The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1885-05-29
WGiscell
Baby's Bank.
A Little Story by an English Engineer

NO" said the engineer, as he closed one
valve and opened another, II wasn't always
an engineer. | wasn't anything for long
time. had the knowledge in my head all
the while, but it was lost under q heap of
rubbish. What fools men are when they re
left to themselves sometimes! Now, look at
me. Would you say | was ever tramp ?"
A tramp! His white muscular throat
white and wholesome under the coal dust
his strong, well knitted frame, clear eye, and
firm hand denoted man of pluck and cour-
age-a practical worker, not the idle, nerve
less, relaxed object which is denominated IL
tramp, and which is a blight on the face of
nature. No; this man, guiding the good en-
CINE was never tramp, and We told him SO.
"But | was, gentlemen" he said cooly
sighting long stretch of road over the back
bone of his engine, and letting her out lit
tie for a dead-level heat, 81 was not only q
tramp, but the meanest kind Of one, and
worked harder and suffered more to get into
that condition than | ever did to reach this"
and he looked proudly at the polished trim.
mings of his flying steed.
"1'll tell you how it was, he said, at last,
as we slowed up to round curve and then
went easily on past the fields clad in their
summer verdure, past woods that were piano.
ramic in flash of beauty, and away into
the open country. 81 was tramp-no mat
ter how came to be, or why lost home,
friends, self-respect, and all that makes man
hood-but | didn't wear red ribbon at my
watch chain then, and my brain was mud.
dled-there were many more like me, and |
went from bad to worse, but | had never
broken the laws, nor wronged any one but
myself, when fell in with some fellows who
thought they had found tool and they had
TI,o,, nd how
offered me mine it was the price of my
soul, too, and agreed to take the money
and do the work.
ut was this-to sneak around and get ac-
quanted with the inside of house-the
house of the richest man in the place, and to
show them the way they said looked the
most respectable for the purpose Gentle
men, you wouldn't have trusted one of the
gang with q ten cent bit, least of all me, as |
looked then, but felt almost proud of the
compliment, and that afternoon l was to go
up to the house to look for work or ask for
food, just as it happened to strike me, when
there was no one ut home but the women
folks, and look around to see how we would
get in that night, for robbing and perhaps
murder was what they meant.
ut was just such pleasant, peaceful after
noon as this, and all the doors and windows
|
| through the garden ana up to the veranda.
The gang had fallen in with had made one
| mistake-they had kept me sober for the
| work, not clear headed, but sober enough to
make me feel that was doing a mean, das-
| tardly trick, to make me for the first time in
many day ashamed of my own company.
But I'd gone so far l must go on. l had
walked up the steps and into the house
without seeing soul, and | stepped into q
long, cool room, and there / saw ON the
mantel in great gold framed glass, white
face and two red blood.shot eyes-my own /;
but what fright they gave me; and then
saw something else, small iron bank, such
as children keep pennies in. 1t was made OF
latticed bars of wrought iron, and between
every bar the CLEAN of quarters and half dol
lars, and smaller gold coin. hadn't penny
to my name. l was hungry, tired, footsore
and Disguised with what / had undertaken.
1t came over me like flash that could take
this money and get out of the gang; it would
be dishonesty, but not such as they had
planned. / reached out my hand and stop
ped There at my very feet on white
| lace pillow, and all white and fluffy like an
angel, lay the loveliest baby ever saw in all
my life She was asleep but as looked at
| her in startled wonder, she opened her eyes
as wide and bright as daisies, held up both
pretty hands, laughed like bird singing,
and said, Joe, joe which wasn't my name
at all. didn't touch the baby's hand and
didn't touch the baby. While 1 stood there
a little pale woman came out of her room
and nearly tainted when she saw me, and /
sat down there and told her the whole story;
and asked her to have me sent to Jail for pro-
lection for myself and others. She sent for
her husband, and all the time we were talk
ing the baby laughed and cooed, and called
me by the name she gave me, Joe; and the
rest of the gang were waiting at the turn OF
the road for me to come back to them.
II didn't give them up-it wasn't worth
while, when l had put the people they had
designed to rob on their guard, and left the
town that night didn't go to Jail; the man
whose house was to be robbed gave me some
work. but l didn't reform all in a minute
and he never could have reformed me at all
it was the baby that did it, She trusted
me, when / felt the old boy getting the bet.
ter of me, / went to the baby and she smiled
at me and grew strong right Oft made a
man of me. | never could tell what that
baby saw in my face to make her help me in
that way, but it wasn't of this world. She
knew she could save me, and she did 1t