The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1890-01-10

wood stove that they might dry them
selves. That was fun for all. Mean
while, not to lose time, she set the m
saying the multiplication table.
Suddenly big voice joined in tho
chorus-"Twice ten are twenty: twice
eleven are twenty-five; twice twelve are
twenty-four;' and turning with start.
Laura saw figure, soaked in mud-mnd
on its hair, mud on it's nose, mud to it's
standing in the door. A tramn
certainly. She had heard such dreadful
things of tramps that she turned male
Still, in such rain she could have
bolted the door in his face. if il had
been in her power.
"a fire!'' said the tramp, advancing. sT
expected nothing as good as that. Nav
come nearer, or am too muddy?"
Bring chair Johnny" said the
teacher. sit is dreadful weather. He
must have been sleeping out of doors y
she said to herself.
The tramp confirmed her susnicions
by remarking, as he took the char.
''Th weather, and I've been in the
woods, night. presume need wash
| ing tne WOrSG way.
The teacher" saw an opportunity for
efforts in the sanitary line.
Johnny" she said, ssshow the vouno
man where the wash basin and water
bucket are, and you may give him a
clean towel from the Shelf"
Johnny obeyed. He led the way; the
tramp followed him, and returned much
improved in appearance-quite clean, in
fact-having been, as he said, ssbroomed
down" by the useful Johnny.
He was steaming beautifully shortly,
and continued to join in the exercises of
the school, adding wood to the fire &C.
,aslonally, until noon-time came. AS
yet he had done nothing desperate, but
as he eyed the cans and baskets, he re-
marked:
81 wish I had my lunch with me, |
assure you. missed my supper and
had no breakfast. 1 am conscious of
vacuum"
"Now, perhaps" thought Laura, ''the
time has come"
She flew to her desk.
81 have some lunch here" she said,
offering napkin filled by good Mrs.
| Cliff with short-cake. cheese and mince
pie, and bottle of milk.
| The tramp looked at it.
'The spirit is unwilling" he said, ssbut
the flesh is weak. I'll take half"
And accordingly Laura made fair
division, thinking that this was very
a,niable tramp, indeed, intended for bet
ter things. Indeed, he was handsome
even in the case of dry mud he wore.
She wished she were of the order of
people who can give advice gratis. She
wanted to reform him. But she could
not bring herself to preaching Only
when he arose to leave, the rain falling
no longer in torrents, but having sub
sided into a drizzle, she went to the door
with him.
''Take this little PATH she said. cit
will lead you straight to the village.
am sure you must be tired of such hard
ships as you experienced last night; and
if you will go to the parsonage, Mr.. Par
Ion will put you in the way of-of-find-
ing your way into better path" And
then she slipped twenty-five cents into
his hand.
He looked at her cnriously.
"You are very kind" he said, 81
hope you will never need half of any
oody's luncheon"
He was gone. His voice trembled,
she was sure; but later she heard some
body laughing at distance. 1t could
not have been that tramp.
She went home when school was over
and told the tale to Mrs. Cliff.
ga tramp!'' cried that good woman.
cts mercy you are alive. They've
got the souls of gorillas, and expect if
you hadn't had so many boys about you,
you'd not be here to tell of it. This
region isn't often tramped, either. It's
off the track. 1 hope there's no more
in the woods"
Miss Penn sat down to her supper.
Half luncheon had left her hungry,
but while she ate the pork and beans
With will there came knock at the
door. At it stood servant in a sort of
livery. Masters compliments, he
said, and handed her a bouquet of hot
house flowers, from the stems of which
depended little note.
was a silver quarter of a dollar and
| 5hNSe words:
MY DEAR MISS PENN: I return the twenty
hve-cent piece, or rather another in It's place.
You were so good to the tramp that hated to
undeceive you. went out shooting yesterday,
lost my way in the woods, tumbled into marsh,
and was what you saw ne when reached the
school-house at nine o'clock. / never was so
| hungry before The half Of your luncheon was
delicious. Will you permit me to call to make
my apologies? Mrs. Cliff knows who am, and
can introduce US.
Yours thankfully and sincerely.
ANDREW BELLAIRE.
Laura Penn read the note through
twice.
''He was not tramp, then, after all,
she said. ''What an idiot he must think
mel" and she handed the note to Mrs.
Cliff.
''He is son of old General Bellaire,
the richest man in the place: just home
from travelling in Europe" cried the old
lady; land it's just as plain as pike
staff that he is smitten, and wants to
come counting YOU"
Events proved that she was right. The
little teacher who shared her luncheon
with the tramp in the old school-house
in the wood is now Mrs. Bellalre.-N.
Y. Ledger.
If the smokeless and noiseless pow
der comes into general use salutes viii
become thing of the past, and the sun
will go down without waiting for the
evening gun to fire, as now required oy
army regulations Mobile Register.
Prof. Scribner, o>sthe Tennessee
Agricultural Experiment Station, has
discovered new disorder OF the potato
tuber, which promises to prove serious
| The tnhors GRO mo rlrad with many small