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Show M I $ 3 PaUDKSCB PKTTISGILL'S V 1 113T ltlDK IX THE CARS. We are indebted to a Concord, Massachusetts, Mas-sachusetts, correspondent for the following fol-lowing account of an old lady's first ride in the cars: Miss Prudence Pettingill, at the ma- i ture age of sixty-one, made up her : mind to visit New York for tho first ! time in her life. She had never seen a railroad, as such things had been unknown un-known in Aroostook county until this summer, and the ancient farm-house in which she lived was seven miles from the station. So she sits calmly upon a scat placed on the great wooden platform which surrounds the country depot, and gazes with amazement upon the tiain which arrives, pauses a few moments to take on passengers, and then proceeds upon its journey. The station-master interrogates t he old lady, who sits placidly watching the deoarting train. ''Why did you not get on, if you wished to go to New York?" "Git on!" says the old lady "git on! I thought this whole eonsarn went!" Having explained to her that the platform was stationary, the man kindly advises her to wait for the express train, into whieh he escorts the maideo, and finds for her a seat by the side of a benevolent old genileman. Clutching Clutch-ing fast hold of the seat in front of her, she is at first very much alarmed at the speed at which they are going, but gradually becomes calm, and much interested in the novelty of her surroundings. sur-roundings. The old gentleman answers an-swers her many inquiries very civilly, and, among other things, tries to explain ex-plain the use of the telegraph wires, and tells her that messages are sent over them at a much greater rate of speed than they are traveling. "Wa'al, wa'al," says the old lady, "you don't ketch me a-ridin' on 'em, for this is as fast as I want to go, anyhow." She had seen so many wonderful things that she makes up her mind at last not to be astonished at anything; and when the train dashes into the one which had preceded it, owing to a misplaced switch, and the poor old lady is thrown to the end of the car among a heap of broken seats, she supposes it to be the ordinary manner man-ner of stoppiug, and quietly remarks, "You fetch up rather suddin, don't ye?" Being provided with a scat in the forward car, which was uninjured, she arrives without farther accident at her journey's end, and is surrounded by an eager crowd of hackmcn, and listens in wonder to their oft-repeated call of "Hack I hack!" Grasping her umbrella in one hand and her bandbox in the other, she looks down into the liiee of the loudest driver with the compassionate inquiry, "Air you in pain?" From the consequences of his wrath she is rescued and carried safely home by her nephew, who has come to the depot to look for her. Editor's Drawer, in JJarjr's Mugadne for January. |