The Lake County star., 1877-11-22

"And the gamest oocks.n =,
Hes coming to preach to YOU next
Sunday night ne IL one Of yourselves;
treat him fairly. lads, and hear what
he has got to tell you. 1t is true that
he has no cali from the Con ference,
but that he has had one from heaven
think none Of you win deny.n
To VIII. this news WAS wonderful !;
he could think Of nothing else, and
was In his weakness as impatient as q
child for Sunday to come. Rex, too,
was not devoid of curiosity. Billy
Dawson, as u boxer. wrestler, and
sporting-man, had been, he knew, a
kind Of authority on such subjects,
even with men far above him In sta
ton. SO, when Sunday came, he
went willingly enough with Will TO
the chapel.
The preachers face struck him I'm a
peculiar manner; he had remem-
brance Of 1t, and yet he was quite sure
he had never before seen Billy Daw-
son. He thought over all the sporting
haunts he knew, and failed to place
him. Twenty years later he would
have dismissed the subject with the
assurance that "he had seen his like
ness in some sporting paper" but then
illustrated papers were hardly In exist.
ence.
He heard but little of the sermon.
though the sobs and CALCULATIONS
around him testified as to his power,
until the preacher, In telling the story
of his conversion said: "Just beyond
W0rkington I met q young chap as
seemed inclined to be friendly-like.
The road was lonely, am I'd naught
again O crack, special as he knew a.
about dogs, an game-bird an wrest.
ling. He were handsome, free
spoken lad, an when we came to
Martha Dlan's public, he said :
"We've all o. three miles to walk yet !;
let us have warm bite. am I'll pay
the lawing."
Here Rex looked intently at the
preacher, and then dropped his head
again.
"Well, lads, we had come steak an
brandy. The steak did me good, the
brandy put the devil i'm me. When
we went on again were full o. my
brag, and soon shifted talk from game
to game. l boasted o. my poachin' an
told VII many a jeer o. the quality 1
"toOk my rights FROM" Noticed the
lad got silent, an when he did speak
he said "YOur're n ripe rascal If
| y "
thrash yo' well, and then send yo' to
Botany Bay"
Again Rex looked queerly up, and
became very excited and restless.
"Then were mad as mad, an said:
"I'll gle yO' throw as 'ull settle yo',
my lad an then I'm going straight
to Leven's Woods. The silly young
squire an his vixen O. mother
have kept me pretty well in hares an
pheasants for three years-an' be
DANCED to them!"
"Then l knew naught mOre-the
lad must have felled me at once. Three
weeks afterward coined back to my
senses in tn Methody preachers
house. / were i'm his bed, an bis wife
an he were nursing me. I'd had q
fever, an been to the gates o. death IAN
hell. Well, I'd better company COM
ing back from them, than / had going
there-an' so I'm saved man; thanks
be to God, an the preacher, an
the lad who felled me-whoever he
bel"
Rex stood up, and sat down, and
then stood up again:
"Billy Dawson" he said, "I'm the
lad that felled you. am Squire Wrex.
ham Levens, of Leven's Park; and by
your mouth tonight the heaviest bur.
den has been lifted from me that evel
man bore. I thought had killed you
and 1 went home and told my mother
what had done. She Is wise WON.
an, and she said: Rex, 60 to the Low.
ther Pit; If the man Is dead, and you
were recognized as his last companion
I shall. Nonsense! you are in France
and no one will look for Levens o.
| II In, nj MI
Dress There I have waited evel
since, partly because 1t was too soon te
show myself, and partly because
hoped I was in some degree atoninl
for the knock.down L gave you, by thu
help have been able to render these
poor creatures I'm their great calami
ty.n
"Well, Levens, I forgive yo' VII al
my heart, for the knock.down / gotter
fro yo'. 1t raised me up, an made {
man o. me-"
Rex walked up to him with frank
smile, offered his hand, which wa!
promptly and cordially shaken amit
the outbroken sympathy Of all pres
ent.
"Pit-boys are no fools" said jim
Banks, as he walked home amid 8
crowd of them, IAN yo'l all mind
now, that at the very first we nick.
named him "Gentleman Rex"
The next day, Madam Levens, sit
ting thinking of her son, and devisine
means to bring home her banisheC
boy, was amazed to see him walk into
the house in his proper clothing anG
his old jovial spirits.
1T has turned out better than 1 ex
! pected, Rex" she said, when he had
told her all "now let's hear no more
about It,"
But that was just the thing impossi
BILE for Rex. That nine months In the
Lowther Pit was intended to form and
color his future life, and he was fal
too conscientious to avoid 1t. In thu
first place, Will and Phoebe were re-
moved to lovely country cottage
where Will grew pansies, and played
dolorous tunes and led q class meeting
to the end Of his innocent life. There
Bessie had teachers and dress makers
and when, at the end oftwo years ReS
took her home as his wife, everyone
confessed that there never had been q
fairer Lady Of Levens.
But the advantages did not stop with
Rex or Rex's wife or kindred; they
have touched with blessing every pit
man and every pitman's wife anC
children In England. For by bis per
and purse, and more than all, by hi
powerful pleading In Parliament, Rel
has abolished 30 many Of the pitmen'l
wrongs, and procured them 90 many
advantages, that the great coal lord.
nick-named him with polite scorn
"Our Great Coal COmmOner.O