I AT THE THREE
jO u i we uon i lane any great creu-
tTm ( . i . i .
ii to ourselves, even ir tne uews
papers did write a whole lot
about It and about us. It was Just
what any one else would have done,
moat likely. We didn't know that there
was going to be a big load of bullion
on the express car tlmt night, and we
hadn't any idea that the other things
would happen; if we hud had, you bet
we would have beeu somewhere else.
And then It seeing funny that It
should be us, Duflfey and me, who dis
covered It. But that isn't bo strange,
after all, when you remember that we
were always doing Just such crazy
things navigating in an old birch
bark canoe, exploring abandoned lead
mines and stealing rides on the "blind
baggage" to Koshgonong and back,
once iu awhile. Among other ex
ploits, we liked to get up early and en
Joy the freshness of the summer morn
ings, when "the birds sing and the sun
rises, and the dew on the grass Is damp
and cold to your feet. More than once
we have walked clear out to the rail
road bridge over the "three-mile creek"
before breakfast, just for the sake of
riding back on the little hand car of
Mr. Stuntz, the watchman.
You see, where the Northwestern
road crosses the three-mile creek there
used to be a very high wooden trestle.
I guess It was sixty feet high, built on
a sharp curve. It wan a dangerous
place for a bridge, and the railroad
company always kept a man there at
night to watch and signal the engi
neers that everything was all right
It used to frighten me Just to staud
at the door of Mr. Stuntz's shanty be
Blde the track when the big trains flew
by. You would think that they must
eurely Jump the rails on the curve and
rush right Into you, or at least that the
wind they raised would suck you in
under the roaring wheels.
It occurred to us that we might walk
out to the bridge some afternoon,
Bleep there all night and in the morn
ing ride back with Mr. Stuntz on the
hand car. Duffy was working in town
and couldn't get
away till late at
IVPFKT "Al SWINGING IT WILDLY
night, but a little before sunset I took
a blanket from our house and started.
My big brother had a variety of hunt
ing Implements Iu his room, and out of
this Rtore I had borrowed a thirty-two
calibre revolver and a big hunting
knife took the revolver myself and
loaned the knife to Duffy.
1 reached the shanty all right, but
had to wait quite awhile for Mr.
Btuutr, to arrive ou his machine, but he
rame at last, and we sat outside talk
ing, while the sun went dowu and the
tars came out. Mr. Stuntz. wasu't
much of a conversationalist, and It
wasn't long Itefore I began to wish that
Duffey would hurry. Nine o'clack
came and no Duffey. It was a lonely
walk over that railroad track, with
dangerous bridges and deep cuts every
little way, aud 1 couldn't have blamed
him if he did not come at all; only he
had never failed me before. So I sat
and listened for the sound of his du
plex whistle. By and by I heard it
down the track, half a mile away iu
the darkness, aud pretty soon he came
Into the light of the lantern, braudlsh
Ing a hickory club In one hand and the
hunting knife In the other, aud singing
bravely to make sure tlmt he was not
afraid.
Hut even with Duffey there and Mr.
Btunts It seemed awful lonesome. The
ouly sound were the rippling of the
creek down below, the tlukling of a
cow bell far off, and the hooting of
some old owl across the track.
There was no good place for us to
He down Inside the shanty, and besides
we had come for adventure ami prefer
red to stay out of doors. We found a
grassy place on the embankment,
about fifteen feet away, where the
ground sloped gently dowu. We used
a railroad tie for a pillow and tried to
make believe that It was heaps of fun.
- MILE BRIDGE, j
"Say," said Duffey, "suppose that
some one should try to wreck the 2
o'clock express? What would we do?"
"I don't know," I answered; "I guess
we would run. What do you think we'd
do?"
"Well, if there wasn't too many,
we'd surprise 'em. Hit one or two of
them over the head before they knew
what was up, then be ready to shoot
the rest If they moved. Then we would
tie them and signal the train when it
came by."
"Rats! We wouldn't do any such a
thing. But I don't like to talk about
It out here. It's too real. Let's go to
sleep."
