The Somerset press. [volume] (Somerset, Ohio) 1873-1977, 1878-07-18
Had a Touch of Sun.StrOke,
breakfast Table,

off you please, ma am" said dirty
back gate of a Richmond-street house,
=" would you G We me little bite Of
breakfast this morning? I've been hav-
ing touch of sun-stroke. and while i
was laid out insonsible some bad man
went through my clothes and stole every
blessed centI had, and now here I am a
stranger all alone in the wide, wide
world, and | shall have to hoof it home.
don't like to start, Though, on an empty
stomach, and if you can help me to a
little cold fodder, it will be great
favor, ma'am, and the little shavers at
home shall be taught to embalm your
name in grateful remembrance, just as
soon get there and tell 'em about it,"
81 amt got anything for tramps," said
the woman with spiteful toss of her
head, as she dumped painful of stuff
into the garbage-box.
What! me tramp! Bless your
generous heart, ma'am, you're mistaken
altogether. I'm nothing # the SORT"
What are you, then?'' asked the
woman, taking closer look at him.
"Pm a free-born American citizen,
ma'am; that's just what am, and my
vote weighs as much on election day as
the biggest man in the country. A
tramp! oh, Goddess of Liberty! did I
ever expect to come to this? That's
worse than the robbery"
Well, l don't care. You look like a
tramp, anyhow" said the woman, relent-
ing a little.
And that's just what gifts me, ma am,
and makes me feel 'shamed enough to
crawl into gas-pipe and smother to
death with sggravation. l wouldn't t
have minded the loss of the money-he
might have took that and welcome, if
he'd only had the decency to leave me
alone, and not try to steal my character,
too, by rolling me over and over in the
dirt, and smearing my face with coal dust
till I looked like one of the devils own
body-guard, and then leaving me to lay
there till broad daylight, and the people
going by revived me. Pm awful hungry,
ma am"
"When was it you dropped down in
sesible, sir?' asked the woman, begin
ming to feel sorry for the man, and think.
ing she would invest few cold pota-
toes and biscuit or two in him any
way.
| ADOuJ Two O'CLOCK this morning,
ma'am," said the man quickly, noticing
the impression he had made, and eager
get stronger hold upon her sympathy
"and there laid as good as dead on the
hard cobble-stones till broad daylight
Blast him-he might a took the money
and sent doctor to me, anyway. There
was good wad of it too, ma'am. had
just sold my hogs. A slice of ham
would do good deal toward bracing me
up to face the world again, ma'am, but
Pm not particular, aud can go chunk
of cold steak, if it happens to be all you
have handy. No milk in the coffee, thank
you. I go it straight when it's COOL"
"Poor manp said the woman in q
cutting tone, "and you tumbled down
at two o'clock this morning?'
eyes, ma'am."
With sunstrokeY'
Ah-um-did say thatp'
eyes, you did, and now 1 know you're
a fraud and tramp, just as 1 thought
at first, and you can just clear out-you
won't get a bite here. Sun-stroke al
two o'clock in the morning! you're &
lying, drunken vagabond, sir"
"I forgot to mention that it was {
son of gun who laid me out" said hs
man with tw sted smile, as he moved
on up the alley.