The Manitowoc tribune. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1866-1878, 1877-12-20
The address given was Amos Mark

The address given was Amos Mark
ham, Box 1929, New York city.
Poor Bob This was terrible blow
to him but he felt that he ought to do
all he could to restore Elsie to her par
ents so he Immediately wrote letter
in ahs4ter to the advertisement. and
having dropped it ih the office, re-
turned home with heavy heart.
"Mebhe she dbn't belong to them,
after all,'' said bob to hiihself, i'and
they've got to prove it before they take
her away"
This was the one hope to which he
clung, but it speedily vanished. for only
three days later lady and gentleman
stopped at Mother Darby's door. Bob
hastehed TO open it, and q single glance
at the lady's face told him that she was
Elsie's mother.
Is this the place began the gen
tleman, but with faint shrek the lady
darted through the open door and
caught little Elsie in her arms.
go my darling p sobbed she; for
neither time, hot change; hot absence,
could deceive the mothers heart
Ii further proof was needed it was
found on Elsie's clothing, which, as we
have already said, Mother Darby bad
carefully preserved, and in the complete
harmony of the evidence ON both sides.
The story Mr.. Markham told was this:
His wife being an invalid; he had, by
brdet Of the physician, takeh her TO Italy
to PASS the winter, leaving Elsie in
charge of a nurse in whom they had
confidence. They kept up constant
communication with the woman until
their return, when, to their dismay, they
found both nurse and child we're miss
ing from the house in which she had
lived when they. had left the country.
They c5Hld obtain 10 trace of her, and
only recently they had received mes
sage from the woman, through third
person, that she had left the child at
some station on the line of the New
York Central railroad, but the name of
the place che had forgotten or failed to
notice. Her object in this trat,saetion
Was, OF course, to appropriate the money,
with which she had been literally sup
piled, and rid herself of the burden of
caring for the child.
To Mother Darby, Mr.. Markham paid
for her care of Elsie twice az much as it
was worth, which she received with a
grateful courtesy, but to Bob he said {:
'I don't know how 1 can pay Sou."
"I don't want any pay. / did it
because L loved her." answered Bob,
with quivering lip.
81 shall remember you, though" said
he, and led his wife to the hack which
was awaiting them outside the gate, but,
when he would have lifted Elsie in, she
clung to Bob, crying:
Bobbie go, too !! BObbie go, too ~
"And why shouldn't he go. too? 1t
is very cruel to separate them," said
Mrs. Markham.
Then they talked few minutes in
low voice, pnd, turning to Rob, Mr..
Markham said, .How should you like
to go to New York with us ?''
"To New York and be with Elsie %
cried Bob, HE brain hardly able to take
in two ideas of such magnitude at once.
"Yes; to be with Elsie always. Do
you think you could be happy with us ?"
Happy? Obi" was all Bob could
answer.
Another Christmas morning dawned,
and again Rob rode from the station with
Elsie in his arms; not, however, in the
poor coal heavens cart, but in Mr. Mark
hams comfortable carriage.
Presently the carriage stopped-not at
Mother Darby's little one story house in
the outskirts of Wakesha, but at pleas
ant, commodious dwelling in New York
city. Mr.. and Mrs. Markham alighted,
and went up the granite steps, followed
~ Bob, leading Elsie by the hand.
The door opened, and warmth, and
light, and beauty greeted them which
ever way they turned. Such was Bob's
entrance into his new home. Can we do
better than take our leave Of him there
by Wishing him merry Christmas