We lay there a long time after this
without saying anything, while two
freight trains pulled by and Mr.
Stuntz's lantern went across the bridge
and back after each one. By and by
we quit looking at the stars, pulled our
noses In under the blanket and tried
to sleep. The last thing I heard was
Duffey's "Yes, but 'sposen they should
come," to which I wouldn't listen, but
shivered at the thought and snuggled
closer under the blanket.
I don't know Just how long we had
slept, but I woke up suddenly at Duf
fey's pinching me. I could feel that
he was trembling. I looked, and there
in front of the shanty I could Just
make out the forms of four men. The
door was open and the light from the
lantern shone out across the track. I
could hear Mr. Stuntz's snores plain
ly. Then three of the forms stepped in
to the glare of the lantern and went
Inside. We saw that they wore masks
and were armed. The fourth man kept
his place outside. All at once there
was the noise of a short scuffle from
the shanty a muffled yell, a confusion
of low oaths, the lantern was kicked
over and Binashed and we could hear
a body falling to the floor, and then
we henrd a strange voice say: "Tie him
up and gag the old cuss." . Then fol
lowed some muffled swearing.
Were we scared? We were fairly
stiff with fright. My hair stood on end
aud whole breezes ran up and down
my spinal column. It was awful
they might be murdering Mr. Stuntz.
Somehow we didn't even once think
of making an attack on the robbers.
We Just slid out from under that blan
ket as fast and as quietly as we could,
working our way, feet first, on our
stomachs, dowu the hill. We would
have been In a dreadful fix If one of
us had started a stone to rolling or
had snapped a twig. But none of
these things happened and the man
who kept watch at the door never saw
us or heard us at all.
At the bottom of the gully we stop
ped and took hold of each other for
company. 1 still held my revolver aud
Duffey the bowle knife. My teeth were
chattering and Duffey shook like a
leaf.
"They're going to wreck the 2 o'clock
express and we've got to stop 'em,"
said Duffey, his voice trembling.
This Is where he made a little mis
take. The robbers did not mean to
wreck the train, because it would have
been very easy to flag It, Just as If
something were the matter with the
bridge, and then rob the express car
before the tralu crew really knew
what was the matter.
Now, we didn't know what time It
was nor how many confederates the
robbers might have strung out along
the track to keep watch. But we
guessed that it was near 2 o'clock and
that we would have to go through the
woods for a long way and be mighty
lively If we were going to stop that
train. Ko we felt for the barbed-wire
fence that lined the right of way,
crawled under It Into the blm-k woods
aud started toward town. It was so
dark that you couldn't see your owu
hand, ami we were uearly scared to
death as we rau Into trees and caught
on prickly bushes time and again.
After a quarter of a mile of this we
pushed out toward the edge of the
woods aud found that the railroad
track had made a turn aud that the
shanty was out of night.
Just then we heard the train whis
tle. We slipped under the fence again
Into the ditch and then stumbled up
outo the track. Already we could hear
the steady roar of the big. hoarse
smokestack and the steady shsh-sh as
the monstrous six-foot driving wheels
pouuded the rails. She was coming
a-flylng. Not eighty rods away she
rounded the curve and the tierce ere of
the headlight glared at us and a red
baud of whirling smoke appeared in
the air as they opened the door of the
firebox, It was like standing to frout
of a roaring, fiery dragon that comes
at you at the rate of fifty miles an
hour.
How were we to stop her? We hadn't
thought of that before. It wouldn't do
to stand In the middle of the track till
the engineer should gee usand we had
Just two matches and nothing to make
a blaze with. It was here that Duffey
showed his genius. Quick na a flash
he had Jerked off his coat and touched
a match to the flimsy cotton lining. The
first match went out. He tried the
second. It caught; a tiny flame crept
up and grew larger and larger. In ten
seconds that coat was one solid flame
and Duffey was swinging It wildly
around his bead.
The engine was bearing down ou us
-with a frightful screech. The engi
neer saw us, and not a second too soon.
