Accident Thirty
two lives lost Numbers roasted to
death
She read the brief paragraph into
which so much horror was condensed
and stood as though turned to stone
Then coming back to herself she mur
mured Mother must never see this
it would kill her And she left the
room taking the paper with her
After all though she ventured to
hope there have been some saved
Why may not he be among them
Surely Ted will send a telegram soon
Poor boy I wonder what he is do
ing
A little later in the morning when
Whats that Run May and see
And the answers repeated over
and ever again and passed from
mouth to mouth were
No further details of the accident
had been ascertained and no names
of the victims had yet been published
as the telegraph lines had been brok
en
The first train to Bannock Bridge
the scene of the disaster Avould be
run as soon as the line was clear and
that could not be for some hours long
er The unfortunate people who
craved to know what might be the
late of some of their nearest and dear
est could do nothing but wait hour
after hour every minute of which
seemed an age and each separate
hour an eternity
And so at last the hours wore
away and very early in the morning
a train started bearing its weary hag
gard load of men and women each
hoping that God had at least been
merciful to him or her whoever else
He might have bereaved
Ted Burritt sat in his corner of the
carriage and let his thoughts wander
where they would All at once the
thought occurred to him What had
become of the friend The friend
whom his father went to meet and
who was to return with him But
what did it matter about him Why
but for him though the accident
would have taken place all the same
it would have had nothing to do with
that pleasant peaceful home at Dul
wich
By the time he had recovered him
self a little he saw that the day was
beginning to dawn Surely they must
be very near the scene of the disas
ter
Even in the faint early light which
was all they had to illumine the
scene signs of the recent catastrophe
began to appear By the side of the
line they saw drawn up some of the
ruined carriages Another moment
and the train drew up at the
n a litHo station which I
had now been converted into a tem
porary dead house The mournful
wild eyed cavalcade which alighted
at the platform were met by the sta
tionmaster who merely motioned with
his arm and said In there
- The whole crowd with one accord
poured in the direction indicated
A dreadful sight met their eyes In
the waiting room and booking office
a dozen charred remnants of human
beings were laid out on tarpaulins
each one of which had lost all sem
blance to humanity There was no
Mrs Burritt was just being coaxed to
take a little beef tea the fateful
double knock once more re echoed
through the house
Whats that cried Mrs Burritt
sitting bolt upright Perhaps hes
come back safe after all Run May
and see
The housemaid met her on the
stairs bearing a yellow envelope
The boy is waiting to know if there
is any answer miss she said and
lingered in the expectation of hearing
something of the contents
The girl seized it and tore it
open
To return to her brother who had
been told that there were yet many
more bodies in the church for which
room could not be found elsewhere
and who accompanied by a detach
ment of other seekers thereupon left
the station for the sacred edifice It
was a relief to find themselves again
in the open air after the ghastly
sight that had just met their eyes
Sut there was horror in the thought
that they were only exchanging one
such scene for another
Could he have been one of those
was the awful thought which pursued
the young man one of those fearful
indescribable objects And was it
such a thing as that that he must
take home with him if it should prove
by any means possible to separate the
identity of the one from the other
He came in sight of the church
which was not far from the station
Arriving at the porch the foremost of
the party discovered that the door
was locked Here was a sudden check
and they began to consult together as
to where the key might be found
As they did so a window of one of
the little cottages opposite the church
was thrown up and an old man in a
quaint old fashioned nightcap stuck
his head out
I be a comin he cried ye must
jest bide a bit and Ill be with ee
This was evidently the clerk or sex
ton at any rate he was the individual
required and thore was nothing to
do but to bide as he had desired
them
At last the churchyard gate clicked
and a shriveled bent figure made its
appearance dangling a bunch of great
keys in one hand He threw the great
door open with a clang and the people
entered the church It was very dark
inside The windows were most of
them of colored glass and high up and
the old fashioned pews and the thick
squat columns which supported the
roof seemed to swallow up wnat little
light there was
Theyve put em all inside the chan
cel rallssaid the old man who had
constituted himself a soct of ghoulish
master of the ceremonies
No one seemed to care to be tho
first to approach that part of the holy
edifice -
At last Ted Burritt with a grim
determination approached the railing
Inside the bodies or what had once
been bodies were disposed in two
rows
Those on the right hand lay in cof
fins which had been hastily gathered
from all parts of the neighborhood
those on the left were mere groups
of ashes collected together on pieces
of tarpaulin
Ted Burritt began at the right hand
side The other people followed his
