Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1889-12-20

with which some old people have insulted
young ones since the days Of Homer, about
the good boys and the industrious young men
of his early life and the degenerate sons of
these days, when Albert's satirical humor
rose.
you're mighty little account now" said
the father. "NNhat'n you be at my ageg'
II suppose" said Albert, unconscously
initiating his fathers sheer, "Tll do like other
old men-st and tell lies about the big things
did when | was boy"
1t was one of those insults which some men
consider 1.-THE first blow" and the second fell
promptly Raising his broad, right hand,
ana foaming with rage, the father brought it
down fiat across the sons mouth. The blood
few from Albert's nose as he staggered back
He rallied, gazed an instant on the father,
then turned away with clinched teeth and
set purpose.
He sought his confdant, Sam McCorkle,
the drunken shoemakers boy near by, who
was of the same age as Albert but knew
fifty times as much of the tricks and devices
of the oppressed. At 10 years Sam was an
expert in evasive tricks; at Is he was simply
q prodigy.
These two had met and conferred often
the sad, cynical skeptic, whose father was
among the well-to-do farmers of the commu-
nity and the finished trickster whose father
was the outcast; they often laid out wonder
full plans of life in distant regions; but soon
fair young face rose before Albert Merritts
eyes. and he could not make up his mind to
CO. 1t was the face Of Helen Blake, only a
few years before his schoolmate But now
Albert was resolved. II Eelcn thought of
him as often as he did of her, she would wait
for him to return, and if she We're worth the
winning she would respect him more for
leaving the discomforts of his present life.
Thus he reasoned.
Late that night two lads with small bun
dies might have been seen, but took care not
to be. on the river road, and it was soon
known to all the community that they had
left the place.
OF farewels the boys had said none.
Albert had indeed written a brief note to
his mother. in which he had hidden her a
good bv full Of clunsily wordod tenderness,
and another to Helen, which he had formally
begun Miss Helen Blake" and in which he
had as formally expressed the hope that,
though al $ mt perhaps for years, he would
not se forgotten These epistles he took with
him in his flight, and a DAY or two later en-
trusted them to Sam McCorkle to post, but
| that individual fearful that the route of de-
parture would be guessed by the postmark,
calmly destroyed them, although he solemn
ly declared to Albert that he had deposited
them in the postoffice of a considerable town
through which they journeyed. And so the
two boys were quite cut off from the old
world of semi-servitude.
That father should be sorry for he fight
of son is but natural; that he should, while
a spark of pride or anger remains, tell any
| Of ha 70, oil
recorded precedents in such cases. William
Merritt was not the man to violate prece-
dents of discipline. He held himself stiffly,
waved away the subject complacently, and
said when lie spoke at all: "Oh, he'll soon get
sick of his firt-he'll be glad enough to come
back" But late summer yielded to autumn
and autumn gave place to winter, and a sad
Christmas day had come for Albert Merritt
had made no sign.
When Helen Blake was told that Albert
Merritt was a runaway boy" she merely
said, "Ah, indeed" and bent very low over
her work; but she knew why he had gone
knew it, indeed, about as well as he did.
Ere long she and Mrs. Merritt seemed tc
have good deal to say to each other. They
seldom if ever mentioned Albert, but it al
ways seemed that the mother was much
cheered after visit from Helen. In her OWL
Responding heart the mother said: "He will
never come back, he is too much like his
father" favorite delusion with mothers
by the way. And so, on this sad Christina.
day, the two sorrowful women exchanged
deep sympathies without exchanging WORD
on the subject nearest their hearts, and the
mother felt that night as if volumes hao
been spoken on the subject, when in fact il
had not been mentioned. And thereafter
Helen came oftener and oftener, and some
how after each visit the mother felt an as
surance that all would be right, and felt il
Just the same whether Albert's name wa.
mentioned or not
Now, after the first shock was passed
Helen Blake never felt doubt in her bosom
that she would in good time receive som,
word from Albert Merritt, and she would
have risked much on her conviction that sh,
would hear before either of his parents
though she could not have told you why, ant
probably would not If she could for the hes
farm in jackson township Yet she knew /
all the same, and visited the Merritts often
and at each visit it somehow fell out tina
something rather singular happened.
On enc occasion she grew quite hilarious IL