The Nevada picayune., 1885-08-06
He Made a Mistake.

bly is one, replied the man under the white plug hat as ho replaced his change, "but 1 made a mistake on the wrong side of the ledger once aud l don'twant to get caught that way again
 Glow was it?n
 Well, Pm neither a Christian nor a philanthopist, Fact is, Pm a pretty hard. hearted man on the average, but I used to be a little worse than 1 am now. One even. ing five or six years ago, right in front Of this very store, a boy about twelve years of age, hit ne for q dime. ne had tears in his eyes, a drawl to his veicc, and l spotted him at once for an impos- tor. He went on to say that his father was sick and unable to work, and that he himself had been down with fever and had no strength to look for a job, and langhed III derision and told him to clear ont or I'd give him in charge"
 "Ita an old dodgo," observed the man who was smoking 3 corn cob pipe
 Exactly, but | may hot always be a dodge. l had n pocket full of silver, and was too onery mean to hand over , dime. Sup {. I oso the boy was lying? Suppose he wanted the money for himself? How contomptible in me to be- grudge that triAing sum to little chap who was certainly all skin and bone and eyidentlyneede a square meal"
 ''But it woulh have been CT. couraging vice, , said the man with the check shirt front.
 "Bosh! There are mon in this city who are looked upon as sbin- ] ing examples, who cheat and swim de the people out of a thousand dollars where vice gets shilling. This little incident have been re- i lating went out of my mind in an hour, but next day, as l was look l ing ovor an old tenement with the owner, who wanted me to figure on repairs, who should l come across bat the boy of the night before He was in bed raving with fever. In bed2 We'll, ho was tossing around on a heap Of rags. ln the sane room was the mother, trying .o earn a few cents at the wash. tub, but not having the strength to work for moro than five minutes at time, Also, tho father just alive with consumption, and occu- pying bed no better than the boys" "
 "Samo boy, eh?' quorriol the corn cob.pipe man, as tho hard 1 linos in bis face began to melt,
 "The very same, There was q ouaver in his voice no one could ! forget in day. IIo was waving away of this or that, but the fath- CT was quict and inclined to be cheorful. As 1 sat down beside him for a moment after leaving c B bill ir Lis skeleton hand, he said:
 "God bless you for a good man. When little Ben started out last night we hadn't either light or fuel in the house. He mot some kind hearted man who gave him q dol lar. It might have been you. But for that money God knows how VIC muft hayo suIcred.'
 Might have been mel When I remembered how l had repulsed that boy the thought stabbed me like a kniful I was trying to say something to cheer the dying man when the feaar-stricllen lad sprang up, evidently recognizing my voice and cried out;
 "rlease mister, don't have me arrestedl Don't let lem lock me up! I'm telling the truth ain't ly- ing!n
 file came right over and got hold of nee, and 1 tell you if ever a man was broken down 1t was this very individual. I left twenty five dollars there whom l went away, and sent doctor around, but in side of week father and son were dead. One died blessing me, and the last words of the other were an entreaty to nc not to call him q Ill.,. l,olrr1 tt,,