The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1885-12-24


.1Asssses ,ss'r''-H's,sr--..f- rs---s--s--'
the expression Of the geuter emotions They
aro ashamed Of Tenderness becnuie thoy have
mo- familiarity with the sweet speech OF life
So nobody answered
MistRlng he silence for hardness, Keller
contmuol "Iho mafron told me 10 tell you
about H. Maybe II you knew how Dayy
took on you wouldn't want him 10 stay there,
but II he Is 10 stay wen all do our best 10
comfort hm though noihln' gives him any
heart He never says anything but, 4 want
TO 60 home II rings In my ears so | can't
hear what folks Ii sayln 10 me half the
timen
After some talk among themselves George
said "Well, tell Davy he can come home on
Christmas and eat his Christmas dinner,
Hou'll be coming into town. you can fetch
him, can't your
The kind-hearted Keller nodded, feeling as
grateful as II the favor were TO himself His
honest soul had been no moved by Dayy's
mlierings that anything looking toward a
ray Of comfort Tor tho boy was precious TO
him,
lie went back 10 the almshouse and undor-
took the difficult task OF recOncllng Dayy 10
be- patient until Christmas, 10 was seven
days ahead and these he explained TO tho
feeble mind OF tho big homeslck child by
stringIng seven beans on stout thread, one
10 be taken oil each day until Christmas was
reached, Dayy understood after much
laLored explanation that the beans repre-
sented days and when the last one had been
tnkon or he could 80 home
IL would hive been useless and hopeless
TO try 10 tell him that hs invitation
home was limited 10 dinner lie could not
have understood IT, Besides, John Keller,
the mNlron and all his sympalhliug friends
at tue poorIouso naturally hopel that when
he was once al home the difficulty Of sending
him away again would settle the question
In his favor
by evening he wns so much imbued with
hope that he fat IN the big sitting room with
uu teais In his eyes and rocked Lizzie Ann
an hour or more His face which fort,
night ago had been round and rosy was
white eNud haggard; hiseye8, which had danced
with balyish pleasure the day he arrived
were now dim aud hollow, and his once
chubby hands were thln and nervous He
was like Dayy's wan aud weary ghost and
not Ike the rrnl Duyy a. Nl,
Poor old mile lie Isaac, who had been one
OF the Countys children Tor half dozen
years noticed tho change In tho boy'a do
meRnor He looked At hls white face aud ro-
memh0rod tnat II had been round and glow.
ing a short time before and understood that
he suffered llo was too old anl imbocilo 10
have the ceu'e Of II all straight In his mind
but borrow has lts own language more elo-
qucnl than words, and this he understood,
"foor Davyl Poor DayyM ho muttered,
as he paltol The boys head, Then an his
gympHth eS overwhelmed hun he bent and
kissed tho shiny face OF Dayy's doll, leaving
its painted cheek stained with tho tears that
rolled from his withorel ones
They al gathered around Davy-
and pleased az h,' silence and patience, They
were u strange company OF CONSIDERS
cra2cd, crippcd WOO hcgone, c,ad In mean
garments ami owning nothing but their I'M
pcrishablo sous and their iattcred bodies
Yet all that they hud- klnduc, ,--thpy gave.
Each one lu.got his own grief, whatever II
was, In the presence Of tho boys more un-
bcarnhlo onn,
Dayy Wjd nothing 10 all their kind words,
He only held Lizzie Ann close 10 his breast,
~ though there was comfort In her compan'
ionshp AMI rocked the harder
The next morning hp roso with dry eyes
and made heroic effort 10 be hopeful, "ls
II today | go homer was his first question,
His lips trrmhled whom told that II was not,
but he shed no tears John Kellor appeared
enrly on the s'one and removed ono OF the
black beans from the string which now
ornomenol Davy's person rs necklace,
Yet he boy did not seem hopeful, Ho was
only qu,ot His tears fell no moro, but his
silent patience was even mddcr than his ro-
bcllIOu, lamentations Not being creature
Of stout WILL hIs spirit was ~ wrctchcd In
wee n, u hni been buoynnt In happiness llo
seemed 10 have suffered beyond the point
where ray Of hops brings strength llohad
changed his wHil, '1 want 10 so homcn 10
"l'm going homcn but ho said II without
spirit and apparently without hope; aud II
was II possible, moro honrtrending than his
first wall
His spirit was broken and 30 was his phys
ical health lilo had grown 30 veal, ho could
not VII up long at time, aud 30 would Ito
hours Of every day on his cot, staring nt tho
wall, though seeing II not His eyes Gro
looking into some realm outside Of all mato.
rial things, for they hnd changed strangely
Instead Of tho simple, vacant look of his
pleasant days, they had grown deep and
luminous, with that wonderful beauty which
Ia seen In the oycs Of those who have suffered
great anguish Of spirit
And 80 The days went on until all tho beans
were gone from the string but ono, and tho
next day would bo Christmas,
John Keller had counted the hours Of tho
long week with even greater impntcnco thnn
Davy, ilo had grown into the thought that
he would rather sct that homclIcl boy down
on the doorstep " his old home than TO como
In for princcy inheritance Before ho
started 10 town In his wagon that morning
he had said 10 Dnvy when arranging tho
bean necklace, Tomorrow you 90 my
boy; Tomorrow" and Davy had repeated
his usual refrain, "l'm going homc'
Keller brought letters homo with him that
evening, which was nothing unusual, but
among them was one that took all the lifo
out OF his face when he heard rs contonta
II was from Dnvy's brother aud counter
mandcd the order 20 bring pavy into town
on Christmas They had decided not 10 have
him come until New Ycnr', Unforeseen
circumstances made m, delay necessary
To atone for the delay he should ''s,ay day
or two when hc did Gomez ctc,
Some tcr q were shed over the cruol news,
but not by Dnvy Hours before the lottor
arrived he had been lying In his cot, his md
Dyes staring through the walls that imprs.
oned him Into The land Of his dreams When
they wont 10 tell him they found him asleep,
the now crumplcd hut comforting doll
CmtphNd IN ono hand and hpld plnan IN hIs
woo.bcgono face