The sun. [volume] (Morris, Stevens County, Minn.) 1882-1895, 1883-11-29
A SH0EMAkER'S STORY.

"A NuUEMAhER , SlUk |,
: WAS uoru IN the Luxembourg Just
out fifty years ago. Goodness! How |
ed to work at the bench when | was
y, sewing and hammering, hammering
"a Sewing on boots and shoes. There
rs aat dear old father of mine, with his
mined spectacles perched on his nose,
40 set me an example of thrift and
pnesty. Above all" he used to say to
!, for brother then worked with me.
De a good shoemaker. Never scamp
lyth.ng. Do the best you can. and do
all the time" We would work from
Friise far into the night. The pay we
Ut was little enough. so small that we
sed to watch the candle that tluttered
the wind, and worry over its cost If
worked very, very hard, and custom
as good, We might count on gain of II
bus each, but sometimes we would all
Top pegging away because the poor peo-
te In our village had no money to spend
pr shoes. Oh, how difficult it was 10
by sack Of flour, or little scrap OF
leat! We lived from hand TO month.
Por old father, do what We could TO
Zip bin, he get into debt and owed at
d, time as much rs 30 francs. What &
re sum that seemed to me TO be!
hat whole mountain OF embarrass-
= mt.
starved myself in order to put lit
money aside One day I said to faith
This thing don't work. am going
clear out. l can't stand IT," you
Il leave me. r.y son? Your poor old
1er is an lnclmb rance to you?n
%, not at all. But | must go away 10
rk for him" 1T is well =" replied nv
her. You are Il good shoemaker.
ur stitches are strong and even. Iuu
aRpe well. Go see the world, and Gods
shssing accompany you"
went to Paris and led memorable
" there Isr time. | hardly gained
Nv bread at first. The habits of the
Tristan shoemakers Mortified me, for [
va been brought up ~ plous father.
is,was a good work man, however, and |
Fer while found steady employment,
lit | could help poor father, out little. |
IN! it used to make my heart sore -
blink of him cramPed up in his little |
fingy room, working away for dear life,
9th meagre reward OF crust of dry
read. The habits of economy he had
hught me helped me then. | scraped
Jgetber sou by sou, and At last sent nlm
Eeu<ranc5. He wrote me that the sum
. ad saved him from being turnei out of |
ltis poor old chamber. This will never
o." said |. 81 must go somewhere |
9,
Experience in Paris has given me the |
nishing touch. | must 90 some where
/ .se, where the trt Of Crispin will be APP |
recIated."
One fine day in 1860 took place |
landsman on an English barque, from |
avre TO Boston. | landed in the Uni |
ID States with just forty cents two |
ancs) in my pocket. | sought work at |
nee. | saw in little shoemaSer'S shop |
ID narrow street sign written on pa |
'er and stuck Oh the glass with waters. |
/ could not read it. | did not kn wv a |
ngle word of English then, but over |
lhe door was German name. l made |
old to enter, and talked German to the |
proprietor. Sit down." he said, 'on
hat bench and sew me on that sole
III am iair shoemaker, and YOU will |
ee," / replied. 1t was a pleasure to |
AXE hold of the tools once more; they |
SssSued 10 know HE. How / blessed my |
ger then! My boss was satisfied anI. |
got job right off at one dollar a dav |
A nay food. This was fortune TO me |
Zen, | worked for six months steadily |
I'd, save tor second hand pair of |
9ousers bought by ne at a bargain. |
e,aried every penny. | sent tue dear |
II father so dollars and back came his |
Tossing. He wrote he had never seen |
!. much money at one time in his lie. |
at | was ambitious. Just then the |
alifornia fever was raging. Something
lid me to go to the Pac tic coast. [ TOOK
zip and crossed the isthmu8. Just be- |
s,re arriving at san Francisco there as
heavy gale; we came near being ship
rocked, and l lost my nat. | iemem-
er that quite well l landed with one |
ollar exactly. On board there was
carousing shoemaker, who had
cen sent from the east by a man who
= pt q shop at San Francisco. | heard
I'm say be had come before his time,
md that, any how, ii ne could do no
etter, he was going to work at cobbling.
He mentioned the name of the man
Who was to hire him, and | had lis |
consent 10 apply for the place.
| went to the shoe shop at once and
.sked for the position. 1T is given to
another man who ought to be here soon
Ind can't make use of you. Besides
ron have no hat" THAT makes no
Inference" replied. 81 see shoemak-
,rs wages at S. a day Git was the flush
lime for California them give me s. and
Teed me and only let me stay Till the
man you hired turns up, for [ am in-
Iced shoemaker" The boss gave a
Kind of grudglny consent. Then | slept
hat night in the shop. When the pna5-
,er came to the place he found every
hing in elegant order, and had ale
IS before breakfast bv mending boot.
suited him exact.y-for | aln good
,hoemaker. | lived with that man or
year, AMI saved all my money. | sent
he dear old fellow at home 500. If
you could only have seen the letter that
anne back! The blessed old daddy want
ID to know if thought he was spend
thrift, That SEQ he was going to make
10 for the next three years. There was
chance l heard of In Sacramento, |
vent there. my master giving me some
&c his shopworn stock. | did a
,,olendid business. In six months
had made for my share
:. 300. Ny fortune was before me.
1oor old daddy was not forgotten. /
I
LIne Ueor simple soul wanted to know
! hether thought he Was gojn. to the
,Qs Did I want to make him a drunk
I'd, gourmand, and put all kinds of
in his way? Too much
Aoney was the source of all evil. / was
kbbingimysel to pamper him-blt for
that there was lot of sweetness in
he letter.
We'll, thought that fortune was now
k,ine. But one night a bid fire broke
ut and | was burned out. Fires occur
ed at Sacramento every night and
E-ere the work of thieves. I gat cred
,ogether the few pairs Of boots [ coulI
but my hands on and placed them with
ny m ,ney. all in gold, in trunk, and
.arried it out of the wooden shanty Just
is the roof fell in. For better security
sat on my trunk and gazed bewildered
ike at the flames. 81 nave something
Aft" said, latter all to begin the
World with" Just then I vas struck
leavy blow oyer the head with club
md lost all c0hsciousne 4. When came
o found myself on the ground and
nv trunk gone. The thieves had done