Lexington weekly intelligencer. (Lexington, Mo.) 1871-1887, 1877-03-10

tileN can. anu people VINO take them on
low terms. and provisions at these star
ration prices, can t.rithcr afford To- be
exclusive with regard To the class they
take in, nor 1" offer IN attractive home
10 their boarders.'
Tom, ike the rest. boltea his food, |
suppose, and had Il" place but the street
10 pass his evening, IN, and, OF course.
green boy from the country afforded Il
fine chance IT, his fellow lodgcrs to in
duet him into all sorts oi ioi!ies and sins.
! and he ha'iL't sense OF strength to resist
them
Poor boy. An, Luther, if he were
ours - and the mothers soft brown
eyes glanced agtln toward the white
heap OF lite nrd brightness and bloom
which lay on the iloor.
And again the i:lthcr'S eyes followed
hers, AMI the hardness WAS melted out
OF them now. and he said, tervent!y:
"God forbid would rather lav INV
boy in his grave this hour than know he
should live TO be turned adrilt IN his
youth Oh this great city. with no friend
to protect, and with temptations lying
in wait on every side To devoUr him"
And Tom had Il mother, too, and She
must have loved INN once, :ls we do
ours, Luther. almost hope She isn {:
alive now, for can judge by my own
heart that 1t must break hers to know
that her boy Is lost.
Yes, She is living" Mr.. Randolph
answered almost reluctantly. Il re-
member Tom told me 50, and that she
was a widow, and he was her only son !:
although he had little sister beside
Foolish boy. 10 run hi. neck straight III
To that trap. added the gentleman. halt
angry al himself To find that his heart
wa. beginning To reient toward tine
culprit.
Tears brimmed the beautiful. brown
eyes oi Mrs. Randolph. from the first
she had taken fancy 10. and unusual
interest in, the bright-taced little office
boy, whom her husband frequently DIS
patched up u the house with some note
or message for lis mistress.
The boys bright, prompt pleasant
manner, his quick intelligence, the
courtesy OF speech and bearing, which
Indicated caretul home cultivation, had
| I'll attracted the lady.
And now her mother heart was touch
ed to its center. thinking "i that other
mother. lonely and widowed, whose
pride and JOY and strength had been tit>
III shumc and disgrace. She Thought
how smoothly the downward road wind-
along the DAYS: She thought how the
proud young spirit. stung with rumors
and shame. would be likely to flash ul
into fierce, rccH le>snesS, OF settle d"wU
| into sul!cn defiance The ,adv's heart
| looking on her own son. ached ana
vearned over this other mothers Sac
rose up. and tool; her little boy in hen
arms and sat hiu4 uu his fathers knee.
! Luther " she said Il wil! not argue
or reason with Won, tor You Will get the
best of me there; but plead tor thi.
| boy in the name OF YOUR own; take hin
| back give him one more trial, for tht
sake of this " and she placed her hant
on the FURNISHED heap of curis, in whicl
We're lights Of gold.
The child looked up with his sweet
face full ot bewilderIneut Something
in the tender. solemn face of his mother
seemed to impress him He reached
out his tat. dimpIcd hands to his father
and cried. in his pretty child Voice
! Take him back, papa-take him
back
Mr.. Randolph was moved. He ben
| down swift, 49, kissed The SINAI
! speaker, and itncicd himself guilty OF ;
very unmanly weakness when he said
20 Mary. YOU women. with your chill
dren. are enough To turn mans brain
It's against my Lifelong principles to d,
what you ask.
But aler al, the speech c0ncede
much more than it denied. aud Mrs
Randolph knew that If Tom was not h-
yond recall he might have another
chance with his master.
Three days had passed. the year haj
stepped from NO'cmher into winter.a
the last month opened with smiles =.
radiant as these wh!ch kindled the .act
OF June with winds as balmy as NJ ty,
and with nu sign ui the long path q
storm and durkuess through which III,
road lay toward the spring. Just rs som,
! lives lie in sweet warmth and securIt,
on the border land of awful experience
OF SORROW and pain, through which then
feet must walk into the eterna. rest be
| yond.
And one morning of this sunshine on
of season. youth, somewhere about In
seventeenth year, might have been seer
making his WAY slowly along one OF The
principal thorought;lrrs of the city. Ifyov
had looked in his face YOU would hav,
| found it bright. intelligent one. with
eyes that held plenty OF tire and spirit in
| them. but now carried some glnem ol
sadness, or both. So did the step. slow
and Respondent. so did the figure, with
the idle hands iistlc>Siy in the pockets
for want OF some better employment.
Now. Tom HAYNES, You re done iol
in this city. and the sooner YOU clear on;
and SO to sea the better for you. The
best thing You can do is to ship as com
mon deck hand, Tor good long voyage
round the world You'll have t chance
to see something OF the world before you
get back. and perhaps you'll get into Il
good berth aud be Il captain some day
ft'll be hard enough at first, and YOU
mus, make up Your mind 10 plenty u
| knocks and rough associations; but i
will be better tlan loatiug around III,
| city. with Your hands in your pockets
and your last dollar goiug. There's nC
chance tor you here, with yOUr character
gone. e.and your situation lost. and you've
nobody TO thank for it ali bat Yourself,
rs the Old fellow told yUu when he sent
You off. All YOUR fine visions and pretty
dreams oi making money and setting NJ
| the folks ut home are gone now. But
poor mother and little Ruth Ah.thrre
was 4 twinge then that made the
boy start and shrink rs one might at the
touch Of Il Goa! Of fire he knew the poor
| broken-down mother. the bright little
sister, just three years his junior. hat
Sc, all their hopes and pride on him that
he was their one hope and trust, and
when they should come to hear the truth
that he was discharged and di-graced
and had run off to sea, they would never
hold up their heads again.
All. il lie could go back to the day OF
which he lett them, Then the tears
sprang up into his eyes; he was think
ing OF their last words his mother
and little Ruth's. There WAS only one
thought harder than that. and this wa
going back and looking in their face,
and telling them the truth. And So
reasoning after the fearful logic .
evil. ;" the one wrong always involving
another, he told himself. in despai,
and desperation. that there was no he'll
! for ii he must run off now and 90 e
| sea"
| And he who had been too weak to re
si.t tho temptation OF the land. would
| expose himself to those increased a hun
| drcd-fnld, on board the ship, among
coarse and brutal companions. amid the