River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1881-06-30
TOM.

Have the courage. my boy to say no
~---
TOM.
Oh! but it was cold, freezing biting,
bitter cold. and dark, too; for the feeble
gaslghts, leaping and flaming as the
gale whistled by, hardly lightened the
gloom dozen PAGES around them. The
wind tore through the streets as If 1t
had gone mad whirling before it dust
and snow and every movable thing 1t
could lay its clutching hand upon. A
poor old battered kite that some time
last autumn had lodged far up in the
tallest tree in the neighborhood and
had there rested peacefully ever since,
believing its labors at an end, was
dragged from its nest and driven I'M
pityingly before the blast. Some feeble
efforts it had made to lodge in corners,
lurking behind steps and driving into
areas: but not bit of it! Down would
swoop the wind and off it would go
again.
At last, driven around one of the
long row of barrels that stood like
wretched sentinels along the edge of
the sidewalk, it few into the very arms
of small boy, who, seated on the curb
stone crouched down in the barrels
somewhat questional shelter. Such
very small boy He looked like moth
ing in the world but little heap of
rags and the rags were very thin, and
the small boy was cold. His nose, his
ears, his hands and his poor bare feet
we're blue. He was almost too cold to
notice the unfortunate kite which, as
its enemy, the wind, approached with
a roar, seemed to cover close to him,
as if begging his protection. Round
both sides of the barrel at once, came
the wind, shook hands right through
poor Tom, and, bowling with delight,
rushed off with its miserable victim.
"Tom"-that was all the name he
| had. Who he was, and where he came
| from, no one knew, except, perhaps,
the wretched old woman with whom
he lived; which meant that she let him
sleep upon a pile of rags on the floor OF
her miserable room, and sometimes
gave him crust, but oftener blow
When she was drunk--and that was
the greater part of the time-Tom took
to the streets; and to night she was
very drunk. The boy was, perhaps,
some six years old; but as he covered
down on the cold fagstones, with his
worn, pinched face and dropping head,
/ he might have been a hundred.
A carriage came rattling through the
street and stopped close by him. The
door was pushed open and two children
half tumbled out, and Leaving the door
swinging rushed up the steps. Tom
watched them stupidity, heard the
quick, sharp ring of the bell, caught a
glimpse of something that looked very
bright and warm, and then it was dark
again. He turned his eyes toward the
carriage, expecting it to drive off again
but it still stood there The coachman
sat upon the box like a furry monu.
ment. One of t horses struck the
stones sharply with his iron hoof, and
cast an i int giEi PtGnlG8EEedr' o'"d N''
| Toms heavy eyes looked through the
opendoor into the carriage. Dark as
it was, he could see that it was lined
with something thick and warm. He
raised his head and glanced about him.
If he were inside there the wind could
not touch him. Oh, if he could only
get away from it one minute He
would slip out again the moment the
house door would open. Unbending
his stiff little body he crept nearer,
hesitated a moment, and as the wind
came round the corner with roar,
slipped swiftly and noiselessly into the
carriage. In the further corner of the
seat he curled himself into little
round heap and lay, with beating
heart, listening to the wind as it swept
by.
1t was very quiet in his nest, and the
soft velvet was much warmer than the
cold fagstones, and he was very tired
very cold, and in half a minute he was
fast asleep. He did not know when at
last the house-door opened and lady,
gathering her cloak around her came
down the steps-did not know when the
suddenly-animated monument descend
ed from its pedestal and stood solemly
| by the open door until the lady stepped
| inside. But when it shut with slam,
and the coachman, returning to his
post, drove rapidly away, his eyes OPP
ened and fixed their frightened gaze up
on the lady's face. Preoccupied with
her own thoughts she had not noticed
the qeeer bundle in the dark corner.
But now, her attention attracted by
some slight movement on his part, she
turned her eyes slowly toward him,
and then, with suppressed cry of
alarm and surprise, laid her hand up
on the door. The rattle of wheels and the
roar of the wind prevented it reaching
the ears of the coachman; and Tom,
rapidly unwinding himself and cover
ing down in the bottom of the carriage,
said, in frightened sob:
81 didn't mean no harm. was aw-
full cold Say, just open the door, miss,
and I'll jump out. You needn't stop
the kerridge''
The lady, with her hand still on the
door, demanded:
''How did you get herew
"The door was open and | clum," he
answered. at was awful cold"
The lady took her hand away from
the door, Come nearer" she said,
"let me see your face"
Tom drew his ragged sleeve across
his eyes and looked up at her over his
shoulder. They had turned into bril-
liantly-lighted street, and she could see
that the tangled yellow hair was soft
and fine, and that the big frightened
eyes that raised themselves to hers
were not pick-pocket's eyes. With
sudden impulse she laid her gloved
hand on the yellow head.
"Where do you live? p she asked.
Something in the voice and touch
gave him courage.
with Nanny Sal, he answered,
Strengthening up-"me and some other
fellows Sometimes we begs, some
times we take the barrels. When we
get haul it amt so bad, but when we
don't we ketchlt She's drunk tonight
and drove us out"
She pushed the hair back from his
forehead. as Nanny alyour moth
err" she asked
"Nor cried the boy almost fercely
and then added, sullenly, II amt got
none"
Slowly the gloved hand passed back
and forth over the yellow hair. The
lady's eyes were looking far away; the
face was like, so strangely like, an
other face.
"Are you hungry she asked, sud
denly.
The wide-open gray eyes would have
L a.