The Irish standard., 1886-08-21
LucK IN THE DARK.
"A vagrant Tells How He Was Once Gag.
ressed and Pr0tected by an Elephant.


ressed and Protected by an Elephant.
s.I'm tramp. Whether was
driven to the road by hard luck or de.
sire to lead an easy life is none Of your
business. I'm nc better or no worse
than the average. Some men, with my
advantages. would have been In Con-
gress to-day. Some others, with my
temptations, would have been in State
prison long ago. If the world owes me
any thing I'll forgive the debt # I
owe the world any thing she'll have to
dust around lively to collect the debt.
A year or two ago, while was tramp
ing in Indiana, I struck a streak of hard
luck. 1t had come on winter and my toes
We're out, my pockets ditto, and l was
dressed in SUMMER clothing. I tramped
fourteen miles along thiclsly settled
highway one day and failed to turn up
even slice OF bread. On the other
hand, l was bitten three times by dogs,
and several farmers threatened to shoot
me. When night came I was half
frozen and the other half starved. 1t
was no use to apply to house forlodg-
lngs, and | got my eye on straw
stack and slowed myself away.
':Now, then, there's nothing mean
about q straw stack, but it doesn't begin
with a lirst-class hotel for comfort. You
may work into a stack your length and
chink up the hole behind you and you'll
find it cold. The air seems to sift from
all directions, and you fall asleep to
dream Of floating over cold sea on an
iceberg. The weather was about zero;
and by midnight found I must get out
Ut that or freeze to death.
'tvhere was a barn about forty rods
away, and crawled out and took
run. One of the small doors was I'M
locked, and / cropt in to find the place
thousand times more conforta bic than
the stack. It was dark as pocket in
there. and had no matches to strike q
light. I began feeling my way across
the 1loor, hoping to strike some bags or
blanket: for cover, when suddenly some
thing soft and warm touched my arm,
glided around my waist, and [ was lift
ed off my feet, Did I yenp No. sir I
was too frightened to open my potato
trap: dropped my arms, and my
hands came in contact vith-what dc
you think?
IAN elephant had his trunk around
me. He pulled me gently up to him,
and then felt me over with his trunk, as
1t to see what manner of man | was.
AS he offered no violence to me my
nerve came back pretty soon, and +
patted his.:. On the head and called him
pet names. He had a big stall to him.
self, and as soon as I could give hiu1 the
slip began to back Off. Buthe wouldn't
have it that way. He reached out, took
hold under my arms, and swung me
around into his manger, packed with
hay, and I'm blessed if the keeper didn't
find me there and fast asleep in the
morning! | was pretty we'll satisfied
that the beast had no intentions Of MAX
ing my tramp existence any worse than
1t was, and AS soon as [ got warm J.
went to sleep.
''What aroused me in the morning
was that elephant t,'un1peting. away III
high dudgeon, and [ turned out to find
that she wouldn't let her keeper come
within ten feet Of her. He coaxed and
scolded; bat she was firm While she
would trumpet at him, she would carcss
me, and it was from my hands that she
got hen breakfast. You see, she was a.
cicrus elephant i'll winter quarters, and
there were a good many other animals
in and about the barn. The long and
short Of it was, was hired to take care
of Empress through the winter, and I
should have gone on the road with her
in the spring bnt for my own stupidity.
One day / got drunk and stirred mp
lion with a pitchfork. He struck me
through the bars of the cage, raking my
left arm from shoulder to wrist, and the
doctors had to amputate it to save my
life. That's all, gents, and if you have
an old coat, a pair Of boots, or any
thing else to help q tramp trim up for
the spring campaign, l shall be for
ever grateful. ''-Dehroit Free Press.