The Andrew County Republican. [volume] (Savannah, Mo.) 1871-1876, 1874-10-02

Aoou was Soou duu pltutllul, IOT
when Thomas went down into the
kitchen and foraged among the broken
meats, he found the half of a fine NUT
ton-pie, which the cook had carelessly
thrown out. The cardinals household
was conducted upon very e~xtravagant
principles.
That did not trouble Peter, however,
and he enjoyed the mutton-pie hugely,
and told Thomas that he felt as if he
could fly to the moon.
$50 far, so good" said he; but,
Thomas, I can't be a painter without
paper and pencils and brushes and col
ors. Haven't you any money!"
"No," said Thomas, despairingly
and I don't know how to get any
for 1 shall receive no wages for three
years."
"Then I can't be apalnter, after ALL"
said Peter, mournfully.
"Iu tell you what" suggested
Thomas. "I1l get some charcoal down
in the kitchen, and you can draw pict-
ures on the wall"
So Peter set ~resolutely to work, and
drew SO many figures of men and
women and birds and trees and beasts
and flowers, that before long the walls
were all covered with pictures.
At last, n happy day, Thomas came
into possession of a small piece of silver
money. Upon my word, 1 do not know
where he got il. But he was much too
honest a boy to take money that did not
belong to him, and SO, 1 presume, he
derived it from the sale of his "per-
quisites."
You may be sure there was icy in the
little clearinghouse up among the
c~himpey-pots, for now Peter could have
pencils and paper and India.rubber,
and a few other things that an artist
needs. Then he changed his way of
life o little. He went out early every
morning and wandered about Florence.
and drew everything he could find to
draw. whether the pictures in the
churches, or the fronts of the old pal
aces, or the statues in the public
squares, or the outlines of the hills be-
yond the Arno, just as it happened.
Then, when il became too dark to work
any longer, Peter would go home to his
clearinghouse, and find his dinner all
nicely tucked away under the old straw
bed where landlord Thomas had put it,
not so much to hide ii as TO keep il
warm.
Things went on in this way for about
two years. None Of the servants knew
that Thomas kept a boarder, or if they
did know it, they good-naturedly shut
their eyes. The cook used to remark
sometimes that Thomas ate Il good deal
for a lad of his size, and it was quite
surprising he didn't grow mere.
One day the cardinal took it into his
head to alter and repair his palace. He
went all over the house in company
with an architect, and poked into places
that he had never in all his life
thought of before. At last he reached
the garnet, and, as luck would have it,
stumbled right into Thomas board
ing-house.
"Why, how's this?" cried the great
cardinal, vastly astonished at seeing
the mean little room so beautifullydeco-
rated IN charcoal. Have we an artist
among us? Who occupies this
room 2"
"The k~itchen-boy, Thomas, your
Eminence."
GA k~itchen-boy! But S o great a
genius must not be neglected. Call the
kitchen boy, Thomas"
Thomas came up in fear and trem-
bling. He never had been in the mighty
cardinals presence before. He looked
at the charcoal drawings on the wall,
then into the prelate's face, and his
heart sank within him.
"Thomas, you are no longer a
k~itchen-boy," said the cardinal, kindly.
Poor Thomas thought he was dis
missed from the service-and then
what would become of Peter?
"Don't send me away" he cried,
imploringly, falling on his knees. 81
have nowhere to go, and Peter will
s~tarve-and he wants to be a painter SO
much"