example and the old clerk acted as
cicerone
This un he said indicating the
terrible contents of one coffin is sup
posed to a bin a young female as
they found a thimble and a bit of a
dress among the ashes Thimble ad
the name o Lizzie scratched on it
A man who was craning his neck
over Ted Burritts shoulder gave a
sharp cry Thats my girl Thats
my Lizzie And her mother waiting
for her at home and wont believe as
anything can have happened to her
Oh Lord and he broke out into wild
outcries
Some of the others forgetful of
their own concerns for a moment
gathered round him and made an at
tempt at consolation
At least you know which she is
that ought to be a little comfort to
you
But I thought she might have been
saved She was such a good girl
and look at her there and he gestic
ulated towards the open coffin
I cant stand much more of this
murmured Ted Burritt as he wiped
the great drops of perspiration from
his forehead
They left the bereaved parent moan
ing over his childs remains and again
passed on The next three coffins
were examined shuddered at and left
The mutilated corpses which they con
tained possessed neither head feet
nor hands They could never have
been taken for anything human had
not the fact been established beyond
all doubt Was either of those bis
father
There only remained one or two
more belonging to that row and they
too were unrecognizable After that
nothing was left but the poor heaps of
ashes on the other side
This is all ladies and gentlemen
said the old man with a sort of charnel-house
cheerfulness sides one
more in the vestry as was put there
in consequents of bein very little
damaged cept about the legs and
passon did say as I was to show im
fust though bein easy recognized
But my pore old eds bin all of a
jumble since th accident and I clean
forgot im But anybody as likes can
jest step into the vestry and see im
for theirselves Theyve laid im out
on the table through bein of a hextry
siza and runnin short o coffins E
was found buried under a lot o rub
bidge and they ad a deal o trouble to
git im out
There was a general rush in that
direction on the part of all those who
had a male relative missing
To be continued
Were Dandy Lions
He had been in the Dark Continent
for two or three years and when
home on a visit ho delighted to spin
his tall yarns about his experiences
in Africa The minting of wild lions
was his specialty how he could shoot
them how he could go out and be
sure of finding one how it was done
etc etc and he generally wound up
by saying that he never yet saw a lion
that he feared
One night after he had finished
yarning he was a little taken aback
by one of his audience who said
Thats nothing 1 have lain down
and actually slept among lions in their
wild natural state
I dont believe that Im no fcol
said the great hunter
Its the truth though
You slept among lions in their wild
natural state
Yes I certainly did
Can you prove it Were they Af
rican
Well not exactly African lions
They were dandelions
Practical Toys
Toys whether useful or as a pas
time as instructors are fascinating
However the up-to-date toy is prac
tical Children have miniature work
ing autos A make believe train a
splendid toy is a real train of cars
with real locomotive and real track
There are children out West on
whose fathers property small streams
cross These boys imitate the things
they see going on about them They
build dams check the water con
struct miniature systems of irrigation
in exact copy of the plan used by the
farmers of that country The water
thus damned nourishes a garden plot
of their own
In this play there is the dignity of
education
Thought Ade Needed Schooling
The following story is going the
rounds of Highland Park where
George Ade spent the summer The
aforesaid was walking along the
street one day when he met a mite of
humanity kindergarten bent one of
Mr Ades summer colleagues and
friends
Mr Ade called out Hello Going
to school The prompt reply came
in the same tone of good comrade
ship without the least suggestion of
flippancy but just as Mr Ade would
have it No are you
THE FEU1T INDUSTEY
FLORIDA GROVERS OPPOSE CU-
EAN RECIPROCITY
They Protest That They Will Be
Driven Out of Business if Preferen
tial Tariff Rates Are Granted In
Favor of their Cuban Competitors
The letters which appear below will
serve to show the intensity of feeling
which exists among Florida fruit
growers regarding the favoritism
which is contemplated toward their
Cuban competitors Finding it impos
sible to obtain from the Democrats
who represent their state in Congress
any measure of recognition of their
claims to protection these Florida
agriculturists naturally turn to tho
Republican party for aid and comfort
The South is full of Democrats who
believe in and want protection and
who would like to turn to the Republi
can party on that account There was
an excellent prospect that this tenden
cy would become more and more gen
eral and that ultimately protection
would do in the South what it has so
effectually done in the states of the
Middle West the Rocky Mountain
States and the Far West But this
wretched blunder of promoting agri
cultural prosperity in Cuba at the ex
pense of our own farmers seems like
ly to check the trend in the South
toward Republicanism It may do
worse than that It may prove costly
to the Republican party in regions not
long ago won from Bryanism and now
counted as safely Republican
The case of the Florida fruit grow
ers like that of the cane growers of
