Image provided by: Silverton Country Historical Society; Silverton, OR
About Torch of reason. (Silverton, Oregon) 1896-1903 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 1, 1898)
T H E TORCH OF REASON, SIL V E R T O N , OREGON, D E C E M B E R , 1, 1898. fling myself under the wheels of the with pink blossoms, the other, like and gentle eyes would surely un express!” he m uttered to him self a bride, all decked in while, nerve him. BY MARY E. BRUSH. as the roar of an approaching train In the stillness, the waters of the Nearer and nearer he crept, now J fell on his ears. “ If th e worst creek sounded louder th an ever, and then, in his trepidation, h it 1 was a subjtct of wonder to comes I can kill myself anyhow ,” and farth er down, where a stretch ting the iron rails with a m etallic many why Hugh Rushton added, with a grim smile, as he of meadow land bordered the bank, clang; but the babbling waters h ad so far descended th e so took his signal lantern and went a whole orchestra of frogs was dole- drowned his footsteps. cial ladder as to become a mere out. fully croaking, while from out the Ju st as his trem bling han d s were ticket a g e rt at a little wayside s ta The express stopped a m inute or shadows of the woods came the raided to do the dastard ly act, two tion. two to take on four or five pack- m elancholy call of the night bird, sounds in terru p ted him. He was of excellent family. His ages lying on a truck beside the W rapping her shaw l about her, “ M amma, m am m a!” father had been judge, and his track, and as the conductor was the lady hurried along, as if bv her “ Oo— oo— oo!” the w histle of an grandfather a member of congress. idly w atching these hoisted into rapid motion to wear aw ay the approaching train . W hether they had been good men the car, there alighted, unknow n to dreary, nervous suspense, Both R ushton and the lady tu rn is quite another thing. him , from the rear of the train , a Inside the station, dim ly lighted ed. There, on the o th er track at We think of bequeathing lands lady and a four year old child. by a sm oky lam p, sat H ugh Rush- the end of the bridge, stood the lit and money to our children, and too A sh arp whistle, a snort, a puff, ton, his head on his hand as he tle child, who had probably aw ak often forget, alas! the lawful in h er and aw ay went the train up the peered carelessly out a t the slight, ened and come out to search for itance we generally leave them — shining track. swift moving figure. her parent. She stood there sm il the stam p of ourselves, what we The lady, who had alighted, “ Gad! How worried she is over ing, her little arm s outstretched. m en tally , m orally and physically gazed around her in a bewildered a trifle!” he m u tte red coutem ptu- But, Oh, m ercy! behind her, just are! m anner, and then approaching ously. “ W hat has she ever known tu rn in g the curve, was the round, H ugh was barely th irty , yet he R ushton, said in a nervous, trem u of an x iety in her d a in tily cared for lurid light of an approaching en had squandered all his money— life? A little stupid m istake, re gine! lous tone: sown acres of “ wild o ats”—and “ This is Brunswick, I believe—is sulting in the slight annoyance of A h alf m inute more and the now the reaping was at hand. it not?” a few hours’ delay, quite upsets childish head, with its wealth of On a certain April evening he “ No, m adam .” he replied, rem ov her. She makes as much fuss over golden locks, the fair and delicate sat alone at the window of his lit ing his cap, with the breeding of a it as if the whole w orld’s happiness body, arrayed in its d ain ty finery tle office. N ature generally gives gentlem an. “ I fear you have made were at stake. W hat does she of white and blue, would be lying balm to aching hearts, rarely a m istake. Brunswick is farther know of misery, or wretchedness, crushed and mangled! though to the pangs of a guilty on. T his is D n n n ’s Creek. Doubt- or tem p tatio n ? Y oung, pretty, be- “ My baby! Save h er!” was the conscience; and the peaceful view’ less the sim ilarity in the sound of loved—and rich, too, for when she m o th er’s frantic shriek. upon which R ushton gazed was no the two nam es deceived you.” spoke of hiring a carriage to B runs- Ah, where was H ugh R u sh to n ’s more to him th an the faded scenes “ Yes, yes, th a t was it. I surely i wick, she took out her purse, and I m urderous thought th en ? Gone, of a show. thought the brakem an called out saw th a t it was filled with bills— like the ugly black bat of night! T he sun had set a h alf hour be Brunswick. W hat shall I do? I ay, more than one fifty am ong The divine spark of m anhood in fore, and the tops of the d istan t ought to reach Brunswick tonight, them! She will------” him had not been entirely quench bills were changing from rose and My husband expects me. H e’ll be R ushton suddenly paused, ed! gold to am ethyst and deep purple. so worried. W hen will the next At th a t in sta n t a thought cam e W ith one bound he reached the Shadows began to creep across the * 1 »• * J a — train come? Or, perhaps I cAn go into his inflam ed b rain —a wicked, child, grasped her in one strong n earer meadows, green, fresh, and the sooner