The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1878-12-11
A bare-hesded man, standing with hi

get down this minute. Amt yo
ashamed of yourself?"
| "He ought to be-" answered th
tramp, as he swung the boy to the walk
"He ought to be. The Lord know
I'm ashamed of myself. But, sir, W
can's all be Vanderbilts. I'm no inten
tion of stealing your SOD. I gave him
lift because I liked him. Good-morn
ingT' and with a downward jerk from
and rear to the brims of his shabby oil
hat and punching his hands into shabb,
old pockets, this woeful vagabond wen
shutting away against the raw wind ant
down the leaf-carpeted street.
The respectable citizen, for bali
minute, seemed puzzled, and Leaned
over the gate, shading his eyes with
his hands, though there was no sun
and inattentive to the story which th'
urchin at his legs was pouring out.
"I'll swear it's he," he says at last
"It's Jim. I'd know him among thou
sand" Then, half opening the gate, ht
called out:
Ileitenant!' u
The figure proceeded without re
sponsive motion.
"Leitenant Jim !
That time it was a shout. It wa.
heard. The tramp halted, whirlec
half about. touched his hat involun
tarily, shook his head angrily, call
ed himself an idiot, whirled about
and went on his way at more rapic
pace than he had shown during the day
and all regardless of the recall o1
"Leftenant ! Leftenant!" !"
"That was the dear old call of the
dear old boys; and it is Belden, by all
that's great" he says, half pleased with
the recall, and yet half angry at disccv-
cry. "But why can't be left alone
and utterly lost to all who knew me be-
fore [ became "a tramp?"-and the
last word came out with an emphasis
that showed an agony of shame: "I'd
kill myself if I dared. All, if I dared.
Bah I'm hungry. No breakfast, and
here it is high noon by the sun, LEI
tenant Jim,' if you want something to
eat or drink, you must beg for it, you
hero of lunacy, you miserable vagabond,
You outcast, you pauper."
He was not joking with himself when
he brought out these last words. He
was somberly mad. At the same time
he was so full of shameful hesitation at
the inevitable course that he would have
to pursue in order to get meal, that
he abandoned the main street and
sought the shelter of the nnderbrush by
the river, that he might think over the
matter.
Meantime Belden had run into the
house for his hat.
"Wife," he cried "Sis, both of you,
listen I've just seen Leftenant Jim.
I am going out to catch him, confound
him."
"Bring him to dinner, Charlie p
says both OF them in one voice, for they
had heard of this frien for years. But
when Rob told his little adventure, and
described his mornings companion,
they rather hoped the lieutenant might
not be caught.
Up into the village raced Belden. BE
had missed his man on the road. At the
drug store, at the tavern, at the grocery,
he demanded" Have you seen Lief
tenant Jim p" No one had seen him
but few, apparently had heard OF him.
At the postof6ce the crowd of loungers
were just as ignorant, just as Indifferent
as were those at the other resorts. More
than that, some of them asked for in
formation as to the officers identity
It was then that Belden became an i'm
age of wrath, that he glared with fierce
eyes, that he smote his hands and snap
ped his fingers in indignation.
"Who is Leftenant Jim? Nice men
you are. I've told you forty times, but
I'll tell You again. I'll tell you who he
was and-and, thanks to grateful
country what heis. He was a soldier
without fear, hero unhonored, and a
sergeant without promotion, save by his
comrades-and I was one of them. It
was plain private jim, who got six bull
lets in his body for picking up his COM
pany's flag and holding it until the ene-
my had to tear it from him in
strips and make his body a bullet.
pouch. II was Corporal Jim who with
four men captured siI-pounder at
charlottesville and fought it until only
Jim was left. It was Sergeant Jim who,
in the Wilderness, while waiting under
fire for orders to advance, left the ranks,
picked up shell that lay with burning
fuse not ten feet from him, carried it to
a mud-puddle and threw it in. 1t was
then the boys made him leftenant. And
two hours later it was this same leften-
ant who fought like demon over the
body OF his wounded colonel, and got
two saber cuts as his reward for saving
his man. He wanted to die, he said,
but couldn't get killed. That's little
of what he was. To-day I've seen him
Il thought he was dead-and he is q
tramp, gentlemen, miserable vaga-
bond, with clothes too mean for q
scavenger, and without food enough in
side of him to keep his skin in place.
Give him something to eat if he asks it,
and. you'll feed hero. As for me, he
is to me as a brother. My home shall
be his home, if I can find him." Hav,
ing delivered this speech, he set out
once more in search of his friend.
Poor Jim, crouching in the brush,
weary and cold, had dozed little al
first. Then he began to chew Eastwood
buds and wondered, as he munched,
how and where he should get his dinner
He disliked to venture out of his place
of concealment, for he feared Belder
more than he ever feared an enemy. Ir
all his vagabondage he had never yet
asked for more costly charity than 6
drink of water. He had worked wher
he could get anything to dc, and earned
his money, the last of which had gone
to the boy. He had avoided towns be-
cause their people were inhuman, Civ
ing strangers no chance. But he was il
Winscom-the great city lay only {
dozen miles away-snd he must ea
though he begged for it, and was turned
from door after door.
He rose to his feet, every motion caus
ing him pain, and came out into an ope1
lot. The wind had freshened sine,
morning. The skies bad darkened, ant
dashes OF fine snow gave signs of bat
night. Adown the long street intt
which he emerged not person was tx
be seen. A dull town, thought the lieu
tenant, forgetting that its men went t.
the city. Then he made circuit Il
avoid Belden, and to escape groups o
people. He began his disagreeabl
task at diagonal point OF the town from
where he started.
At three houses the door was shut ii
his face before his request for foot