Louisiana and Texas is one that
ought to appeal to fair minded protec
tionists These people have invested
all they possess in agricultural indus
tries that are absolutely dependent
upon protection against the eheaper
lands and the cheaper labor of com
peting countries They have relied
upon the continuance of that protec
tion They cannot understand upon
hot skies of Cuba than in thi3 Land
of Flowers
Cuba has long been known a3 tho
richest Island in the world its fertile
soil making unnecessary the use of
expfinsivn commercial fertilizers H
orange trees and garden fruits and
vegetables bloom and bear without tho
aid of the irrigation ditch Already
Cuba is not in need of aid from tho
United States her vast resources are
opening up under the impetus of flee
ing American capital deserting the
mother country because the island al
ready offers better inducements than
the United States
Shall we aid this capital at tho
ruin of our own interests
There is now a tariff of twenty two
and a half cents upon a crate of pine
apples from Cuba Add this amount
to the rate of transportation from Ha
vana to Chicago and wo have a total
of 74 1 10 cents less than we pay in
freight rates to the same destination
it costing the growers of Florida S91
cents In this a protection tariff that
protects
We feel that a reciprocity treaty
with Cuba in her favor in regard to
those fruits which are commonly pro
duced hero and there would end in
irreparable disaster to the interests
of an infant industry in our state that
has already reached to mammoth pro
portions
The present tariff is actually Inop
erative and should be trebled in
amount Yours very truly Fletcher
A Russell A B Hamor S A Brown
Mrs D N Mott Wm H Tancre R V
Ankeny A E Saeger George A Sae
ger Fred G Saeger P D Aukeny
F L Hamor Will Lfl Frantz Mary
H Gridley Marion A Patrick C W
Kirk H G Stouder Ella S Frantz
and John N Waller
Farmers Are Interested
Under the present tariff law Ameri
can farmers need not fear the impor
tation into this country of competitive
farm products But what interests
our farmers most is an industrial con
dition which creates a home demand
Take work from the great army of
THEY THAT ARE WHOLE NEED NOT A PHYSICIAN
I MMa J StA s
SOUP HQUSM H 8 m ww f
ui33E
iuauuwiiCb
Doctor Reciprocity My dear Mr Samuel your blood is too rich you
are feeling too good and I want you to take these medicines in order to
reduce this high prosperity fever now raging in your system So take bot
tle No 1 first as a laxative and then bottle No 2 which will effect a
radical cure If you follow my directions faithfully I am sure it will
change your condition in a short time After this course of treatment you
will be obliged to use Dr Clevelands Celebrated 1S9G Soup House Tonic
for some time Dr Clevelands Tonic is not a very nice medicine to take
but it is the only one we use in our practice to meet the conditions that
confront us
what principle of justice or eauUy
they are to be driven out of busrss
for the benefit of alien competitor
for that is precisely what it amounts
to in Florida and Louisiana in the
event that the Cuban growers of cane
sugar and fruits shall command She
United States marKet with their r5wer
priced products Florida fruit grow
ers put the case strongly in the low
ing letters
Ankona FJa Oct 19 1903- 1 he
American Protective Tariff Lerg ie
New York City Gentlemen You will
find inclosed a letter with a few signa
tures from the leading men of ur
community A few years ago ovlng
to the good offices of Senator uay
who is only interested in Florid i as
a winter tourist and resident we vre
enabled to get a tariff of twenty - vo
and a half cents upon pineapple or
anges being already adequately pro
tected through the efforts of our GJtli
fornia contingent of growers organ
ized and powerful as they are
Our representatives from Flori la
at the time Senator Quay so kindly
himself in our behalf would
not work for the pineapple duty rut
actually voted against it in bi th
bodies of Congress Such bull headed
is only commend
able when used with discretion but it
is odious when employed against right
and justice
You are at liberty to use both
these letters should you see fit Yours
very truly
Fletcher A Russell
Fla Oct 17 1903 The
American Protective Tariff League
New York City Gentlemen We env
phaticaliy demand that the Congress
of the United States be not radical in
its desire to ratify the reciprocity
treaty in favor of Cuba Should this
romantic desire be consummated it
would be far better to live under the
wage earners in this country and our
farmers scon feel the effect If agri
cultural countries elsewhere have
abundant crops there is naturally no
foreign demand and with no local de
mand because of the impoverished
condition of the consumers our pro
ducers have little show to realize on
their investments and their toil
The Republican cannot see why a
single American farmer can conscien
tiously be a free trader From 1893 to
1897 the free trade policies of the
Democratic party were tried and agri
culture suffered with other industries
It would be the same again were the
Democrats to gain strength enough to
enact a tariff law As we have said
American farmers are vitally interest
ed in a continuance of present condi
tions Davenport la Republican
A Few Questions
Will it be possible for Mr Cannon
to hold Congress as completely in
check as he hopes to do Will it be
possible to pass the Cuban reciprocity
bill at the extra session Will it be
