St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1882-03-10
1--WE haven't got there yet"
"Where are you going -
"TO California ~


pick up gold right in the road, and
90 home and surprise all our friends.
Then won't they he glad to see us ~
And his grimy face lit up with such
honest, earnest enthusiasm that Mrs.
Johns was won by it, and said:
Take some water from the boiler,
go into the back room, wash your face
and hands and feet, and comb your
hair, and | will give you some break
fast"
He was gone quite time, and came
back very clean. His worn and dirty
clothes had been nice suit of dark
gray. His eyes were bright and full of
life, but he was pale and very slight,
and his soft wavy brown hair was like
the darling Willie's. As this resem-
blance struck her, Mrs. Johns whole
heart warmed to him, and she said
kindly: "Who are you? tell me the
truth and | will try to help you"
II want to tell somebody the real
truth, and the whole of it,
Tell me. What is your fathers
name ?"
George w. Freeman and mine is
the same"
"Where does he live -
"He is book-keeper for Blank x Co.,
Boston, Mass"
''Have you Il mother ?"
''Id never have come away if my
mother had lived. Oh she was Just
as good :" and he wiped his eyes ON
the back of his hand, saying: 81 most
ly nights wipe them on my sleeve, but
was afraid of dirtying my face, and it
hasn't had a real good wash before for
ever so long"
"WhO took care of you after your
mother died p
''Oh sister Nellie she is real pretty
and real good, too. She let me do just
as | wanted to, and read such jolly
books about fellows that have gone to
seek their fortunes and come home
and cut Il swell. Why, one boy sold
newspapers on the ears, and went
most all over the whole world. And
one boy had mother who was zeal
poor, and had to do washing and many
time couldn't get enough to feed her
self and all the children too, and so
she would most go without. He went
| off and was gone ever so long, and she
| thought he was dead sure, and he
came lack and drove up i'll his fine
carriage and pair of splendid horses,
and she thought it was some Upper
Ten come to have his linen done up,
and never once guessed who he was
till he said "MOther ~ And he built
her IL splendid house and she had lots
of servants to wait upon her all the
rest of her life
"HOw could you leave your good
kind sister ?"
''Oh she left me. She got married
and went Off"
''Then who took care of You =
Nobody took care Of me! Father
and | went to board with Dicks moth
er. She is IA widow and has ever 81
many boarderS, and she made Dicb
run on errands and wait on the table
so he most never had any good time
But Dicks uncle came there from Cal
ifornia He used to he glad enough t.
wear a breast-pin covered with gold
but he came back most covered Will
gold his own self. He Lad Il chail
most as big as my finger and ever anC
ever so long. | tell you he was stun
ming. So Dick and | thought W,
wouldn't stay poking ut school, bu
we'd Just go to California and pick NJ
gold. Why, ma'am, they shoe all the
horses with gold out there. You ar,
laughing, but Dicks uncle said so
and he knows. My father used to sa!
'pshaw pshawr but he never haC
been there and Dicks uncle had, an'
he wasn't fooling any such thing.
ma'am it is good deal further on
: there than it used to look to he on til,
map"
"How did you get away ~
He hung his head and commenced
to eat the breakfast which in his en-
thusiasm he had forgotten.
''You promised to tell me the Who'll
, truth"
$50 | did, honest, but | don't JUS
want to tell it all, and don't just wan
not to. Mayn't | strike IA medium
There is no medium between trut
and falsehoOd. Tell me the TRUTH"
"One day after school we told Ne
our plan. Now Ned's father is rea
rich and has Il splendid house, but Ii
is awful strict with Ned. so he wa
4 glad enough to get away. But it mos
choked me, that last morning whe
t father said Good bye, George stud
- well to- day Just as kind !"
: $50 on. What did you do"
n eve made believe go to schOO
d Their we took ears ont towards Main
to put them OFF the scent. But we g
t off at first depot and cut up Mort
- Always, and then struck out Yves
I We bought II map so as to know wha
e., towns to inquire for, and we wake
so as to keep our money to buy some
: thing to eat. | tell you it was ioll
5 two or three days. Folks that live
|, the country must have splendid times
II But our money did go off awful fa
Il and then it wasn't so Jolly. We haN
d been hungry lots of times and been
@ houses where the kitchens smelt splel
did, and they wouldn't give us IA moutl
', full to eat. I'll never treat boys tn:
It are Just seeking their fortunes TIL;
d way, and call them tramps."
!: "Where did you sleep nights ~
n ''First of the way we slept in Il
woods, and we said we were just lii
:. the Indian that said The earth is N
he mother, will repose on her bosom
/ and we called the blue canopy
Heaven our coverlid, and we wOnde
ed if the birds would cover us wit
:" leaves, and we wished we could see
ct real bear and have fight with on,
but guess we would have been tree
e, before he was. But after three nigh
of we thought sleeping on the new h;
would be better fun; and we didI
n hurt a thing; but a man found us al
ID made a big fuss, so since then we ha
er slept i'll "A room | guess towns keep t
tramps. And sometimes there won
7n be such awful men i'll them. Som
st times they would scare us dreadful
they would talk so, and the way til
e. would swear you never did hear -
His voice sank into a low, cOnfide
tial tone as he added