Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1889-07-21
For the Gazette.
CHAPTER I.
DOWN AT FERFIELD .

took off his hat and wiped his moist fore
head as he stood in one of Ferfeld IS
blacklist streets with a dense cloud of
smoke above him and the air full of
throb, hiss, and grind of machinery.
"They treat me as if I was a beggar.
Worse: any one would think 1 was a
thief, - he added, as he had to make way
for quite a crowd of rough-looking
grimy, saIlow-faced men on their way to
the archway and great gates through
which he had just passed.
What shall l do-give it up and go
back to the desk? No, the dear old dad
always said, Don Il be beaten, Mart
try again, so here goes.
The young man made a fresh start
along by the side OF a high brick wall
which seemed to culver with the vibra-
ton of machinery on the other side, and
between him and the Iow-brOwed tene-
ments on the opposite side ran what
seemed to be a black river Of a peculiarly
sticky mud composed of iron water and
coal, sputterings of which few over him
as a truck ratified by.
81 dare say the sun shines out among
the hills, and the SKY is blue, - thought
the Young man. ''while here-That will
do, old chap, you are not a boy now.
But this is, and a rough one. Humph!
father and son.
''Say another word and IN run your
ugly nose against the bricks. -
$50 You did. -
''Now look here, Dan y, don't go and
make trouble at home. -
''Then you skouldn t spend the money;
mother wants it. >
The sneaker q TOnph lOOl-iOp
blackened workman, made Iunge at the
second speaker, a dirty, snub-nOsed,
bullet headed boy, who dUcked down,
avoided the blow, and drew back laugh
ing as his father nearly Overbalanced
himself, and but Tor an effort would have
slipped off the curb into the mud.
81 shall owe you that, Dan'I, shall
owe you that, - said the man, SLOUGH
ing on.
The boy followed behind whistIing,
and evidently doubling whether the debt
would be paid, while Martin Dene came
last
They walked along under the high black
wall till they crossed q road and another,
and always continued their way beneath
more black walls, beyond which came
hissings and paintings and sounds of
struggling between hot metal and huge
scientific weapons. Every now and then
came piercing shrek or q heavy beat
ing which made the earth CULVER, and it
was q t q place where these sounds were
lOudeSt that the man turned in under an
archway, and the boy was about to
follow when out came half a dozen lads
of his own size with q rush and yell.
They caught sight of the first boy, ut
tered a kind of war-whoop, charged at
him, and for the space of a minnie there
was desperate TOugh-and-tumble fight,
six against one, and during which one
went down in the rough path, then into
the muddy road, and once more on the
path, but always struggling up again,
hitting ont furiously, butting with his
shock head, and kicking at his adver-
saries, who tried to serve him just the
same.
1t did not seem to the onlooker like q
malevolent fight, but as if the lads took
an honest pleasure in knocking each
other about as much as they could, TIL
the boy Dan 4 was dashed up against the
black wall with such violence that his
head struch the bricks with q sounding
rap which would have fractured some
skulls, and there he was held, struggling
with all his might.
''You COMPOUNDED young coward, let
the boy alOne!'
1HtAG " is Il uStls q SClllItY Il SGIltS VI
whoops and yells, and the enemy dashed
off like young Arabs into their desert,
leaving Martin Deue holding the boy he
had rescued up against the wall. But
only for a moment before Dan1 shook
himself free, and with eyes closely shut,
head lowered to butt, and fists flying in
all directions, planted a blow on his pre-
server chest and then on his arm, and
uttering q loud Growing noise the while,
drove his head under the Well-dressed
young man 5 left arm, threw his arms
about him, aud tried to lift him up and
throw him.
The maneuver was a failure, for Mar
tin Dene gripped him about the waist
and lifted him from the ground, holding
him up with his head and arms behind,
legs in front, and every limb in frantic
action.
''Be quiet, yon young rufian, or III
drop you in the mud.' roared Martin
Dene, just Is q well appointed open car
Tiage drove by and he caught sight of an
elegantly dressed lady leaning forward
and watching the struggle with interest,
while the wheels spatteTed the combat
tants with mud.
The next minute the carriage was gone
and the boy was on his feet staring up at
the man, who had set him down.
''Oh, II EOuy Is Il: ne SAID. -
thought It was one o. the chaps
''Nice fellow, you are - grumbled the
young man, half angriIy, half amused.
''See what state / IN in through help
ing you.
''Never mind, sir; I'm very sorry, -
said the boy, eagerly. ''Come on home
with me and IN get mother to rub you
down -
"No, no; 1t doesn't matter. Whose
works are these?''
''Cun II an Swiffs, - cried the boy,
all eagerness now to make up tor his
bluuder
'oh, yes, know the name, Gunnem
and Swift 5 steel works. Could 1 find
Mr.. GUnneu at the of1ice?''
The boy grinned and showed set of
white teeth.
''What are you laughing at?''
''He don Z live here; he lives in the
sim try. He has been dead six or seven
years. Dersay you could see old Gun III
an Swift. -
''Where is the offe8?''
FI'u show YOU I works here: so