Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1871-08-03
RlYBTTElILLB .TEENVNESSEH: THURSDAY, AUGUST 8 1871

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her shoulder, and clasping his
weak arms tight about her neck,
as if, poor child, that could do
any good. PresentlysLe said:
"Mamma, what are you crying
for 2" :"
Then his mother told him that
she had no SUPPER for him, and
no breakfast either, and did not
know where to get any more
breakfast or SUPPER 3
"Maybe the angels will bring us
some," said poor little Ben.
"There are no angels. any more,
Benny, said bis mother. - ,s,-a>
After that little Ben stood by
her side long time, very silent,
very quiet The was always quiet
boy, trying to get it through his
childish head that there were truly
no more angels, with their white
dresses and shining wings, such
as he had seen in a picture his
mother used to have. The an
gels all looked like his mother,
somehow, it seemed to him, and
she would make o beautiful. angel
herself if she only had broad,
white wings. But he wanted his
supper awfully, and some supper
for mamma, too, The child thought.
By and by, alter thinking a.
while longer, Ben went quietly
out of doors and into the streets,
stole so softly out the back way
that his mother did not see him at
all. He went to the lady who
lived next door and said:
"Mrs. Gray, will you lend me
ten cents?' %
The lady, hearing the timid
trembling voice beside her, looked
down and saw a small face gazing
up into hers, with its childish faith
and its childish beauty; saw two
large blue eyes, with the tears
half quivering in them already,
as if the sensitive child expected
a refusal. Sometbing-a feeting
recollection. maybe, or a wander.
ing tender thought, floating about
like o thistle-down, seeking some
place to rest upon-touched Mrs.
Gray's heart at the moment; she
remembered the strange feeling
long afterward, and she patted lit
tie Benny's bright hair, as she
gave him the money and said be,
was a good child. 3JtA4A2t52NF
Then little Ben went to the
newspaper Office, to wait for the
S o'clock edition. 1t would have
Jared badly with him then,
though, only for Pat Hagans; for
the young rufians Of newsboys,
seeing he was a new boy, and
green one, fell upon thep poor child,
and began to beat and cuff him
savagely. But another wander
ing, tender thought, floating about
like a thistle-down, must have
touched and rested upon the heart
of Pat Hagans at that moment;
for just as big boy had struck
poor Ben and made him cry, bur-
ly Pat Hagans roared out:
"Dry that up! Yer dassent lick
a boy of yer size, nohow
From that time big Pat Hagans
was the champion of little Ben.
He educated him to be newsboy,
as / told you.
That very first night Pats "ba-
by" sold every one of his papers.
And that night little Ben and his
mother had some supper, though
Ben wondered what made his
mother cry again, as they sat down
to eat, and hold him SO tight in
her arms, and kiss him again and
again. He thought it was q little
unreasonable in q woman to cry
when she had plenty Of bread and
milk. Maybe the angels had
brought little Ben and bis mother
their supper, after all.
But Pat Hagans was the only
angel directly visible in the case,
and he was rather a dirty looking
angel, chewing tobacco and smok-
ing stump pipe as he did. And
I'm positively certain nobody
would have let him into a Sunday
school tableau as an, angel, New.
theless, for all his patched trousers
and toes sticking out of his boots,
be was a protecting spirit to little
Ben. He was so little, SO help
less and harmless, that by and by
a spirit of pity and gentleness to-
ward him began to develope itself
even among the merciless, outcast
newsboys. They came to be SO
kind and chiyalrpus toward him
that not a boy of them all would
go near Beh's beat, not a boy of
them WOULD take a customer from
him. / am glad to write that of
them. They. were glad to re.