The River Falls journal. (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1857-1861, 1858-02-17
Poor Pickety.
DEATH AMONG THE NEwsBoYs.


G. L. Brace, in the New York hide
pendent, gives the following touching in
cident as occurring among the homeless
newsboys of New York, for whom a
Lodging House has been provided:
One of the newsboys who goes under
the name of ''Pickety," has been ill for
some time, though able to walk around
and occasionally sell his papers. HIS dis
ease was consumption, perhaps brought
on by exposure in his carly days when
he slept in boxes Or on the damp ground.
He is among the few boys who still re-
main of the first members Of the Lodg-
ING House; the most are now at trades
or in business in various parts of the
country. As it happens, Pickcty was
the first who put his name on the register,
and Mr.. Tracy recalls yet how he paid
for the week, the very first night, as if to
Slow his conf lcnce in the plan. Since
tia time he Las steadily improved, AMI
has been sober well behaved lad, sa:
ing his money and attending on the class
es and the Sunday meeting-Latcrly, as
he grew more and more weak, he was Of
ten sober and burst into tears W Ell any
one spoke with him Of the chances OF
death or his soul. have often seen him
listening attentivcly to the Sunday address
ses made in the meeting.
What seeds of truth, what gems of love
for tie great Father, were left in the poor
bows breast, who shall say? Perhaps
sometimes thinking how, in his weakness
and sickness, he had no father or moth
or or any dear face to look upon, and
how nobody OH earth cared for him but
Mr.. Tracy and the other boys, he may
have pictured out to himself a beautiful
and kind face, and great dignified per-
son, and have thought to himself, "Th;s
is Christ, my Father and he may
have taken up the Testament to see what
this good Father wanted Of him--asd
then, perhaps in bis poor, quiet way have
tr;el to please his great Friend Who
knows? " ell at last, one day he was with
the boys in newspaper shop, when he
felt so weak that he lay down on the
counter. The boys saw from the looks of
his face that he was lie ol:ins We i'll,
ard they wanted to send Tor carriage,
but he would rather wait till evening, feel
mo too modest to ride in carriage in
the day. At length they brought a car
rage, but could only take him rs far as
q friend of theirs, paper seller. Into
his room he was taken, and during the
night, before Mr.. Tracy could see him, he
died-the first one who had died in the
Lodging House, and the first member OF
it. The boys dubbed together and bought
him a handsome coffin, and buried him
III Greenwood, paying the whole expenses
themselves. The poor lad had no parents
or other friends, and nothing was known
of his previous history even hrs name Is
nickname. He drops out of the current
Of life here, as unnoticed as single dead
leaf falls now in the autumn gales on the
turf of Greenwood. In few days even
| his comrades will have forgotten poor
Pickety, the orphan news-boy. And yet
what boundless encouragement IN the
thought, that the little drop which made
up that friendless lads whole life here in
our great frothing ocean Of life, was as
perfectly seen. and guarded, and cared
for as any grand current, or wave, or
multitude of drops, in whatever place.
There came one upon Garth once, to
show that the poorest and meanest, and
bascst creature is of infinite value to the
great Heart on high. Even this poor,