Rapides gazette. (Alexandria, La.) 1869-187?, 1873-08-16
JOHN BLYTHE'S NAMESAKE.

uOnN DLfIhE anu the minister were
walking down town together. John al
ways wal ked, having nothing to ride ex-
cept his hobbies. which his friends de-
clared he rode to death. But. there was
such an ever-increasing stud of those
unpopular and costly racers that he was
never without half dozen reasonably
fresh ones. And one of them, however
hard-ridden, came up, unbreathed and
active, for service every day. John could
not remember when he had not been abb
sOrbed in the hope and the work of re-
forming prisoners, and of saving from
crime the street Arabs who became pris-
Oners. When he was six years old he
had been permitted a birthday party, with
the precious liberty Ofinviting the guests
"hisself." But when the afternoon ar
rived, his unsuspecting mother found
her pretty parlors invaded by twelve
little gutter-snipes, not much cleaner
as to vocabulary than as to per-
son. John grew more and more ra-
diant with delight at each grimy and
sinking arrival, so that his mother had
hardly the heart to call him to account.
And when she took him apart to say,
Johnny, how could you bring those
dreadful boys into mammals nice clean
houseT he looked up with such panied
amazement that she was silenced. "Why,
mamma" he said, ''you told me l might
invite which twelve little bows I chOosed.
and L chOOsed these, cause / knew they
didn't ever go to birthday BEFORE"
Mrs. Blythe felt an uneasy apprehension
that practical Chris tianity might be lit
lie uncomfortable in general use. But
remembering certain Divine prescrip-
tion of the etiquette pertaining to feast,
which insisted on the bidding of them
who could not bid again, she only said,
swell, Johnny, tell mamma beforehand
next time. Aud now we must take all
yourlittle friends up to the bathroom
and give them a scrub, before they play
with the toys"
(which very remarkable attention the
young vagabonds received, by means
whereof they would have remembered the
day forever as set apart from all others in
their limited experience, had it not also
been set-apart as abewilderment of games,
cakes, beautiful surroundings, and double
handfuls of candy as sort of stirrup-
cup. a
The John Of six-and-thirty was hardly
more conventional and no whit more
selfish than the John of six. And now
he was urging the minister to take up
scheme of his for deporting certain bad
characters to new field, where he be-
Heved they would reform. "You are too
hard on them, Egerton," he was saying,
in his vehement way. 81 tell YOU, we
make 'em thieves and keep 'em thieves,
and then shut 'em up, because thev are
thieves, in places where tLey shed their
thieves skin and come out something
worse. It's the logic of events. I've got
some friends in Rag-pickers' Row: car
rage people drive dog in soap-box,
these aristOcrats. Sometimes l drop in
there when / think the world is too care
less Of my high mightiness. It's nasty
cure for peeyishness, but thorough. The
Row has its water view-a mud-puddle
That is never dry, inhabited by an ague
that's never at home, but always out call
Ing In the neighboIho The rooms are
ten by twelve, a family in every room,
and at least ten souls, or cases for souls,
IN every family. The lower the breed,
tne larger the litter always. What do
tnese creatures breathe? Air? No:
mnks! What do they eat? Food? No:
nrbagel what do they wear? Clothes
no: rags and infectionl What fluid is In
neir veins? Blood? No: poison! What
70 they do? Live? No: putrefy, body
saa bones, heart and brain! The brats
are turned into the street as soon as they
eddie, to beg or steal. They get into
ale Tombe, Of course, and on the Island,
sa 50 to Sing Sing, and SO to bad death.
han ~ snort, they're born in hell :, ano live in
aeil; And declare to you again that
uon't believea just and tender Father will
give them hell hereafter till they've had
u least q chance" F-
My dear john" said his friend, "you
s.h AL wash c0nvicts clean in baths of sem
ument. You yourself wouldn't trust a
SvDnVict's Sa repentance without long proba-
,S ron. There's great deal to be said on
7 fne other side; but this is my corner, and
! nave work to do. I'll consider the
fopessaon, and help you il see my way"
and dd'y.ne y turned down quiet cross-street,
. was startled out of his meditation by
q ms an scream. At the same instant
sran man stumbling up the steps of a deep
Ta.t ian violently against him. " Not so
ite s', 10 1r,end," lem said Blythe. "It's not po-
company. Wen Just t1,Tn piT ;n |~n. hare y0% snd
see ior which of our virtues we are TINS