The Lexington dispatch. [volume] (Lexington, South Carolina) 1870-1917, 1880-01-12
The Judges Surprise

The day was bitterly COLO III W.
ginia City, as winter days most gen.
orally are in that Alpine town, and
though the sun Was bright, its rays
were as cleerless and chill almost as
peonbeams. Wild gusts whistleo
through the streets, breathing 'cicles
aud frost in their furious course, and
driving every living thing away to
seek shelter from its biting, penetrat-
ing breath. And yet not every one
was sheltered from the pitiless gale,
for he who had work to do or bust
ness to transact was summoned, by
ine1orable duty, to come forth to his
post, OF else, when the day OF reck-
ouing came, abide by the consequences.
OF these luckless exceptions, Abe
Denning, the baker, was one. In
sunshine or storm, hail, rain or snow,
people must eat; eat, in fact, all the
o vo~raciously because it does hail
or snow, as if TO perpetrate an unsea-
sonable joke upon the baker, who,
especially in a~ppetizing weather, must
see to it that his customers larders
be properly stored with the rsrest
and best productions of his oven.
Even such cold weather as this did
not deter Mi. Denning from attend
ing to the wants of bis customers
with the assiduity and attention char
acteristic of his class. While disap-
pearing into a customers house with
IN armful OF bread, q girl of some fiji.
teen years of age, emerged from a
miners cabin close by, and first cast
ing wild and hurried glances around
her, rushed 10 the bakers cart, aud
had just abstracted therefrom three
loaves of bread, and was carrying
them of, when the baker returned
and caught her in the act.
Unfortunately, an officer was pass
ing just ut the time, and the baker,
on the spar of the moment, ind with
out giving the cas- that consideration
which he otherwise might. gave her
in custody on a charge of theft. The
girl without any attempt at e1postu-
lation or explanation, burst into an
agony Of tears-a sufficient evidence,
perhaps, that she was but a novice,
after all, in the art of stealing.
"Oh!" she exclaimed, "don't take
me ia this way. Let mo wrap a shawl
around my head, or the people will
know me-"
The officer, consentins, accompa-
aied her into the cabin, while the
baker drove away, telling the police
man he would be in court the next
day to prefer the charge before the
police Judge.
The officer, on entoring, found no
one in the cabin, but three children
the youngest about three years old,
and the eldest six. The hut was cold
and cheerless; there was no fire.
The two elder children, alarmed at
the presence of the officer, exhibited
discolored eyes and faces, which bore
evidence of suffering and recent tears;
while little Willie, the youngest, was
crying and in~appeasable, moping aim
lessly around the cabin, looking into
the empty closet, and putting his lit
tie hands mechanically into the emp
ty dishes II the table.
"What made you steal the bread,
my girl?" asked the officer. At mem
ton of tho word 'bread," little Willie
looked tearfully and piteously in the
mans face. The girl Rugged the lit
tie fellow frsntically in her arms, Gov
ering him with tears and kisses.
20, my poor little brother" she
cried, bitterly. "Wha will become
of you now? This nan is going to
take your Lena away with him!"
Here the child threw his arms
around her neck, as if to detain her
BY force; while the other two child
rem screamed piteously.
The officer, ~suspectiug the actual
state of affairs, began to Investigate.
els there no coal, or nothing at all
10 eat in the house," said he.
"No coal, no bread, nothing to eat!"
replied the girl, wringing her hands;
and poor Willie and the rost OF us
ha W had nothing to eat since yester-
day morning.
Here the officer went away, saying
that he would be back again IN q