The Daily Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Or.) 1876-1883, 1883-07-21
A Tramp Printer.

him the moment We raised our eyes
and saw him standing there. In fact,
we had been expecting him; he nearly
alWas comes when we are in such a
strait and needing him. He always
wears the same style Of clothes-coat
of one kind and pants of another, he
hasn't any vest, his shoes are worn
and run down at the heels, and his
hat is battered and dusty.
There are spots of ink about his
shirt which hangs over his waist band,
and his new paper collar IS the only
fresh. white thing about him, and it
looks a. though he had just put 1t On
with splIed fingers. He Is pale, weak
eyed ani pernlaturely gray haired;
he looks as though he had never
known regular hours. either for sleep
ing or eating. and he must have come
thousands of miles, and been coming
ever since he was boy.
His starting point was So far away
and 50 long ago, that almost forgotten
when or where il was; but We have an
idea that it must have been when his
mother buttoned his little blue shirt
band around his white, boyish throat,
put on hIs little straw hat and sent
him barefooted TO ask for = place to
work in the printing Office. How
proud he was when he went home
that first night and showed his new
brass rule, and tells mother he has
learned all the boxes and has free
ticket to the circus next week, and
the editor gave him a big piece of
wedding cake, part of which he has
brought home for the baby, and if he
sets up "A column one day next week
he can go fishing OH Saturday.
Yes, somewhere along there was a
commencement Of his long journey,
and here he is now, perhaps two
thirds on the way.
He asks us: whats the show for
a STIR
We give him case and by and by
he feels faint and asks us if we can't
lend him a quarter he hain't had
any breakfast yer. We know his
weakness, and as We need his work.
We 90 down with him aud order some
breakfast at the nearest restaurant.
When he comes back he is happier
and better able to work 10 the
evening, when he goes to distributing
his case, he rec0unts the history of
hIs late places Of employment.
He knows the circulation and
amount of business Of every paper in
the State, and just why the Dispatch
suspended and why the 4dcdnnc sold
out TO the Courier. He is well &C
quainted with the unknown editor of
the ThundsreT, and has friends on the
editorial force of the country. BY
and by he whistles low an air frum an
Italian opera and IN reply to a
question answers with Latin quota
ton.
He stays with us week and we all
grow to like him more and more every
day; he has read everything from
Shakespeare and Ruskin to Mark
Twain and Bill Arp; he knows more
about our laws, national and state,
than the best lawyer i'll the city; is
well acquainted with the life of every
eminent person of the age, and is a
perfect encyclopedia of current events;
but We can't afford to keep him any
longer, so we pay him of, and he
again starts on his long road that
leads-nOt home, for he has none, not
to the society of intelligent people
like himself, for outside Of the print
ing office he is unknown; may be back
to night work on some city daily, or
if too worn and old for that, a rapid
descent from one coWntry Office to an
other, with whisky and laudanum for
companions, to an unmarked grave by
some lonely waysile. - Palestine (Ter.) }
ddrorIfs.