with a carriage. P ray ugly, m urderous thought, arm , and with the o th er swung with the tain t odors of spring ris tell rue is there an y conveyance?” H e started from his chair. I t him self and his burden around on ing from them . A little east of “ No, m adam , this is only a little fall over with a crash. R ushton one of the projecting beams of the the w eatherbeaten station a creek way station. The people who get turned toward the door, and stood bridge, and, by strenuous efforts, came h u rrying down from a cleft in on the cars here are m ostly farm ers with his hand on the knob irreso kept steady bold there u n til the the hills, the foamy, w hirling wa Besides, lutely. Should he do this? train went th u n d erin g by. ters full of p etu lan t m urynurings, from up the country. The lady was alone. No one had Brunswick is tw enty miles from Then, with one agile bound, be as if angry th at they had been here, and you could get there soon- observed her alight from the cars, gained solid footing again, and soon spanned by an audacious bridge, est by w aiting for the next train , H er ticket had been m arked B runs placed the child in the arm s of her over which ran the shining tracks due at eleven this evening. It is wick. Who, then, would look for trem bling and half fainting m other. of the railroad. quite cool out. I ’ll m ake a fire in her a t an o th er place? She had T his was H ugh B u sh to n 's deed! Tall, dark w’oods one side, a bor the ladies’ room, m adam , and try m oney with her. G iddy with the m ental and phys der of rocks and boulders on the and m ake you as com fortable as I He, H ugh R u sh tcn , was in dire ical strain , lie turned away, u n other, made the place picturesque, can.” distress. R uin stared him in the m indful of the lad y ’s tearful excla indeed, but no less gloomy. D am p airs from the creek crept face. To avert it, money m ust be m ation of gratitude, and went hack A robin lighted on the telegraph to his little office. H e staggered to wires and sat there, sw aying to and up and a (h illin g wind from the h ad — money at any price, The sw eat stood in beaded drops a chair and sat down, burying his fro, trillin g out his song, quite u n hill swept down, so th at the fire in conscious of the messages of joy or the round, pot-bellied stove was de- upon the m an’s forehead. The face in his hands, w hile scalding hand tu rn in g the door knob trem - drops trickled through his fir.gers. sorrow th a t might be flying beneath cidedly comfortable. W hen, however, the little stove, bled as with ague. ‘‘S ir,” said a gentle voice a t the bis feet. like a short, stout m an of choleric IIe opened the door and went little ticket window, “ sir, money T he b ird ’s ringing carol brought .. .»v., .^ p O B d to n began to grow red with i out> wa)ki i<n down t|)e can never repay you for your brave no smile to H u g .................. h ’s gloomy face. haunted by a h o rri-l" * ‘a , ’ 1‘e ' a ily , fe" ° f ,he beaten p ath le a d in g to the track. act, but let me show m y g ratitu d e H e was ever consciousness th th a a t t f i , , °°, opP,eb8l' e- P ,c ln i “ T here, a few rods from him , stood a t least by begging you to take ble fear and the B consciousness folded shaw l as a pillow beneath the Jadv th is,” and, with pleading eyes, she he was on the eve of sorrow and the head of her little girl, who had sham e, and th a t perhaps a prison She was on the bridge, leaning held out her well filled purse. fallen asleep on one of the seats, He knew th a t the crisp, clean cell threatened him. over th e low railing, and peering she opened the door and went out. into the foam flecked water below. bills she offered would bring him A few weeks previous, when ca The night was light and clear. release from disgrace—still, the aw rousing - with several dissolute corn- i J u s t above the purple rim of the One little * push— ------ ------ — the w — hirling ....... ° wa- — ful th o u g h t of how he purposed panions, he had gambled aw ay not hills hung the moon, its silver cres- ter8 and s h a rP» jagged rocks would getting possession of those sam e only his own earnings, but a ls o o n e ;Cen t reflected in the w aters of the do the re s t hundred dollars of the railroad ]creek. T he brown boughs of the T h at was H ugh R u sh to n ’s bills made his face flush with sham e, and he drew back, saying com pany, whose agent he was. To ma ¡des and the red and yellow th o u g h t kindly: day the new superintendent had wands of the willows were begin \\ ith livid face, red, inflamed “ No, dear lady, I cau not accept unexpectedly sent word th a t he ning to be wrapped in a fringe of eyes, and lips parted, revealing the them . Y et I th an k you for your was coming to settle up accounts, tender green foliage, while 'a t the clenched teeth, R ushton crept soft kindness and — Oh, there come6 Exposure and disgrace were inevit- rear of the depot, which had also ly behind her. your train . Let m e assist you and able been the home.of the foim er ag e n t,' Oh, how he hoped she w ouldn’t little missy here.” ve half a m ind to go out and stood two apple trees—one, rosy ( turn! One look from the fair facet Soon the train bore aw ay the A T h o u g h t and a Deed. I