possible to prevent congressmen from
injecting the tariff into the debate
Mr Rcosevelt would answer yen to
all these questions but the Republi
can politicians who know a great deal
more about politics and Congress than
he does are not at all sure on any of
them and for that reason they ad
vised him against the extra session
New Orleans Times Democrat
Memory of Dark Days
Senator Hanna says he thinks the
voters of Ohio are not likely to favor
a change this year He knows what
he is talking about The memory of
the dark days from 1893 to 1897 is too
fresh to permit of the commission of
any act of folly this year Cleveland
Leader
THE BULLS MISTAKE-
UNWITTINGLY TACKLED THE CIR
CUS GIANT
And What Happened to tho Brave buC
Unfortunate Bcvlne Was a Plenty
Tossed Through the Air and
Landed In Disused Quarry Pond
Every now and then you know
said the old circus man you see in
the papers a paragraph headed
Chased by an Infuriated Bull It is a
simple little story and it always rune
about the same
As Farmer Jones of West Che
shire was crossing his pasture lot on
Thursday last he was chased by an in
furiated bull and it goes on to tell
how Farmer Jones barely escaped and
all that the bull hooking off the top
rail of the fence just as Farmer Jones
went over it and so on
A simple little story sure enough
and one that weve read a hundred
times but do you know if the news-
papers should stop printing it I should
miss it greatly For somehow that
little story has always interested mo
very much and ever since a little ex
perience that the greatest of all giants
had once with an infuriated bull it has
interested me more still
We had a pasture lot right next to
the home lot at the shows winter
quarters and in that pasture lot we
had at one time a bull The homo lot
and the pasture lot stretched along
from the house alongside a road
The giant stepped over the fence
between the home lot and the pasture
lot one day to make a short cut across
the pasture to a point down tho road
and just as hed got pretty near across
somebody back in the home lot hollers
out to him
Hey Lofty The bull
The bull down in one corner had
spied the giant making across the
pasture and it started for him at
once It didnt make any difference to
the bull how big the giant was you
cant scare a mad bull
Did the giant start and run away
from it He could have done it easy
but he didnt stir a peg He just stood
still till tho bull was about ten feet
off him and then he side stepped just
one step which was equal to three
steps of an ordinary man and stood
stock still again and when the bull
turned around to follow him and just
as he was ready to spring the great
giant took him by the horns
He gave the bull a swing and
swung him clean off the ground and
up and around his head and swung
him so twice like a hammer thrower
swinging a hammer before he throws
it and then he launched the bun into
the air And the bull went sailing
over the pasture fence and over fie
road and over the fence beyond and
disappeared
But it didnt take long to find hin
On that property across the road there
was an abandoned quarry that had
been quarried out to the depth of
about sixty feet and had about fsn
teet of water in the hole at the bot
tom and the bull had dropped into
that quarry and here he was when wo
got over and looked down the sies
swimming around in the water down
below
Well we got out some of our tent
tackle that had been stored for the
winter and got the bull out and put
him back in the pasture lot where he
frisked around as gayly as ever what
you call defeated but not dismayed
and hed have charged on the giant
again in a minute if the giant had set
out to cross the lot again
But that was something the giant
never tried to do lie was a man of
sense the giant and he knew that it
was doubtful the next time he threw
him whether the bull would come
down in as soft a spot as a pool of
water and he didnt want to hurt the
bull and so the giant and the bull
never met again
But that one meeting between them
as you can easily imagine gave me a
new interest in the time honored little
story that we see in the papers ever
now and then under the heading of
Chased by an Infuriated Bull and
every time I read it I think of what
happened when the bull chased not
Farmer Jones but the greatest of ail
giants Chicago Inter Ocean
Afraid of the Dark
Whos afraid in the dark
Oh not I said the owl
And ho gave a great scowl
And he wiped his eye
And Huffed his jowl To whoo
Said the dog I bark
Out loud In the dark Eoo oo
Said the oat Miew
Ill scratch any one who
Dares say that I do
Feel afraid Miew
Afraid said the mouse
Of dark in the house
Hear ma scatter
Whatevers the matter
Sfiuark
Then the toad in the hole
And the bug in the ground
They both shook their heads
And passed the word around
And the bird in the tree
And th fish and the bee
They declared all three
That you never did see
One of them afraid
In the dark
But the little boy
Vho had gone to bed
Just raised the bedclothes
And covered hfs head
Cincinnati Enquirer
Cause for Disappointment
One of the women passengers on
the Ceuric asked Senator Turner of
the Alaskan Boundary Commission
why the Canadians were so keenly
difappointed over tae line which the
tribunal established
Because said the senator glan
cing slyly at one of the Dominion rep
resentatives who was in the group
we didnt draw the line alonj the
St Lawrence and through the Iake3
Yes ltorted the Canadian the
United States included our gold but
txcluded us New York Times