The National tribune., 1886-10-21
"LITTLE BILL"
lie Changed the Life Of a Man Who
Tossed Bricks.


loadiug tip town, and hand on deck was toss
ing bricks, two by two, 10 another man on the
dock All of a sudden a wee little chap. not
more than two years old, came toddling along,
got right in the way, and was knocked over by
the flying bricks.
Bill Forster. who was handling the load, was
n rough man. IL had not been exactly his fault
that the child had been knocked down, still he
felt very sorry for IL. The little fellows head
was badly cut and he WAS STAINED. lie was
carried into the cabin OF the sloop, aud there
Law quite motiouless The Captain oil the sloop
sent 90 the Police Station, aud the Surgeon
came The child was carefully examined
The Surgeon said the case might he serious
one and that the little boy had better be taken
10 the hospital Forster had sister, VINO
worked in a laundry, aud at once he sent Tor
her. Molly Forster hurried down TO the wharf,
took the child in her lap, and listened breath
lessly to what the Surgeon said.
The cabin of the brick sloop was not hand
some place 10 look at. IL was dirty and slovenly,
hot and close. Molly Forster set about making
A tidy. She opened the little windows OF the
CABIN and kept oil the crowd who were swarm
ing in the narrow quarters. She tanned the
child laid it on a coarse pillow, having nrst
spread her clean apron over lt, ana bathed
the moor baby's head, trying TO stanch
the flow of blood from the wound. IL"
said the Surgeon, You could keep the
child nerfectly quiet fora while IL would be all
for the better ] am afraid 10 Jolt him in the
ambulance Maybe he will come TO before
long IL is rather cooler here on the river
than in the hot wards OF a hospital Can you
take charge of him until j como back2 viii
see YOU this evening" Molly had already torn
M her handkerchief and bandagcd the child's
head Now she followed the Surgeons direc-
tions. The doctor was humane man, Tor
when he left he put a half dollar into Mollys
hand and told her 10 buy some ace to cool the
water she was using on the bandages.
Molly Forster famed and famed that little
sufferer, and bathed his head, and was tender
with the child. About sunset the Surgeon
came again, aud just then the child opened his
eyes.
Well that's a good sign" said the doctor.
snow hadn't you better advertise hlm, since
no Que has come for him2 Somebody will claim
him, suppose. i can arrange Tor you TO Keep
him il you want TO-"
Although the accident was reported In two
brief lines in all the newspapers, and notwith-
standing the efforts of the police to fnd the
parents of the child, no one ever came for II.
All that night Molly Forster nursed the child
Occasionally Bill would push his hard-lined
and weather-beaten face into the cabin window
aud look wistiully at the little child. lie
y never went to sleep that night but kept walk
ing up aud down the deck. At daybreak he
said 10 Molly in a hoarse whisper Molly, take
that kid TO your room. It's got 70 be done"
Bill Forster who was a man of 40, have
said was rough. j do not know how IT hap
pens but handling bricks seems TO make people
coarse and rather brutal. Bill would take not
only one glass of whisky. but rs many as he
could drink. Mixing with a crowd OF men
worse than lac was vino frequonted rumshOps,
he WAS much given TO fighting, and his face
was rs often Us not Gisfgured with a black eye
or a cut lap. Bill earned about dollar and a
quarter q day aud when the week was up he
H. lsaff Daraan 4 Ia
not been little drowsy aud stupid that morn
ing from too much liquor the day before, when
the little chap got in the way he Dill would
have been more careful how he threw his
bricks.
The week after Molly had taken charge OF
the child Bill resisted the temptation TO go on
a spree and gave his sister a dollar and half.
That was the first time for many years that he
ever saved cent The week after that Bill
did even better. There was Molly working as
hard as she could at the wash board or the iron
ing board earning 20 cents day, and feeding
the child. That shamed Bill. 1t happened
that the little boy short frock had been stained
with blood. Molly had carefully washed it,
but still Bill thought he saw stains on II and
that worried him sick
Next week, when he saw his sister, who was
waiting on the wharf for him with the little fell
low i'm her arms hc said, "See here, Molly, its
kind of hard on you, having 20 feed this little
fellow. Bread and milk and potatoes costs money
aud nursing him takes away lots of your time
Anyways, a dressing of that kid would be just
ruination 10 you. Here's dollar and hall
for his keep aud here's a dollar besides, and
buy calico or something and make irock for
that child, and mind you burn the one he's got
on, and next time 1 sees him lot him be look
ing prime. Wont your"
lts mighty coed of you, Bill-and just yoJ
wait. I'll rig him out He isn't bit o
trouble. When I'm at work ] take him to thu
laundry, and he's a real pet there. j used q
be afraid lac was kind oil dazed-but dom
you bother, Bill, he's all right, for he takes Il
playing now. He's only quiet account o
his natural sweetness-all real good cSldren'
that way-and love him, just as il he was m.
own baby"
ON the next trip up the North River Bill Fors
Ger pondered a great deal over the child. TIL
fact is, the child, whether he was awake o
asleep, was never for a moment out of Bill
mind. He had never thought much about any
thing before, and IL was hard work for him {
think at all. Maybe because for more tina
one half Of life his brain had been muddled b.
liquor he had never set il working. As th
empty sloop noated up the broad river, slowl
moving with the tide Bill sat in the shade G
the Tapping jib and argued with himself an
the general conclusions he arrived at were b
NO means hattering TO himself
The beginning and the ending Of this her
il run. I've wasted nigh on 10 % year of IN
lie. Why hasn't the boom of that mainsa
knocked the stupid brains out o. me befoI
this What have got TO show for ~ year
lIfey Just these here ragged and brick sole
clothes j stands in. Came near numbering
child, did you, you gOod-for nothing beast
Didn't have no better sense nor thatl
herding with drunken sailors, you big blacl
guard, aud not knowing nothing bctterf Jui
flten 10 toss bricks from on and off a slOol
That's the best you kin do You took drin
this morning, and you feel sharp set for anoth,
just this blessed minute. You can't get
because you are on the river where grogshol
amt floating round. Amt you man enoug
10 go 10 havcrstraw and no matter what hai
pens say BID Forster don't you take anOthi
drink NO matter II another fellow does stan
treatl There's lots OF things that kid want
Ihors whip, likewise a pair of shoe
and when Winter comes flannel petticoats an
wool socks, likewise Christmas presents NOl
you loaier Of Bill Foster every time you s.
the bottom OF glass amt you guzzling dow
something that little shaver wanis2 May
its Just like you, you white ligercd puu
you Al be letting your sister be a taking Of Il
yictuals out or her own mouth so rs TO feed e
10 that child, aud il was me as showed the k
ON her Maybe you'll be hunting around I
more babies 10 knock over with bricks, v,
ROOd-iornothing lounging Portuguese"
When Bill had called himself Portugue
be had poured the last drop from his priva
vial of wrath on his own head Bill helped
load the sloop with brick at Haverstraw, al
although il was a hot. sultry day aud the wo
was heavy, lac never took drink The 9th