The Rutland County herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1852-1855, 1854-04-07

ana has been run over hy b1icher'-
cart, aud his modest wares scattered all
over the street The driver swcArs aw.
fully, and goes on; crowd assemblies q,
a compassionate Nottingham liis the
poor boy up, and carries him to the next
drugstore. I'VE. with some other gen.
tlemen, would have been glad to do il,
bot could not on account Of our clothes }
The door closes the crowd haiIens us
nose against the window we cannoi get
in TO help; we have not time to wait,
for the printers devil Is after us so we
wend our way down town, thinking, poor,
poor little fellow
The following morning found Mr.
Green in the same place and position We
bavc described in the beginning and
being inIenily engaged upon the Til.
bune, he did not observe very small
boy. very speck of boy, eyeing him
~isliully, evidently trying TO attract his
attention but in vain, for he was 80
small. At last. the miniature edition
of humanity made such discordani
noise with the creaking door, that some.
body ordered him in stern voice, to
clear out when Mr.. Green thinking
vaguely he had seen him before, beck.
oned TO the child; for child il was,
such Ms ought 10 have been in nursery,
under the guardian care Of mother
What need TO describe him? Was he
not the reduced eiligy of our friend Pc
ter! The same blue toes, the same
blue hands, and the same intelligent,
honest eyes. But. alas such woe look
ing out Of thin little face. on which
tears had made channels in the incrus-
iations. Mr.. Green was making up his
mind, TO save further trouble, that the
appariiion before him must be the same
Peter from whom he had bought the
matches the day previous, who had
shrunk and dwindled overnight--possi-
bly, from cold, probably from hunger
and who had now come back TO bring
the change. But this idea struck him
as TOO absurd for how could such a
Tom Thumb sell anything, and where
was his basket? While these reflections
passed vaguely across the mirror OF Mr..
Green's mind, Peter junior had been
diving diligently into the recesses Of his
garments, and finally, after sundry at
tempis. brough, out Of the side-pocket
of his jacket, which was on level with
his calf, three distinct copper coins,
which he rendered TO Mr.. Green.
Is you the gemman what Peter owes
sixpence lo?'
Yes, my lad am the man. was
the reply.
Peter hasn't got sixpcnce-Peter's
gone, and was rund over by buss-
and lost his basket and cap - and broke
his leg, and broke his arm; and Peter
-is--so-o-o-o-ill (here the child broke
out into an uncomfortable fit Of crying;)
and ihree-cents-is all-he's got
The duce ! exclaimed Mr.. Green,
jumping up; where do you live?
Little Rum street, Mud alley sob
bed the child.
Come along, then :; and not waiting
TO hear Mr.. Smart's sneer Of a very
likely story, my verdant friend, he was
out Of the room. had called carriage,
and was on his charitable mission with
little Joe by the time Mr.. Smart had
finished his sentence.
The carriage stopped before one Of
those arch ways abounding in that part
Of our city, and always denoiing filth.
drunkenness, and abject poverty. The
child led the way up The alley, ascend.
ed few broken steps, entered door
less hall, passed through il TO the yard,
and descending into what appeared 10
be only hole, but which had, on near
er inspection, some steps, opened the
door Of low dark cellar. w hen MIR
Greens eyes had become accustomed
to the darkness, which tallow candle,
stuck in bottle, just made visible, he
saw in a corner, stretched upon a straw
mallrass. his little acquaintance Of yes
t-rday but oh how changed the
pinched face nearly liyid, with here aud
there a bit Of lock Of hair glued TO it
by the cold perspiraiion the little body
with is bandsged limbs, molionless, and
low groan now and then all the e,i-
dence Of life. The furniture Of this
abode OF human beings consisted of "a
broken table and three legged stool
Upon the latter sat poor woman rock
ing herself 10 and fro with the peculiar
motion Of gr.ei. She was nrighbor,
she said, poor enough herself. The Lord
knew. The parents Of llic children lad
come out year ago from the old coun-
try, poor decent people, with three liule
ones, and fine children they were the
mother never got ever the chip fever
contracted oa the passage, and soon let
them for a better place, taking The baby
with her. which wss mercy and af-
ter the father hard-working. steady
man, had been killed by iih from a
building, a neighbor proposed TO take
Peter, s-nding Joe TO Randalrs Island,
(larg- farms where the orphans Of New
York are mainiaRrd.) Bot Peter had
refused 10 leave little Joe. and scrapins
together a small sum by the sale OF their
few efrci., had bought his hum ble
wares, and manfully, with big heart
10 his lille body, through cold and heat,
through hunger and tbirst, pursued his
calling, making just enough, with whAi