The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1876-08-31
a Story of n Tramp.

He shuffled into the Utica Herald
Office about eleven o'clock in the even
ing. He was a tramp. There was no
mistake about that. His whole raiment,
from his dirty blue cotton shirt to his
ragged trousers and gaping shoes, looked
as though it might have been shed by
last years scarecrow. The rolling
prairie of dirt and chronic woefulness
that constituted his face was relieved by
n rubicund nose, which stood guard over
n mouth able to span an Alabama
watermelon without wink OF the blcared
optics above. He approached the re-
porter as though death was leading him
10y one ear and the prince of darkness
by the other and in the voice of man
about to be hung, he murmured: I" My
friend, want you to do me favor. L
haven't drank anything but glass of
cider in week, and haven't had any
thing to eat to-day, end l have been tr~-
ing to get work but can't, and lnau
down to the railroad said he would give
me place to sleep, and if you could
only let me have few pennies to get
some crackers, for think ] am starving
and can't hold out any longer" The
reporter remarked that it was pretty
hard for man to starvo, bGt that The
! hunger OF tie tramp wGs generally for
whisky and not for bread; and thst only
| two days ago he lent man thirty cents
| to buy an overcoat, and the ungratGful
wretch had gone off and bought an over
/ dose of gin, necessitating some over
work by policeman and an overture by
! tho recorder 10 the morning. The sus-
picion of the tramp's truthfulness in.
volved in this righteousness completely
overcame him, and he burst into food
of tears. At last, moved by his appeals,
the reporter forgot that the man before
him was a healthy looking man for O
wretch in the last agonies of starvation,
and felt around in his pockets for any
stray change that might have come out
of the last picnic unscathed. After
much searching solitary silver quarter
was discovered, which he handed to the
tramp with the secret satisfaction that
the latter was unconsciously receiving
but twenty-three cents and a half in
scrip, owing to the present ruinous de-
probation of silver.
To the tramp, however, it was twenty
five cents, and gratefully bowed hi
thanks, and amid another food of tears
and promises that he would Immediately
go and buy bread, he shufled into the
street. His slip p.shod footsteps woult
have dreamily died away in the distanc'
: had they not suddenly stopped in wha
struck our reporter as being suspicious
, ly close proximity to saloon. To la,
/ the conclusion 10 which we had come
that the "greatest of these is charity,
J on the table, pending inquiry, we hast
! ened to the door, but the line of gas
5 lamps revealed no tramp hurrying bread
, ward. Spurred by an increased sus
picion, onr reporter hurried to the neal
, est place where the bibulous do cor
greg te, glided stealthily in-and los
| all faith in human nature. There upo
! the bar lay that deprecated silver
= Leaning famiIiarly against the bar wa
D that demon Of ingratitude, with decar
/ ter Of bourbon in his right hand and
j. iiye-inger drink in the other. Delmor
p leo was just reaching out for the qual
S ter, when he beheld with amazeme1
Y the size of the drink the tramp Wa
: transferring to his capacious NAV
q Visions of financial ruin struck him dun
t for Q moment, but recovering his pre-
r euce OF mind, he exclaimed: 81 sa'
e my friend, there's fly in that whisky,
: "ls there's" said the tramp, lowerin
n the glass. Yes," remarked Delmon
n co, as he seized a spoon and reached OF
/ for the whisky, " let me get it out #
II you" just as Delmonico got possassic
e Of the whisky our reporter SEIZED Il
y quarter, with the remark that J
!, guessed he would take it back, as be hG
@ given it to this fellow to buy bread, III
to purchase whisky by the wholesal
D Well, added Delmonico, "if that
t. the case, I'll take back the whisky
n ami back it went into the decantur.
a look of amazement and disgust col
t. bined settled upon the countenanco
is the tramp, and turning reluctantly upc
le his heel he shufied out of the salOo
a murmuring sadly and reproachfully
u, "Only smell, only SMELL"