Litchfield enquirer., 1880-01-22

ague and fever and other woes. He tried to 1 answer her cheerfully, though the tears were all in his throat, as he got the babies out of | their few clothes and laid them, half asleep, i down on the sack and oldrug that served them as cradle The eldest one, sleepy as she was, in her sleepiness kept sobbing and crying l for Toto, which was all she could say of Drummer's name; he was used to lie close to them all night, and the child through her mist of slumber was missing his broad, good-hu- inored face, and the goodnight kiss of his rough tongue. Where is the dog ?'' asked the old woman | from her bed.
 Gualdro answered as cheerfully as he could, 'I have lost him; must go out and look" | ' Lost him? Che, che !" grumbled the old woman. ''He knows the city as we'll as a | Christian. He will come scratching at the door in minute."
 Gualdro could not speak, s. ,... ,,.-l. '.I think had better go and look, ," he said, after pause, while he gave his wife little bread and drink of water-there was nothing else in the chamber. He then went out and went across the town a long, long way, to the public slaughter house. When he reached there it was shut for the night; he could make no one hear. He l was very weary, but he could not go away; he went to and fro, as in his earlier years he had paced to and fro when on guard in the long Winter nights on the ice-cold plains of Lom- barby, till some one that knew him spoke to him in the street and said: "What is the use of doing that? You can- not get your dog till dawn, when the gates will open for the beasts to come in of the rall- way. Go home and try and get some money, for without money, take my word, old Drum mer will be as dead as door-nail." ,.l B. Where could he get money His ladies were away, and his General was dead. He had nothing to sell, since usciere had taken all his pots and pans and his few sticks of furniture, and if he asked charity in the streets he would be arrested, because he had never been able to bring his pride down to get the official permis- sion to beg as legalized pauper which might, perhaps, if he had asked for it, have been ac- corded to him under Article 1O2, No. 8, of the Communal and Provincial Laws.
 He dld not know what to do.
 He would have sold even his medals to save Drummer, but they would have had the law on him even for that. He wandered up and down, to and fro, in the street, finding the short night very long. He could hear the bowling of dogs in this miserable place, and he knew that one was the voice of his own old friend.
 He hung about there till morning broke | another sultry, heavy morning, with the sky haze of white heat. The first wretched ami | mals came in toward the slaughter house bull locks footsore and galled and bruised, that having toiled for years over the land at the blow and in the cart, were now brought to end their days there; lambs, alive and quiver- ing, hung in long rows on to the wooden frame work of wagons, their heads downward, their eyes starting; all the sad, terrible pro- nf fhOfn 1fxy at dawn to feed the human multitude that calls desert animals beasts of prey, went by him in the hazy, sickly daybreak. But he scarcely noticed them: he only pressed forward in hope to save Drummer. It was still too early. He was pushed about among cross and sleepy un- derlings, and told to return at ten o'clock It was then not i've Might he not see his dog he asked piteously. He was told sharply, no; she must wait till he saw an Inspector.
 He went back to his home in Pignone. There was no one to do anything for his wife and the children except himself He only told them that he could not find Drummer; he could not bear to tell them the truth. The old wife began to sob, and the babies cried aloud, They wanted old Drummer; where was Drnm- mer? A rat had sat on therug and frightened them all night. Go get Drummer!
 Guadro with his heart half broken, did for them all that was needful, and warmed them a little weak coffee and then went out agaln, the neighbor who was shreW promising to look after them in his absence. All the many dwellers of the house were out on the stairs, and were all talking of Drummer, and sorrow ing for him Some children were crying and the men were cursing the Government. These tyrannies of petty laws in their wisdom hurt the authority of the State more with the pop ulace than all the severity of Draconian code against great offenses. Petty laws may annoy but can never harm the rich, for they can al- ways evade them or purchase immunity but petty laws on the poor are as the horse fly in the forests on the neck and on the eyelids of the horse.
 Were modern law makers wise, they would make their laws as few, as brief, and as stern as the commands of the Decalogue. But then what would become of the Bureaucracy, and of all those hosts who live by the public as the fly by the horse?
 Guadro. with all the eager, voluble noisy sympathy of the Pignonc pursuing him, went once more on his way to the slaughter-house yards. It was ten o'clock. He was told he must wait yet another hour. The Superin tendent was busy. He waited the hour, not having broken his fast. The horrid smell of blood was in the air of the place. He had not been faint before the sight of carnage or in the face of death, but here he felt sick and trem- bled. The neghboring bells were all ringing i; it was a saints day but within, the poor beasts were dying that the holy human race might be fed.
 At last some one in authority there said to him, ''What do you want here ?" The person spoke roughly he was rough, coarse man whom the people called, for his brutality in his office, Il Mastino.
 Gualdro told him his tale, his voice and his hand shaking with agitation and weakness.
 May not have my dog p he said piteous- ly, as he ended his narrative. "Here is the tax of the year; all paid for him; lady paid it."
 Mastino eyed the paper sharply, anxious to find it incorrect if possible.
 'sThat has nothing to do with It, he said sayagely. ''The dog is here for surveillance: You must pay twenty five cents for his main- tainance and fifteen for contravention of the
 '1 will try!" faltered Gualdro with dry lips and sinking heart. "Oh, for the love of God let me see him."
 ''You can see him if you bring the money. But you cannot remove him till forty days"
 t'But what has he done?'
 s.Do not answer me" thundered the man in authority ''If you answer me will put brace of bullets through your cursed beasts head. You will find am master here l"
 For it is thus that the public which pays the taxes is answered by those who are it's servants.
 Let me see him P stammerd Gualdro be- side himself with pain. The man in authori- ty turned on his heel ''Send that madman out of the yard" said he to one of hia under lings The underling, who was more kindly of nature s(for an Italian is always kind in small things when he is not changed into an mpiegGto, creature that is always insolent; cringing, venal, and brutal according to the company he is in) touched the old soldier on the arm and spoke to him, 'Go and get the money, or you can do nothing here; and if you provoke him, he will have youf brute, killed, ay, that for sure"
 'sBut let me see himl" pleaded Gualdro, two slow tears coming down his old bronzed cheeks. The underling hesitated
 .sWell, I will let you do that, though it will cost me my place if he ever knew. Go out by that door and wait for me-" zt i4 tia
 Gualdro staggered out and waited it seem- ad fo him aOpa hofOrp the man rpiOined him.