The Small Boy's Story

It all carne of my having a raüway key and being made to take musio lessons. Tnompson gave me the key when he was leaving last term. I don't know how he carne by it, or wbat goodit was to him as he never saw a train except when he went home for the holidays; but he was always talking of the convenience of having such a thing when you were travelling, and hinting at the mysterious penalties the company might inflict if they caught you using It. He gave it rne iu exchange for a bit of Letty'shair (she's my sister, and Thompson was dreadf ully in love with her) and a sciv.p of the bonnet trimming she wore in church. I stole that but had to ask hei for the hair, and she brought out a whole bundie and said I might trade away tho lot if I chose. 'Hair wasn't worth much now.' Music waa another thing altogether. Herr Otto Finke was an old friond of my father's, and livel at Luckboro' our market town. He took a fancy to me- bother him; and actually persuaded my father and mother to let me come over to Luckhnro' p.verv market-dav. with my er, for a lesson in Germán and niusic. I didn't mind dining with liim first (uncornmonly queer messen we had,and lots of jam with Ihem)- but the musie was simply disgusting - (in the holidays, tooi- and the lessons generally ended by Finke getting to the piano himself, and warbling songs of his Vaterland by the hour. He did so once too often thougli- and now I have got to my story. We used to come and go between Mosslands and Luckboro' by omnibus. There was a Messlands station on the line between Luckboro' and London, but by father never went by it if he could help it. When he did, though I had the key with tue I never daré use it, and began to think I had made a bad bargdin with Thompson. One Tuesday, however, last winter, Finke got so carried away by his own sweet singiug that he kept on long after I ought to have gone to meet my father, and then got so remorseful that I thought he was going to cry; or perhaps want to keep me all night. 'Look here,' I said, -it doesn't matter. There's a train that gots in as soon as the 'bus. I can caten it if I run - Oonrl-bv!' And off I scudded. one arm in and one out of my top-coat, for I was sure he'd object, or want to see me ofiE. I liad money, and there was a train, which came up long beforel had seen all I wanted about the station. I made a dash at a carriage. It wasn't locked, as I half hoped it might be, and in I scrambled, but was nearly blown out again by a volley of the strongest language I ever did hear. The train started and jerked me down into a seat before I'd time to g6t my breath. I was not used to bad expressions, andmy fellow-traveller's remarks made,my blood run cold. There were ladies in the carriage, but he didn't seeru to mind that. He had a red, scowling face, with heavy red eyebrows and bloodshot eyes. All the rest of him was a mass of railway rugs and wraps. I had tutnbled over his toes into the middle seat opposite, where I sat scared and speechle3s, till I caught the eyes of the lady next to him flxed on me. Ugh! sucb. a bad oíd face! A tight, cruel moath, with all sorts of coil-lines about it, and wicked, sharp gray eyes that screwed into one like gimlets . I didn't care much for Redface by this time. 1 don't believe he would 'twist my neck and chuck me out of window, as he suggested; but I hated her all over et once, írom her sausage-curls - grizzly-gray, two on each eide - to her hooked claws of fingers that were twitching away at herkniüing-needles, in and out of a big gray stocking. 'Hush, Sammy,' she said quite sweetly; 'the poor child means no harm, and he can easily get out at the next station - Where are you going to, love?' I could only gape in reply and she must have thought I was a sof ty, for she twisted my ticket clean out of my hand before I knew what she was after. 'Mosslands. Very good. That's the next station, l'll see him safe out, Sammy, dear, Samuiy growled an inarticulate response froni under his rugs. The third passenger had neither spoken nor stirred. She sat on the same side as the other two, covered with a big plaid rug, and a blue woollen veil tied over her head. I could make not hing out except that she seemed asleep in a very uncomfortable attitude. I sat in the middle opposite the ola woman. It was so disagieeable, flnding her sharp eyes on me while her needles clicked on ] nst the same, that I Miought I might as well pretend to go to sleep too. So I curled myself up, and gave on or two nods, and then dropped my face on my arm so that she couldn't see it. Presently I heard the needies going slowerandslower. I peepee!, and saw the big bonnet and sausage-curls giving a luren forward and thsn backward, once, twice; then a big snore; and then she was off too. I didn't stir for a minute, for I saw that 'Sammy' was up to something. He leant forward, and peeped at her as if to make sure she was quite asleep; then cautiously groped in the seat beside her, and hauled up a little black bag. He opened it sof tly, drew out a silvertopped flask, and closed it just a jerk of the train roused the old lady. Sammy dived back into his corner; and she sat bolt upright, rubbei her eyes hard, feit suspiciously about till she found the bag, stowed it away