Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1888-08-23

! HI butce SNhchnSo $3.50
flourish in II town, but this decrepit
old g and horrible deformity filled
me with compassion.
"'What miseryi' Exclaimed, gaz-
inc at the old man. is it possible
that you are condemned to begging
at your age? Have you no sons or
daughters?
"tAlas! yes, gentleman, replied the
beggar in a smothered tone, as ii
ashamed to acknowledge the truth,
but they have abandoned me-.
at is infamousl" padded.
"And / drew from my purse a half
crown.
"As | handed it toward the beggar
my customary suspicious seized me.
Perhaps after all it was a made-up
cripple. We actors are not the only
ones who know how to disguise them
selves in London.
81 prefer to assist you more efec-
lively / remarked, after an instant's
pause. You have a refuge some
where? A home? Where do youlive?'
II expected now to be enlightened
as to the genuiness of my beggar;
the slightest hesitation on his part
would have put me on my guard at
once.
"'Not over a quarter of a mile
from here replied the cripple. will
take you to my lodging, sir, if you
ike
"The earnestness with which he re
sponded occurred to me after the adj
venture was over; at the time l laid
no stress upon it.
Every WE'LL 60 ahead; | will follow,
/ answered.
''The beggar started off on his
crutches, dragging after him two
stumPs of legs, and with a hundred
protestations of gratitude made in
a warm and fervent tone, he man
auvered rapidly along the muddy
and slippery sidewalk of Drury lane.
at was a dismal London winter
evening. A thick, humid fog hung
heavily owe the m~acadamized pave
ment. By the dull, yellow light of
the street lamps the passers-by look
on the aspect of p~hantoms.
From the ~doorsteps and the
windows of the miserable houses i'm
the alleys and courts through which
We passed, gaunt, pallid faces gazed
out upon us, and cut-throat counten-
anees with wolfsh eyes glared out
into the night.
'In spite of my familiarity withthe
dark sides of London life, / could not
repress n thrill of inquietude, and l
said to myself it would not be pleas
ant to this quarter of London
in the dead of night.
Not but that we must acknowledge
our police force is admirably organi-
zed, for, considering the widespread
misery and degradation in London,
it is only astonishing that crimes are
not twenty times as numerou as
they are. But, despite this energy
of the police, how many a black deed
rests hidden, buried forever in the
slums of our great town.
During these reflections, little re-
assuring as they were, / gazed after
my guide. Decidedly it was a poor
devil; that no longer doubted. /
was on the point ofstopping him and
sending him on his way with a few
shillings. was almost ashamed of
my suspicious. But with a skill un-
d~oubtedly acquired by long years of
exercise the beggar advanced very
rapidly, turning from time to time
to make SUR that | was following.
AT length we crossed Covent Gar
den market and Long Acre and en-
tered that hideous quarter which you
all know-Seven Dials. The ad-
venture commence to only halfway
please me.
care We far from your room stiIl?'
l asked, catching up with the beggar.
I haven't much time to spare.
"As | spoke drew out my watch,
an excellent chronometer of Dents,
of considerable value. Looking sud-
denly up | surprised an ugly, covet-
Gus glance beneath the beggar's
bushy eyebrows.
"'Oh, hor | said to myself, that's
O mighty young eye for an old man,
My suspicious returned with triple
force; but often our paltry pride
overrules our betterjudgment. More
over, with the Seven Dials quarter
had returned the hustle and noise of
London life. Laughs and shouts
greeted us OF all sides from the pub
lie houses, and the oar-rooms of the
ncighborhood.
81 determined to push the ad-
venture to its end, the more so as
my companion now turned to me
and said, in his cracked, falteripp
tones:
Here il my home gentlemen!' He
slipped through the half-open door
of dilapidated building and started
parickety staircase with the agility
l had before remarked. / had diff
Guilty infollowing him in the nauseat-
ing obscurity. The smart tap of his
clutches sounded on the steps and
served as my guide.
"Atthe third story the old beggar
stopped; | heard him feeling about in
the dark, then came the sound of n
Key turning in a lock.
"'0ne moment, my good gentle
man., said thetrembling voice; 4 will
light q CANDLE
some seconds passed; then the
ulsmal GUNNER OF a tallow candle lit
up a room which struck me as toler-
ably spacious.
The beggar had slipped behind me,
end now heard the sharp click of
the key in the lock.
81 had expected to find a sordid,
miserable hole, fitted out with a
broken stool, and a bundle of straw
In the corner for a bed; instead of
which the room was furnished with a
certain degree of luxury, and the
hoor was covered with a rich carpet.
What does this mean?' l asked in
stupor. You have deceived mel
II turned toward the door. The
old man had vanished; q man in the
vigor oflife, q white wig in his hand,
his face covered with penciled .wrink.
les, looked up at me and laughed.