The National tribune., 1883-03-08

|
| be mailed with thousand dollar check in it.
| must hurry home and have that check
stopped the bills will go for an involuntary
! contribution, / suppose. Bruce, l feel like
/ choking you J"
"And I'm willing to let you, Jim, if it'll re-
| lieve your mind. 1t was outrageously careless
of me. | don't suppose there's the slightest
| chance of tracing it."
No more than dropped penny in Broad
| way. Miss Van Ness wont have her Jacque
minot roses for the german, though, and I'll
! tell her it was your fault can't throw away
| any more dollars on nonsense. But Pm not
| sure the money is lost as much as 1T might
| have been, old fellow. Mrs Brooks I'm ready"
| And so James Agard went home, stopped
payment of the check by telegram, and sent
an excuse to Miss Van Ness for not attending
| her german. The roses were to have been
| surprise to her, so she did not miss them.
We left Jack sitting in the moonlight, doubt
| ing and distressed. But he did not sit there
| long for suddenly there came to him a recol-
lection of what his father had said concerning
| his education to Grandpa Dibble; his mother
| had repeated it to him so often that it was fixed
in his memory. He hid his face in his hands,
| for it grew hot with shame, to think he had
not seen at once that he must.send the coat
back to its owner Jack did not hesitate-the
| right thing must be done quickly. He folded
| the coat as well as he knew how, replacing
everything in the pockets, except the three
quite sure that Mr.. Smith, who had hired him,
was not the man to understand or approve his
| action, he made up his mind not to wait till
the morning, but to go directly back to Dayton,
| where he had received his clothes, and where
| the nearest express office was stationed. He
! could not return the coat to the agent for he
! had distributed all the clothes destined for
! that point, Jack being one of the last appl
! cantS, and had gone OH farther with the rest;
| so he rolled it in q newspaper and slipped
| downstairs with his shoes in his hand putting
| on over his vest the old red sack he had worn
| before and set out for Dayton.
| He had to beg his breakfast when he reached
! the town; then he bought sheet of brown
! paper, string, and postal card with the three
cent piece, and, sitting down on the sunny side
| of a lumber pile, made the coat into q neat
bundle, firmly tied.
| He asked the use of pen and ink at the ex
press office, directed his package and wrote his
postal as follows, for he could write well, though
! q little uncertain as to his spelling:
"DAYToN,-
"DEAR SIR: I send you by express to Day coat
! which got in the close sent to burnd out foxes
here, doant believe it ought to hev come so send
| it to the name onto the letter, oil things Within
except sents used for paper string, and kard.
JACK PARRY"
Jack felt great weight off his mind when
| the bundle was fairly out of his hands. 1t was
| hard to send away help he needed so much
I
/ know, dear Tom and Harry-you who have
! never been hungry, ragged and orphaned.
| And he not only lost his coat, but his place,
! for he knew very well when he left the farm
| house that Mr.. Smith, who was hard and
mean man. would never take back boy who
ran away the first night of his service, espe
cially if he knew it was to return good coat
| with money in the pocket.
| Still he felt that his father and mother would
! have thought it was dishonest to keep it, and,
with the courage of q resolute boy he felt sure
| he could find work in Dayton. But he did not.
! There were plenty of boys, and men. too, al
ready asking for work, and nobody knew him,
nor had he any recommendations. For several
nights he slept i'll empty freight-car near
/ the railway station doing q little porters work
| to pay for this shelter then he did some things
about the tavern stable for his board, sleeping
! in the shed, or on the hay NOV; and once in
| while he caught himself wishing he had that
| forty dollars to get back to Connecticut, where
! he had distant relatives. But the quick thought
"What would Mother say?" represSed the wish
| at once.
| At last he found steady work on farm out
of town, with small wages. But he had a loft
| and bed to himself, and his chief work was to
drive team into Dayton and back with pro-
duce, or to fetch lumber, coal, and feed for his
employer and the neighbors.
One day, about month after he went to this
place, as he was driving load of coal past the
express office, walking his horses, for the load
was heavy and the mud deep, the clerk saw
| him, and running to the door, called out:
"Say, young fellow! ID you know anybody
name of Jack Parry?"
az guess so," said Jack with smile "that's
my name. What's to pay?"
Nothin'-its prepaid. ] had faint rex
| lekton that fellow about your size left
package here while ago directed to James
Agard. | wasn't real sure t was you, for you
aren't riUopI fancy you was What
| have you done with that red jacket, sonny?
! Haw! haw! haw!
Jack colorcd he had on an old overcoat of
! the farmers, but the red sack was under it, for
! he had no other coat.
"Well, anyhow here's a bundle for Jack
| Parry, and / reckon that's for you, since nobody
else has called for it; and it's got kind of a
| label on to the tag same as letters have: Re-
| turn to James Agard & Co., Deerford. Conn, If
not called for in one month"; And the months
Almost up, too-it's a nigh thing for you"
Jack did not know what to think or say. He
! signed a receipt for the bundle, put it up on
! the coal and hastily went on his way.
| He did not get home till after dark and
| when supper was over and all his work done
! he could only go to bed and wait for morning
as he never was allowed light in his loft. and
! he did not want to open the package till he
was alone. But with the first dawning light
! he sprang up eagerly and united the string
|
! the suit, set of warm undercothing, and, on
top of all, a letter running thus:
| DEERFORD, CoNN.
"JACK PARRY: am glai there is such an hon
est boy in Dayton wish there were more here,
! but we want you for another, anyway. If you are
| out of work and l think perhaps you are, for
! know how it is round the burnt districts, you will
| find money in the breast-pocket of your coat to
! buy ticket for this place. James Agard Il Co.
want boy i'll their store, and want an honest
Come promptly, and bring this letter to identify
| yourself. JAMES AGARD, JR.''
ooh, if mother only knew it," was the
quick thought that glistened in Jacks happy
eyes, and choked him for a moment, as he laid
! down the letter
Perhaps she did.
He is in Agard & Co.'S great wholesale store
on the DeerfOrd wharves now and does credi.
to James Agard, Jr.s, recommendation.
And it all came Of sending the wrong coat
! ST. Nicholas.
Adam Werie's Nerve.
From the Manistee Democrat.I
Last Tuesday Mr.. Adam Wcrle, of Pierpont,