San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1888-04-11
MIDGET}

Father Ludovic was dead. an event Of
no startling concern to any save the
squalid life of B. street. one OF
the most @retched and sin-stalned
quarters of the English metropolis.
Not that death was less known to them
than to most, and, for that matter, want,
and woe, and misery but, seeing that the
dead had endeared himself to the com.
munity by a gentleness and kindness in
his conduct towards them, it will not
appear strange that in his death they
experienced a loss calling for general
mourning on their part. - -
These characteristics. together with the
venerable appearance which his silvered
locks and bent form, tokens of advanced
age, gave him, suggested the title OF
paternity by which he had long 6een
Like his neighbors', his life had been
long struggle with poverty and priva-
ton. The scanty earnings from his 70!
cation as street-musician barely suficed
to furnish means wherewith to provide
for the necessities of life with mono Of
it's luxurieS. ~"~-
Despite the chilling nature OF his lot,
his heart had ever glOwed in warmth to
those around him, and his spirit, If at
times weary, never grew impatient under
it's load of adversely.
"What will become Of poor little Mid.
get now?" whispered not few.
The object of this solicitude was the
twelve-year-ol6 daughter of Father
Ludovic, whose mother. dying outside
her memory, left her to know nothing OF
maternal love and care. This loss, IL not
wholly, was in large measure supplied by
the unstinted affection of her father.
The child had known no other name
than f" Midget" given her by reason of
her diminutive stature and constitutional
frailty. But Midget's thoughts were less
engrossed with the future and forebod
ings concerning it than with the past,
into every scene of which the face Of her
father just laid away in the grave had its
place.
Never before did the miserable garrett
in which they had so long lived strike her
as other than cheerful and sumptuOus.
Now all appeared forlorn and dismal
Scanning one object after another, her
eye met Father Ludovic's cracked and
worn violin resting on its ledge over the
mantel.
Taking it down reverently, she kissed
it again and again. One Of the strings,
snapped asunder, told in it's silent way
of struggles with adversely at last
triumphant
This trifing mishap had rendered thein-
strument useless, and with no means Of
repairing it brought sudden prospect
of starvation staring the old man in the
face, which had thrown him into a
fever to the attacks of which his feeble
frame was forced to succumb.
Clasping the shattered and rent in
strument to her breast, the child flung
herself on Father LudOvic's cot, and
drawing the coverlet which hundred
patches failed of redeeming of ragged
ness, over her, sobbed herself into a
sleep.
The sun had several hours the start of
her rising the next morning. With it in
truded the thought of how she was to
gain livelihood.
She finally determined to try her luck
selling ballads-a venture not altogether
new to her. On pleasant days she had
been wont to accompany Father LudOvic
on his rounds, offering ballads for sale,
at times accompanying his instrumental
ton with her voice.
But "n this particular day, II seemed
that all interest in ballads had ceased.
1t was a weary day of effort, and
a disheartening one too, when, as the
Street-lampS began to be lit, she
counted her receipts and found them so
meagre, buyers were so few.
Sadly she turned her face homewards
bordering how best she might contriye
TO buy something to allay the hunger of