The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1871-11-26
JUVENILE COLUMN.
A POOR LITTLE FART.

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With red red roses in her hairs
e HI hst ass MAIDEN RSsa' sansins there,
Ard :. You So h he. =. smiling ~ e! i. .s
And every movement fun Of grace:
Yol wish you wore that maiden fAar'
But 70 who have mothers care.
Aia.l how little . Dc r. s s.S ssa to bear
What misery to undergo.
h.a a sh: 1ss a e. her head doh,
Or Lie 90 cosiy in bed.
Then, IL homeless child you soc,
Give freely i, .h Az ess car afford
ever p''A'Dk " ''' -'0' little Folks.
A SIMPLE STORY, BUT TRUE. .
1t was a cold, wet November evening.
The stages were rolling up town, filled to
OVERLOOKING, and the hurrying foot-passen-
gers pushed and jostled each others UNI
brellas, all eager for the shelter and comfort
of home. ' -
Through the rain and wind the lights
along Broadway shone out with a brilliancy
increased by contrast, and the great hotels,
with their curtained windows and the
warm atmosphere which stole out from
them when the doors were occasionally
opened, seemed like palaces of luxury and
comfort to the drenched, chilled passers-
by. In one of these, scattered 10 various
directions, was party of cadets from West
Point, on furlough. Several days, gaiety
and dissipation had left them, on this No
vember evening, tired and listless-some-
what disgusted with the world and with
themselves. With one of them, whom we
will call Mac, (trusting he will forgive us,
since it was not bis name,) these feelings
perhaps, were even stronger than with the
others. He had withdrawn himself from
his companions, and half reclining on a
sofa in one of the reading rooms, shaded
his eyes with his hand, and with dreamy
and half-discontented~ way watched the
motions of the other inmates of the room.
The low murmur of voices from the differ
emit groups Of people were fast >lulling the
doorway opposite his sofa appeared child
of perhaps eight years. She was poorly
clad, and her thin shawl was wet with the
storm. She paused q moment, half
frightened look in her blue eyes, and then
SLOWLY and shyly drew near the young sol
der. She told her story in low, hurried
tones common story enough. Her mo-
Their and herself strangers in the land, her
father dead, her mother sick, their money
gone, and for two days no food. The
young man, idly looking at her from under
his hand, allowed her to 60 on to the end,
| desire to listen, but when she held out her
slender little hand, and asked for few
pennies, he answered, somewhat roughly,
"I haven't any pennies; I'm sick, too, and
I haven't had anything to eat for three
days"
giving place to great surprise, which
softened into sorrow as she turned away.
She passed from one to another of the occu-
! pants of the room, Mac following her with
his eyes the while, the discontented feeling
within him rather intensified, than other
wise, aud the dull aching of his head no
| less.
Some looked at the child, merely COM
menting on the little girls being in place
like that at such. an hour. Some, with a
shake of the head, stopped the story on her
lips, while others dropped into hcr hand a
few pennies, a half-dime or dime, as the
tide of charity ebbed or flowed within
them. Finally the child disappeared
through door leading to another apart
ment, and again the young mans vague,
wandering thoughts had almost settled into
sleep, when he saw the little girl standing
near the doorway by which she had first
| entered from the hail. She was looking
wistfully towards him, and as she half
turned away he noticed she was working
| at the corner of handkerchief in which
she had tied her little store of money. And
then, with quicker step and q self-forget-
fulness that almost overcame her shyness,
she came close to his side, and laying q
silver coin upon his knee, whispered, with
her earnest eyes turned up to him, elf you
haven't eaten anything for three days you
must be Gerry hun CRY. Take this, and buy
SOME bread with it." For single instant
Mac sat as if a great light had blinded him,
then catching up the child in his arms, and
holding out on his palm the little coin,
"See here,' he exclaimed excitedly, and
with an eloquence lent him by the enthusi'
asm of the moment, he told the story sc
touchingly, that when he threw ,H i into ito. hi hi,
behalf Of the frig htened little one, now
crying bitterly and not at all comprehend
ing she had become a heroine, both GOLD
and silver were given freely even by thos'
who had turned a deaf ear to the child
pleading. From one reading room to an
other, up stairs and through the parlors
repeating the story and winning substan
tial sympathy from all, then down again t
the billiard-room and bar.room, the chile
! still crying, and sometimes in her terro
trying to free herself from the strong aru
that held her, the voice of the young soldie
, ringing out to claim attention, and his ow
= emotion moving others, every hand wa
9 opened, and the cadets, crowding aroun
y their com pauion, fairly impov erished them