behind her, and resumed her knitting. Only for a few moments, though; with a weary groan she let stockings, needies and all go down with a run, and dropped back sounder asleep than before. Then from Sainniy's corner carne a gurgle - soft and low - many times repealed, then all was quiet. Now was uay tiine. I began to look about, and think what I should do flrst. Whether I dared get upon the seat and see how the conimunication with the guard worked, and what would happen if I pulled it. If the train did stop, I could tnake off, or say it was Sammy. He was haíf-tipsy now, aud people wouldn't believe hiin. F'rst of all I went to the window to look out a little. It was pitch dark outside, and all I could see was the refloction of the carriage, and of the I ,c vMJolitli Véil. ii' sitting up now, and looking inteutly ai me. What an uncomfortable set they werc, to be sure ! I louked around at her directly. She was very young - younger than Letty, aud she's just seventeen, and not pretty - but so thin and frightened looking that I felt quite, uuhappy about her. She flxed lier big bright eyes on me, and put up lier fiuger. 'Don't speak,' slie said in a clear wbisper. 'Keep looking out of the window. Can you hear what I am saying ?' I nodded, and she went on, looking now at me, and now at the oíd woinan. 'If they get me to London, I am a dead woman. You are my last chance. Wülyou help me?' I nodded very hard indeed, and looked at the cominunication with the guard. She shook her head. 'No, that's no good. I must get away at the next station. He is safe. Can "you stop her frotn following me ?' I didn't believe I could. 1 might have thrown a rug over Sammy, and sat on him for a minute or two; but that old woman was too much for me. I feit that directly she woke she'd see what I wa3 thinking of, and strangle me before I could stir. The precious minutes were flying- the miles were hurrying past us in the outside glooin - the girl's big woeful eyes were üxed on me in desparate appeal. '1 have friends who will save me if I c;ua but get to them,' she panted. 'Just ene minute's chance - onlyone - ' All at once I hadan idea. Asplendid one ! 'Look at this,' I whispered, and held up my íailway key. 'If I open this door, daré you get out? You can hold on outside till the train stops. Run straight across the dowu line. There's only a bank and a hedge on the top. Lots of gaps in it nearer the station. There you are on the Luckborough Road. Do you hear?' I was quite hot and out of breath w ith whispering all this as plain as I could. She caught every word as fast as I could think it almost. What with the feeling uf niy own t cleverness; liatred of that uasy old i woman and delight in spiting her; and I pity for the poor girl, I feit as brave as any fellow, however big, could do, and full of ideas 3 well. 'Give me that,' I said, pointing to ' her blue veil. 'Tliey won't see you're gone if I sifc here, with it tied over my head.' 'Ob, no, no ! They'll kill you.' 'Not they! They can't interfere with me.' ([ declare, I feit as if I could flght Tammy and a dozen old ladies justthen.) 'Quick!now or never!' I tied the veil over my head and lowered the window as softly as possible. There was no time to lose, for the train was slackening speed even then. She gave me one look that made mefeel braver than ever, and icclined to cry, both at once; and in a second she was out on the step. The train stopped. I saw her skirt flutter in the stream of light that feil from our open carriage door across the down line of rails, and that was all, - and I was huddled down under the big plaid rug with the old woman wide-awake standing over me. 'Drat the boy, Saininy! Cali tb e porter; he's got out at the wrong side!' 'Call-un-yre-self," answered Saminy, all in one word. She pulled the door to and tramped back to her seat, taking no more notice of me thau if 1 had been a cushion of the carriage. 'It don't matter if he has broken his neck either,' she muttered, 'perhaps we'd better make no fuss.' The train was off again. I dared not jump up while she was in the way, and thought I must take my chanoe at the next station. 'Oh! my bonesand bodyl' she groaned presently. 'Oh, what a time it has been! Sammy!' No answer. 'Sammy!' She was up again, and I think she hauled liim up and shook him, for something feil with a crasïi like a broken bottle. 'You idiot,' she screamed. 'VVheu you want all the brains you've got.and more too! To play me this trick! Serve you right if I get out and leave you at the next station - ughl' It sounded as if she were banging his head againt the carriage. That and the fresh air seemed to rouse him. He got up and put his head out of the wiudow for a short time, and then replied slowly and impressively: 'Now, look here, old woman. None of your nonsense. When he's wanted, Samuel ïfixon is all there. And no man alive can say he isn't,' he went on solemnly holding carefully on to one word till he was sure of the next. 'As to this business. I ask you - Is it mine or is it yours? Now then?' 'Yours, 1 should think; as it's your wife who is giving us all this trouble. I wish I'd lef t you to flght it out yourselves.' 