The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1874-07-31
The Boy Who Took "a Boarder.

The Boy Who Took "a Boarder.
Once upon a time, long before any of
you children were born,-about two
hundred and fifty years ago, in fact
little boy stood, one morning, at the
door of a palace in Florence, and looked
about him.
Why he was standing there, do not
know. Perhaps he was watching for
the butcher or the milkman, for he was
a kitchen-boy III the household of q
rich and mighty Cardinal He was
twelve years old, and his name was
Thomas.
Suddenly he felt tap on his shout
der, which made him turn around, and
he said, with great astonishment
What Is that you, Peter? What
has brought you to Florence? and how
are all the people in Cortona p
They're all WE'LL" answered Peter,
who likewise was boy of twelve.
"But I've left them for good. I'm
tired of taking care of sheep-stupid
things want to be a painter. I've
come TO Florence to learn how. They
say there's school here where they
teach people.
But have you got any money ?"
asked Thomas
:" Not penny.
"Then you can't be painter. You
had much better take service in the
kitchen with me, here in the palace.
You will be sure of not starving to
death, at least, said the sage Thomas.
"Do you get enough to eat 2" asked
the other boy, refectively.
Plenty. More than enough"
81 don't want to take service, be-
cause | want to be painter" said
Peter. But I'll tell you what well
Go. AS you have more than you need
to eat, you shall take me to board-on
trust at first, and when I'm grown-up
painter, I'll settle the bill.
Agreed" said Thomas, after a mo-
ments thought. 81 can manage it.
Come upstairs 20 the garnet where
sleep, and I'll bring you some dinner,
by and by"
SO the two boys went up to the little
room among the chimney pots where
Thomas slept. 1t was very, very small,
and all the furniture in it was an old
straw bed and two rickety chairs. But
the walls were beautifully whitewGshed.
The food was good and plentiful, for
en- and foraged among the broken
meats, he found the half of fine NUT.
ton-pie, which the cook had carelessly
thrown out. The Cardinals household
was conducted upon very extravagant
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, can't be painter without
paper and pencils and brushes and col.
ors. Haven't you any money
"No," said Thomas, despairingly
"and / don't know how to get any, foi
] shall receive no wages for three
years."
"Then I can't be painter, after all,
said Peter mournfully.
ell tell you what" suggested
Thomas. "Ill get some charcoal
down in the kitchen, and you can draw
pictures on the wall"
So Peter set resolutely to work, anC
drew so many figures of men and wo
men and birds and trees and beasts an(
flowers, that before long the walls Were
all covered with pictures.
At last, one happy day, Thomas cam,
into possession of small piece of sill
yer money. Upon my word, / don
know where he got it. But he wa
much too honest boy to take none,
that did not belong to him, and so,
presume, he derived it from the sale o
his perquisites.
You may be sure there was Joy in tn,
little clearinghouse up among tn,
chimney pots, for now Peter could hav
pencils and paper and India rubber
and few other things that artists need
Then he changed his way of of life
little He went out early every morn
ing and wandered about Florence. an,
drew everything he could find to draw
whether the pictures in the churches
or the fronts of the old palaces, or TIN
statues in the public squares, or tn
outlines of the hills beyond the Arno
just as it happened. Then, when it be
came too dark to work any longer, Pc
ter would go home to his boarding
house, and find his dinner all NIGEL
tucked away under the old straw bee
where landlord Thomas had put it, nc
so much to hide it as to keep it warm
Things went on in this way for abou
two years. None of the servants kne
that Thomas kept boarder, or if the
did know it, they good-naturedly shr
their eyes. The cook used to remar
sometimes, that Thomas ate a goo
deal for lad of his size, and it wa
surprising he didn't grow more.
One day the Cardinal took it into h
head to alter and repair his palace. II
went all over the house in compan
with an architect, and poked into plac,
that he had never in all his life though