There was a snapping of air brakes, a
grinding of wheels and a groaning and
shaking of the whole train as she
slowed up. But even then we had to
Jump quick to save ourselves.
The train came to a standstill and
crew and passengers poured out to see
what wai np. I suppose we were a
funny-looking couple. I was still grip
ping my revolver, and if I looked half
as queer as I felt I must have been a
sight. And as for Duffey, the bowle
knife was sticking conspicuously out of
his back pocket. His face was pale
beneath the smoke, his eyebrows were
singed and his hand blistered. The
coat was a ruin.
We told our story as well as we
could, which wasn't very well, because
we were still frightened, but they Un
derstood, wlint th trniihln Wf.S when
we said "Robbers, bridge" and "Killed
the watchman."
They put us into the train and a
crowd of men with guns and revolvers
piled onto the engine and front cars.
But by the time the train reached the
bridge the robbers had skipped with
out leaving a trace, except Mr. Stuntz,
who was bound and gagged and knock
ed Insensible with a coupling pin. They
picked him up and put him on the
baggage car. There was a doctor
aboard, who soon had him fixed up In
good shape. He wasn't very badly
hurt.
At the first station they telegraphed
back to Janesvllle and a posse was
sent after the robbers, but did not get
them.
So we didn't sleep outdoors after all
that night. They carried us clear up to
St. Paul on the sleeping car and treat
ed up royally, too, and gave Duffey a
whole new suit of clothes. Chicago
Record.
HE HAD PITCHED BALL.
That Was How the Slender Man Won
at Tenpins.
They were making up opposing
teams In one of the swagger bowling
clubs. Both of the captains were a
little wary about choosing the tall,
slender man whose hair was tinged
with gray and whose outward appear
ance suggested a lack of physical
stamina. He said nothing and quietly
accepted a place with the eleventh
hour fellows, says the Detroit Free
Press.
When the first match came off he
did only fairly well, until he appeared
as the last man on the last frame, and
with 200 to beat. Enthusiastic mem
bers of the team now tell that when he
let go of the first ball It left a streak
of fire all the way down the alley. Pins
dew as though iu an explosion. He
piled up strikes and spares till the on
lookers held their breath, and the boy
who set up the pins wanted to resign
while he was alive. Ouly a raise iu
salary held him.
But all was not good luck, for an oc
casional pin would staud up In appar
ent defiance of all nature's luws. At
the last there were the corner ones.
Two would tie all would win. "Take
your time!" "Steady, old man!" "Hold
your nerve!" "Roll a slow one!" were
among the things he heard. He did
everything but roll a slow one. The
ball went like a rifle shot, struck the
head pin Just right. It knocked down
another one and the ball caromed on
the third. The rest of the team shout
ed themselves hoarse and the asked
how ou earth he kept that terrific
pace.
"Plaster ou my back," he whispered.
Next time all the others wore plas
ters, some as high as three, judicious
ly distributed. They were practically
Iu strnltjackets; the team lost, aud the
old mau vowed he would never Joke
again.
He had worn no plaster at all, but he
had pitched fourteen years In an ama
teur base-ball team.
Kr in Know to Snow.
Around the Capitol building I'ni'ie
Sam has a great garden of spr.n? deli
cacies. The first garden delicae'e of
the season are fouud there. Ou the
southern slope of the lawn, under the
protection of the terrace aud exposed to
the sun, dandelions sprout Iu very early
spring. Mushrooms of the best variety,
a well as dandelions, grow In great
abundance ou this broad lawn, and it
Is a source of supply of "greens" or
mushrooms almost frout the time snow
disappears until winter tomes agalu.
(Julckallver Finds lit Te-taa.
The quicksilver finds in Brewster
County, Texas, have already proved
the most extensive iu the United
State.
LASSOED A MOUNTAIN LION.
Texas Girl Captured a Wild Beast and
Took Him Home.
