The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1868-02-29
Mtrellanp.
TOMMY TUCKER AND HIS FIDDLE.


corner with his hat pulled over hi, eyes.
Tommy opened the door, peeped in, hesitated,
looked into another car, came back, gave his lit.
tie fiddle shoyo on his shoulders and walked
in.
Hi little Tommy Tucker
Plays for his supper"
shouted young exquisite lounging ON the plat.
form in a tan-colored coat snd lavender kid
gloves
80. kids, you're there, are You? Well. I'd rath'
er play for it than loaf for it. had said Tommy,
stoutly.
The merchant shot careless glance over the
ton of his paper, at the sound of this petite da-
logue, and the old lady smiled benignly; the
man in the corner neither looked nor smiled.
No BODY would have thought, to look at the
man in the corner, that he was at that very mo-
nent DESERVING wife and five chidren.-l ct
that is precisely what he was doing.
A william o, no. that is not the word A
brute Not by any means. Weak, unfortunate,
discouraged, and seltish-as weak. unfortunate
and discouraged people are apt to be; that was
the amount OF it. His panoramas never paid
him for the use of his halls. His travelling tin
typesaloon hld trundied him into sheriff stands.
His petroleum speculatiops had crushed like
bubble. His black and gold sign, y. Harmon,
photographer" had swung now Tor nearly year
over the dentists rooms, and he had had the pat
ronage of precisely six old women and three ba-
bes He had drifted to the theatre in the even
ings-he did not care now to remember how
many tmes-the fellow asked him, and it made
him forget his troubles; the next morning his
empty purse wonld cape at him, and Armies
mouth would CULVER. a man must have his
glass, too, on Sundays, well-perhaps a lit
tie oftener He had not always been lit to work
after it, and Annio's mouth would culver 1t
will be seen at once that it was exceedingly hard
ON man that his wife's mouth should CULVER
- hue 1ln't Spa nrxyc
These still women aggravate fellow beyond rea-
SON.
Well, them the children had been sick meas
les, whooping cough, scarletina, mumps, he was
sure he did not know what not, every one of
them, from the baby up. There was medicine,
and there were doct.r's bills, and there was sit
ting up with them at night--thor mother usual.
ly did that. Then she must needs pale down
herself like poorly finished photograph; all her
color, and roundness and sparkle gone and if
ever man liked to have pretty wife about, it
was he. Moreover, she had cough and her
shoulders had grown round, STOPPING SO much
over the heavy baby and her breath came short,
and she had way of being tired. Then she
never stirred out of the house-he found out
about that one day s; she had no bonnet, and her
shawl had been cnt mp into blankets for the CRIB.
The children had stopped going to school they
could not buy the arithmetic, their mother
said half under her breath. Yesterday there was
nothing for dinner but johnny cake, not large
one at that. Tomorrow the saloon rents were
due. Annie talked about pawning one Of the
bureaus. Annie had had great purple rings I'M
der her ewes for six weeks.
he would not bear the purple rings and quiz.
ering mouth any longer. He hated the sight Of
her. for the sight stung him. He hated the corn
cake and the untaught children. He hated the
whole dreary, dragging, needy home. The ruin
OF it logged him like ghost, and he should be
the ruin of it as long as he stayed in it. Once
fairly rid of him, his scolding and drinking his
wasting and failing, Annie would send the chill
dren to work, and lind ways to live She had
energy and invention and plenty of it, in her
young, fresh days, before he came across her life
t. drag her down. Perhaps he should make
golden fortune, and come back to her some sum-
mer day with silk dress and servants. and make
it all up; in theory this was about what he OK.
pected to ds. But il his luck went westward
with him, and the silk dress never turned us,
why, she would forget him, and be better Oft. and
~ would be the last of it.
he was, ticketed and started fairly
bou.. dorado, sitting with his hat over his
ty ~. timing about it,
III -m-m Asleep" pronounced Tommy
win his keen glance into the corner. Guess III
axe him up"
He laid hi: cheek down on his little fiddle
you don't know how Tommy loved that little fid.
dle-and struck up gay frolickiny tune:
Il care for nobody and nob.dy cares for me-"
The man in the corner sat quite still When
it was over he shrugged his shoulders.
"When folks are asleep they don't hist their
shoulders--not as ageneral thing" observed Tom.
my. "We'll try another
Tommy tried another. Nobody knows what
possessed the little fellow, himself least of all;
but he tried this:
"wc',e lived anG loved together
Through maay changing year"
1t was new tune, and he wanted practice, per-
haps
The train Jared and started slowly; the gloycd
exquisite waiting hackman, baggagemasters.
cotfee-counter and station walls, slid back; en-.
CINE house, and prison towers, and labyrinths and
tracks slipped by lumber and shipping took
their place, with clear spaces between, where sea
and sky shore through The speed of the train
increased with sickcning sway; old wharves
shot past, with the green water sucking at their
piers the city shifted by and out Of sight.
"Wevc lived and lowell together"
played Tommy, in a little .laintive wall
'ConfoUnd the boy" Harmon pushed up his
hat with jerk, and looked out OF the window.
The night was comingon. A dull sunset Law low
on the water burning like n bonfire through the
sraky trail Of smoke that vent writing mast tho
ear windows Against lonely signal houses. and
little deserted beaches, the water splashiny drcnr
lily, and playing momentous bases to Tommvs
wall:
"Through many changing year"
1t was nuisance, this music in the cars
Why don't somebody stop it, What did tbs
child mean by playing that They had left Tho
city behind now Hc wondered how far. Uo
pushed up the window iiercely, venting the pas.