The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1877-01-11
TINS PARTNER.
BY AMANDA M. DOUGLASS.

"Ain't got nothin', Miss May, to set
up chap in housekeepin'-have
your"
Housekeeping" the young lady
cried in surprise. "Why, surely, Tim,
you are not thinking Of" and she
paused, suddenly cycling the figure be-
fore her from head to foot.
A strange, misshappen creature it
was. He was barely eighteen, but he
might have been twice that from the
looks of his face, which was thin and
sharp, and wrinkled about the eyes and
forehead, surmounted by shock of
sandy brown hair, and matched with
an old gray felt hat going to tatters. A
short, bumped back figure, with body
out of all proportion to the pinched,
slender legs. The arms were long, and
finished by hands twice too large. A
poor, pitiful object; yet there was some
thing wistful and touching in the great
brown eyes.
"Of gettin' married Was you
goin' to say that, Miss May? He! he !!
A gal would want a husband mighty
bad, wouldn't she, when she picked up
such crooked stick? The Good Lord
knows why he made me this way, I
s'pose," falling for moment into q
reflective mood. "But faint that,
Miss May. I've got q room of old
Mother Budd, and stove, and mat
t1ess, and now I've taken partner
Jerry; but you don't know nothin'
bout him. He's q little chap what's
had drunken father all his life, and
has to get about on two crutches-
worse'n me, a good sight," looking
down with pride on his thin legs and
substantial feet. land now his faith
er's sent up to the Island, md he had
no place to 60 to. So we've set up to-
gether. He's smart in some ways, is
Jerry-kin sew like gal, and cook, and
We'll get along just jolly. Only if we
had some dishes and things. You see
we have to pay dollar week in ad-
vance, for old Mother Budd's sharp at
q bargain, lookin' out for tricks. Then
I bought some coal an wood, an that
took about all nay spare capital" He
gave sort of humorous grin, as he
said "capital."
He had shoveled off the snow and
cleaned out the gutter to perfection.
Miss May had paid him thirty cents.
After moment she said,-
"Come down in the basement, Tim.
I should not wonder If we could find
you an ala outfit. Two boys house
keeping! It's rather funny!"
Tim scraped and wiped his feet,
stood his shovel in the corner of the
area, and followed the young lady
within. All winter he had been On
hand to clean the sidewalk and put in
the coal. Besides his wages she had
given him few old garments, and his
gratitude had touched her. Now she
| felt rather amused. :
Bridget gave him g. somewhat un-
! friendly stare as he entered the kitchen.
She never could understand why q
lady like Miss May should take fancies
"to beggars and that sort of trash"
DR.. May looked rather serious about it,
and wished her mother had lived, or
that Aunt Helen knew how to inter-
est her in other people. He saw quite
enough of the misery and wretched-
ness of the world without having this
pretty young daughter breaking her
heart over it.
"Come and warm yourself, Tim.
Bridget, where are those cracked and
checked dishes and old tins picked
out the other day? And there are
some chairs down cellar. 0, and those
old comfortables laid away"
"Sure, miss, | was goin' to ask you
if | mightn't give the dishes to my
cousin, Ann Flynn, who is to be mar.