The girl of the Southwest, If reports
are to be credited, is a marvel of per
sonal bravery. One girl in Texas has
been made famous in the country
around Marble Falls by an achieve
ment that would daunt the hardiest
frontiersman in the land. Her name is
Norma Diorn and she lives with her
father near the headwaters of the
Ouadaloupe. She, with two sisters,
was accustomed to go out on the range
to look after her father's cattle. One
Sunday morning recently Miss Norma,
who Is the oldest aud most daring of
the three, started to ride the fence of
a small pasture, expecting to return in
time to attend church, and not wish
ing to desecrate the Sabbath she swung
her Winchester on a gate post, remark
ing that she guessed she would not
have any use for a gun as she was not
going very fur.
She had traveled hardly out of sight
of the ranch house before she serious
ly regretted that she had left the
weapon at home. A monster Mexican
Hon sprang over the wire fence just In
front of the girl's pony, and. after look
ing at her for a moment out of glaring
eyes it uttered one of its wild shrieks
and sprang away in the direction of
a small bunch of cows and calves.
The old cows instantly charged the
Hon and the mother of the calf gave
him such au ugly thrust with her sharp
horns that he was forced to relinquish
his hold on his prey. The sight of the
f riitnod little cnl? srourcc Miss
Norma's Ire, and swinging her rope
BRAVE ADVENTURE OF A YOUNG WOMAN.
over her head she rode at the lion,
which started to beat a hasty retreat
Summoning all the strength of hei
lungs, the girl screamed at the lion
and urged her pony to pursue him. The
beast frequently looked back and
snarled threateningly, but he failed to
find courage enough to offer battle.
Suddenly It occurred to the girl that
there was no reason why she could not
choke the lion to death. An attempt
was worth making, for this one mon
ster was capable of destroying a hun
dred young calves and yearlings In a
single night.
Suiting her actions to her thoughts
she swung her lariat over her head,
and as the trained pony sprang for
ward at his greatest speed, she sent
the rope hissing through the air and
dropped the noose with certain pre
cision about the lion's neck. The pony
Instantly braced himself on his
haunches, digging his forefeet In the
ground, and the Hon turned a somer
sault, strlklug the earth with bis head
toward his pursuers. Crouching and
emitting a roar that chilled the blood
of the young girl, he sprang into the
air with all his strength, expecting to
land on the pony's neck and tear his
pursuers to fragments. The agile little
horse turned Just In time to feel the
claws of the Hon grazing his haunches.
Realizing that her life depended upon
the strength and speed of her pony,
for she had . not time to release the
lariat from the saddle, leaned forward
and urged her frightened pony to do
his best. She reached the ranch gate
at her home just as her sisters, accom
panied by two young men of the neigh
borhood, were about to pass through It
ou their way to church.
One of the young men put a bullet
through the animal's" head. As a re
ward for her bravery the Texas Cattls
Association has presented Miss Norma
with a handsome silver-mounted revol
ver. Worthy of Imitation.
The Animal Protective League ol
New York City Is composed of "chap
ters" of children who are banded to
gether for the purpose of making the
life of dumb animals pleasanter, states
the Boston Home Journal. The reports
are excellent reading, and show that
the average small boy Is not kept from
deeds of kludness by the dignity that
prevents much good work among
adults. For Instance, one small boy
saw a horse trying to feed while the
strap of Its nosebag was broken. The
lad was too short to fix the strap, so he
put the bag on his bead aud held It
there while the horse finished Its din
ner. Dog Checks.
In the Philippines the American sol
diers are all wearing "dog checks." A
' dog check" Is a lead medal about the
size of a dollar, with the volunteer's
name, regiment and company stamped
on It It Is hung on a leather string
around the neck, and serves to Identity
the dead or severely wounded.
s u. .j r
Keep Your
Blood in Order
Our bodies should be well cared for, keep
clean, both outwardly and inwardly, and
made strong. The inward cleansing Is ac
complished by Hood's Sarsaparilla. It ex
pels all bad things from the blood and
keeps it pure and rich. It cures all disor
ders of the stomach, nerves, kidneys and
bowels, which, if left unchecked, would
cause great suffering.
Hood's Sarsaparilla
Is the Best Medicine Money Can Buy. f I.
The Whisky Traffic.