'Stop that,' said Sammy, who was talking himself sober and eonsequeutly savage. Til not have it put upon me. I didfi't want to marry her; that was your doing, and I don't want to make away with her; that's your doing, and if it's a hanging matter, I am not the one to swing for it.' 'Heaven forgive you, Sammy I' said tho old woman, evidently horribly scared. 'Don't you talk in that way to your poor old mother - don't. ff the poor creature was only in herriglit mind she'd be the flrat to say her old nurse was her best friend - the on'y one she had in the world when her pa died and left lier.' Here she sniffled a little. Sammy gave a sort of derisive growl. - 'And as to her marrying you; it stood to reason that she must marry soniebody, sometime, left all alone in the world with her good looks and her fortune; and why not my handsome son ? It was luck for you, Sammy, though you turn against me now. There you were, just come home from foreign parts, without a halfpenny in your pocket, or a notion where to turn to flnd one; and there was she withoul a relation or friend to interfere with you - as simple as a baby - not a creature to stop her doing as she chose with herself and her monej. It would have been a sin and a shame to lose such a chance ! Of course. I wanted to see my handsome lad as good a gentleman as the best of them.' The old woman seemed to botalking on and on purposely; like telling a rigmarole to a child to keep it quiet. Sammy growled again iu a milder tone. 'Oh, yes. Say it's all my fault, do ! You can talk black white when it pleases you.' - 'It was your fault, Sammy. You might have lived happy and peaceable if you'd chosen. Ilaven't I been down on my bended knees to beg you to let her alone when you was treating her that shameful that the whole countryside was ringing with it. You know it, and others know it. And I can teil you what, Mr. Samuel Nixon, if she'd been found dead in lier bed, as I expected every morning of my lifo to hear, there wasn't a servant in the place that wouldn't have spoken up before the Coroner - and glad to do it. Who'd have swung for it then, l'd like to know. mui shuffling bis f eet about uneasily; then- in a inaudlin whimper: 'It was drink, nothing else, and her agarravatitig, wbining ways. Don't be hard on me old woman, I'm sure I've given in handsome to all your plans.' 'Because you couldn't help yourself - j ou fooi. Now you see what it is to have your poor old mother to turn to. Your wife may talk as much as she pleases now. Who'll believe her when we've got it written down by two London doctors that she's as mad as mad can be? Who's to mind her talk, or anyone else's ? Aren't we taking her up to London just for the good of her health, to a nice safe place where she will De well looked after and kept f rom getting herself and other folks into any more trouble; and then you and ma will go back, Sammy, and live as happy and confortable as you please.' 'They will treat her like a eli, mother ?' 'Of course they will; a beautiful place, and the best of living. Bless you, she'll be as happy as the day is lonsr. It does you credit being so aer-liearted, Sammy. I knew you :ouldn't abide seeing her storming and raving as she did last night, so I just ;ave her a little sup of something beiore we started, and you see sh,'s been sleeping like a baby ever since. And ;he gentleman - where she'8 going you now - he gave me this bottle ; and nrhen we get to London I've just to Sfive her a whiff of it on a handkercher, and off she goes as quiet as a lamb. No screams er tantrums this time; and he and his nurses will be on the lookout for us with his carriage, and before she knows it there she'll be as 3uug as you please.' This was awful ! What should Ido? Were weever going io stop? Was there another station before London ? Should I be drugged, dragged cff and made away with ? I knew if they found me out it was all over with me. The pattern of the blue Shetlaud veil danced before my eyes- the noise of the traiu was as the sound of the roar of artillery inmy ears. I sat up, ready for a spring and a struggle. A jerk ! Another ! A stop, and the door Üung open. 'Tickets, please.' i made one plunge. I ilung the rug clean over the old woman, dashed my arm into Sammy's face, and tuinbled headlong out, into the arms of the astonished ticket collector. I feit him clutch me, and then the ground rose up, or I went down - down - into an unfathomable depth of blackness ! 'Hullo ! old fellow. Better now ?' were the first word I heard. Thompson's voice 1 There he was with a glass of water in his hand, stopping over me. Thonapson's mother was kneeling beside me, cuddling me up agiinst her nice sof c sealskin. I was on the waiting-room sofa, and about a dozen people were all standing staring round. Thompson went and telegraphed home tjiat I was safe, and then he and his mother took me to the house In London, where they were staying. I can't remember much after that. I was ill for many weeks, I believe. I tried to teil people what had happened; but no one would listen. They try, even now, to make me believe I dreamt it in my illness. I've got it told now though, and every word of it is solemn truth. öesides, didn't I see and smell Letty burning the blue Shetland veil. I've had nomoremusiclesfions since, that's one good thing. The Rail wayKey? Oh, I left that