Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1880-05-14

vent to sOnIH very unorthOdox express
sions of opinion as to the ordering o.
Providence.
"Sake's alive! don't know it's So
but the Lo'd seems to pay mighty
sight of 'tention to some folks and for.
gifts all about the rest. Pears like
chiilun ought to be looked after any.
how. They amt though, half on EN-
Things is queer in this world, if it is
the Lo'ds world ~
"Well, child,' said Aunt Ruth,
"now that thou is warmed and fed,
will thee tell thy name and where thee
belopgs?"
She shook her head.
Don't belong nowheres. Father
always called me 'Drat-you Bah 7"
Aunt Ruth sighed over this dolorous
compound coguomen.
HAS thee no motber?"
"Once. She called me Here you
Bah !! Father struck her once with q
beetle, and in the morning she went
dead. And one day the perlice took
father away, and old Bet told me to go
long, too, and went long fer as
could. hadn't nowhere's to stop to,
and crawled into Dicks box, and he
put things over me and fixed me a
Jolly nice place, and every day no took
care Of me. He made this" and here
the child stopped and drew from one of
the capacious boots, which she had put
on again upon getting down from the
rocking-chair, a doll, Whitfield from a
stick and artistically finished with COAL
as to hair, eyes and month. She looked
at it admiringly for moment, rear-
ranged its drapery of old print, which
was somewhat disturbed by its journey
in the boot, and restored it to its rest
ing-place.
Aunt Ruth sighed again.
"Give her warm bath, Dinah, and
then thee may make her bed on the
lounge in my room. I will give thee
something that will serve her as a
night-drcss.
The poor little wandering child was
soon Wrapped in warm shawl, and
curled down on the lounge in Aunt
Ruth's pleasant room; too much ex-
cited by the novelty of her position to
sleep-too comfortable to do anything
but hug her wooden treasure and stare,
first at the pretty surroundings, then
at the kind face at the freside. Sud-
denly she raised herself on her elbow.
"Dick said he hearn there was nan
gels that lived somew'eres an took care
of folks. Be you one?"
"No, no, child" said Aunt Ruth,
gently: Il am only Aunt Ruth. Go
to Sleep"
"Yes'm. But I do wish Dick was o
valentine. It's very cold into his
box"
Aunt Ruth and Dinah sat late into
the night hastily fashioning warm gar
ments for the little one, and consider.
ing themselves we'll repaid by the de-
light with which they were donned in
the morning.
While happy little "Drat you-Bab p"
was taking her breakfast by the side of
the kitchen stove, a shadow, darkened
the window, and the little girl, looking
up, exclaimed, ioyfully:
ooh, there's my Dickw
Dinah opened the door and bade
him "come long in" giving him q
jerk to facilitate his movements. He
shambled bashfully in, and in mo-
ment the child's arms were around his
neck, and her face, pretty in its un-
wonted cleanliness, nestled against his
black cheek. while she poured out a
torrent of eager ordinations of salts.
faction at being valentine"
When she at last released him Dinah
took him by his shoulders and seated
him firmly ia chair.
"Now," said she, "you's Jest a-goin'
to set there till you 'splain this whole
rangement to me and Missus. An
you jest lay out to tell the trufe, the
whole trufe, an noffin but the trufe all
the way through-that is. if ye kin.
Niggers is mostly mighty onsartin !"
When Aunt Ruth came down, she
found her valentine" bringer sit
ting by the fire with little Bah at his
side, her two little hands tightly held
in one of his own, and supreme salts.
faction at the success of his odd scheme
shining in every feature of his honest
face. Her eyes filed as she stood in
the door a moment unnoticed by tho
children, but she was not given to
demonstrations and made no comment.
And then Dick rose in his place, still
holding both the little hands.
81 hain't got much to tell, ma am.
I'm only Dick, the bootblack, an this
yer little girl I found one night last
week. Me and Joe Rafferty, had been
to place where they had some picters
an things the man called pandoram-
mer, an when we come out twas late
an We was cold an we run all the way
to the box. The box is q big box
down by Higby's warehouse, an we
sleep into it. An we found this little
Bah curled up into it asleep. Joe he
was agoin' to bounce her, but when he
seen how little che was he didn't. He
just yanked his coat off an put il over
her an some old carpet, too, an We
did cover her up elegant, an she slep'
till mornin'. In the mornin' she told
US she hadn't no place to stay, an we
reckoned to take care of her our own
selves after that. Joe and me got her
crackers an milk an things when we
could, an we made believe she was
our hoasekeeper. Joe SWEEP the cross.
ms. an one dsy team knocked him
down an killed him all of q sudden.
This here Bah she cried 90, an was
so lonesome after Joe that I allowed il
was better to try an, And hor a hor,o