Henry W. Grady once said of the
whisky traffic: "It is the mortal ene
my of peace and order, the despoiler of
men and terror of women, the cloud
that shadows the faces of children, the
demon that has dng more graves and
sent more souls unshrived to judgment
than all the pestilences that have
wasted life since God sent the plague
to Egypt, and all the wars since
Joshua stood beyond Jericho."
Christianity and Theology.
One of the most unfortunate mis
takes ever made by the Christian
church was to slide iuto the habit of
identifying Christianity with theology.
We have had brains given us to use,
and there are no themes that so magni
ficently challenge a man's intellectual
powers as the themes that associate
themselves with religions and with the
Christian religion. But even so, the
ology is not Christianity. Rev. Dr.
Parkhurst.
1 am 8ure Piso's Cure for Consumption
paved my life three years ago. Mrs. Thoh.
Robbiks, Maple Street, Norwich, N. Y.
Feb. 17, 1900.
"Very often," remarked the long
haird man, "the printer mixes np
words in my poems, thus creating dif
ferent meanings and thoughts from
what I intended."
"That so?" inquired the practical
man. "How much does he charge
you?" Indianapolis Sun.
Skill in the dairy is important, but
the art of butter making does not de
pend altogether upon skill in the ma
nipulation of the milk, cream and but
ter. Inferior cows, that are half fed,
or not fed properly, will not furnish
milk of the desired quality for produc
ing the best butter. On some farms,
during the warm dwys of summer, the
cows suffer from lack ot water. It
will not do to simply water them
morning and night, but they must
have an abundant supply. The food,
should also be varied and of the best
quality.
No Hope for Her
Mr. Peck Here's a plucky giil. On
her way to her wedding she was
thrown out of her carriage and hurt,
but she insisted on going to the church
and having the ceremony performed.
Mrs. Peck Well, the poor, mis
guided thing deserves her fate. then.
Philadelphia North American".
"Yes," said the young woman, "I
find books in the running brooks."
"Well," said Farmer Corntossel,
"them summer boarders littered the
place up terribly with them trashy
novels last year. Me an' ma done the
best we could to burn 'em all in the
cook stove, but they do seem to keep
turnin' up." Washington Star.
Daily toil is a moral oafeguard.
Rev. Dr. Kent.
Charity Thinketh Ko Evil.
If we would live in peace, let us
make the best constructions of one an
other's words and actions. Charity
judgeth the best, and thinks no evil.
If words .and actions may be con
strued in a good sense, let us never pnt
a bad construction on them. John
Bunyan.
Friend I heard your wife giving yon
fits again this morning.
Jinks That wasn't my wife. That
was the servant girl. N. Y. Weekly.
Religion is the product of an im
planted life; its blossom is frequent,
pervading the world; its fruitage is
perfect, satisfying hungry multitudes.
The Gospel does not provide exper
iences which are merely pleasurable,
but the invitatiun is to life. Rev. J.
J. Parsons.
BESTFORTHE
BOWELS
If yo fcaren't a regular, healthy moTement of tbtf
bowels erery day, you're tick, or will be. Keep your
bowels open, end be well. Force. In tbe shape of
Tlolent pbysle or pill poison. Is dangerous. The
smoolbeil. easiest, most perfect way ot keeping the
bowels olear and clean is to take
Kn2Vm5hPal5ubJe' "P-Taste Good. Do Good,
Kerer Sicken. Weaken, or tirlpe. lOo. " 60e Write
for free sample, and booklet on bealtn. Address
torllat Btmlj t..,uj, Ckkai. atr.il, I,. Tar, ma
KEEP YOUR BLOOD GLEAN
ir
' CLAIMANTS FOR nrRimnai
IL Wri t In NATHAN
rl . m NATHAN H II 1 1 O I U !
If BICKFORI). Washington, D. C. they will re
II ceire quick replies. B. 5th N. H. Vols. Staff
viu vvi vm. rmcvuHot claims since ib, a.
(T yJjj CATHARTIC
YRADf MAMS wtaiartnto