St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1889-06-30
A Pathetic Scene of Existence
on the COnnemara
Flats.
Heroic Patience and Suffer-
ings of a Bright Irish
Colleen.
Crippled in the Effort to Save
Her Brot her, She Lies
Helpless.
Angels of Goodness Contrast
ed With Hard Men OF
Business.

On W retched pallet bed. in a still
more wretched shanty on the Come
mara flats, young girl is lying, and
there in all prcba bility she will lie until
life for her has TIL its course and she
is called to take her place among the
whitehead throng beyond the great d.
vide. Agnes O'Hara has seen sixteen
summers fade and die. Four OF them
the last four-have found and left her a
hopeless cripple. Her only joys are the
hooks and papers brought her by
a few kind-hearted ladies who
know her sad history; her one
occupation, the making of artificial
flowers. in which she has become very
skillful. Occasionally visit from one
of the good Sisters of Mercy lightens
the interior of the dingy cabin for a
time, and the crippled child commits the
minutes between these visits, for she is
often left alone with her thoughts,
which can scarcely be other than sad,
The history of this childish heroine,
upon whose wonderfully beautiful face
sits an expression of resignation pain
full to see in one so young, is a
remarkably sad one, and the quiet hero
ism she displays in bearing her terrible
afiiction, uttering no word of complaint
from one weary weeks end to another,
might well be accepted as
LESSON IN FORTITUDE
by some of her more fortunate sisters in
the higher walks of life. Four years
ago. Agness-then twelve years old, and
beautiful girl even at that age-bare-
footed and i'll clad as she was, bravely
ATTEMPTED to save her baby brother
from beneath the iron heels of flying
team of horses. The attempt was not
successful. The baby was killed, and
Agness received injuries to her spine,
which made her the helpless little Grip
pie she now is. Speaking of her aff1lc-
ton to a GLOBE reporter, the child told
of how she spent the weary days.
The worst of it u.s." she said, IL can't
sleep very much at nights; because Pm
in bed always, think it is. The doctor
Is so kind though, and he says, that per-
haps in year or two, when I'm Done
growing, may be able to walk. It's SO
funny to think how Eve grown since L
was hurt. When first was laid in this
bed it had lust lots of room, but now l
can touch the bottom with my toes"
Don't YOU lose heart sometimes
when left alone in this placer" was
asked.
H"Oh! no. make flowers you know.
and the kind ladies bring me lots
of colored paper, and Mag, that's my
little sister, she
SELLS THE TOWERS.
"And once 1 made enough flowers to
earn S12, all in one month. Sometimes
feel sorry that can't hear singing,
for do so love music, but one can't
have everything they want, can they?
And twice, the pretty ladies, three of
them-came here and sang. oh, so
sweetly. They promised to come again,
too, and you can't think how look for
ward to it. Once l had music box that
played ever so many pretty tunes. We,
my sister and L, were trying to pay for
1t on installments. a dollar week. 1t
got sick and we couldn't pay the dollar,
SO the man came and took away our
beautiful music. was so sorry, for it
made me happy lots of times when
every one was away at work. used
to listen to it and forget all about being
a useless little cripple. The doctor says
If had the proper kind of chair with
wheels on, should be able to go out
side in it sometime this summer. Oh,
if could, l should be the happiest girl
in the world, Two or three times Miss
Williams came down here to Come
mara. and she reads so beautifully to
me. She's
A PLAY ACTRESS
you know, and she sings just lovely.
Sallie Williams, they call her in the
newspapers, because l read about her
once, and / didn't call her Sally, be-
cause was afraid she might not like
it. I'd give anything if she would let
Coi 7
ever so much. 1t always makes me feel
ashamed of my weakness, though when
she cries, she always cries about me,
and brings me the prettiest flowers. I
should think the people at the theater
would love her very much, all the peo-
pie love her down here for her kindness
to me. Once when Dad was very sick
with typhoid fever, and the men
wouldn't let us have any more coal,
somebody sent $40 in an envelope with
out any name or anything. believe I
know who it was. for once Miss Will
Jams wrote me out a song and the let
tiers are just like the ones on the en-
velope. Goodbye, it's so nice OF you to
come and talk to lonely cripple girl,
and do SO love to talk to people who
are
MOVING AROUND IN THE WORLD.
every udy, dllu huOW oO AhuSh I1oo l
don't. Goodbye, sir"
"This IS beautiful child, Mrs.
O'Hara," said the scribe, as the girl's
mother, with true Irish courtesy. fol-
lowed him to the door.
'Shure, yer honor, and she's just al
ways the same patient colleen as yez
see her now. It's many friends she's
afther havin' for poor child, an things
might be worse afther all than they be-.
The old man can't earn much. only SO a
week, an it's hard to make ends mate,
what with docther's bills an the like. 1t
near broke me heart when the poor dear
lost her music box. Shure saw the
great salt tears roll down her poor
white cheeks when the dhirty spalpeen
walked through the door beyant with
the music under his arm. But she
smiled thro' her tears. and said to me,
seq she, Don't be sorry mother.' she
sez, wen get anither wan some day.
An there was only little to pay on it.
aither, for the child was maxim flowers
an sellin' 'em, an paid sixteen dollars; ;
the music was only twinty. Good day
to yez, sir, an luck 20 with yez for the
rale jintlepan that yez are, and call
agen if it place yez."