The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1891-01-01

setting sun shone through the naked
branches and the old woman, as she
leaned against the black, snow.covered
gate, looked as IL transformed into an inn
age of gold. One cold evening she put her
tin upon the pan of glowing Goals and
every now and then took sip of coffee to
warm herself. The moon looked collly
down, the stars twinkled and from afar
sounded the tinkling bells OF the sleighs
and carriages. Everybody who came and
went hastened along trying to keep warm.
Every once in while the woman got up
and looked up and down the street, he
still was not i'm sight. Shaking her head
she drank her coffee and, AS she did not en-
joy 1t as well as usual, she began TO scold;
"rhe little rascal,th deuce take him, row
ing about in the snow, good.for-nothing
pleople, the children-ought to come into
the world full grown" And again she
got up, sure enough, there he came totter-
ing through the snow, little bowlegged
and bent over form.
"If was not too lazy to get up, I'd start
you aloDg,n growled the old woman, keep
ing her eyes on the boy. But he apparent
ly had lost all desire for the evening conver-
sation. Shivering he went up the few
steps leading to the house, but when be
tried the latch he found the door locked.
"Of course ~ cried the old woman, 'the
family has gone to a wedding and they
locked the house, nobody ever thought OF
the child.n
The little fellow put his kettle and the
book down in front of the door and seated
himself on the sill. There he sat "a
moment, a picture OF helplessness, then
he suddenly got up and ran over to the
old woman, crying and stretching his blue,
half frozen little fingers toward her.
"Yes,n she nodded, "that serves you
right-you think you will get an apple
but I'll box your ears instead" AT the
same time she held the coffee bowl out to
him and he drank heartily, but with his
eyes fixed timidy on the old woman who
continued TO scold. suddenly, she herself
could not tell how it happened, she had
the half frozen child i'm her lap, and, wrap
ping him up i'm her large cloak, she press
ed him close to her heart still scolding.
After a short time she saw by his regular
breathing that he had fallen asleep, and
she KEEP. quiet and never moved. On the
breast of the eighty year old woman had
never before rested a human being; love,
kindness or pity had never had power TO
open those arms. For she had always
been grumbling and thinking of her own
advantage ;jand that always seemed doubt
full to her as soon as q man was in the
question. But now the warmth of the
young life penetrated her. She listened to
the breathing of the child, whose head rest
ed beneath her chin she rocked him gently
and back to her mind came song, that
she learned when school girl; she began
singing it without tune, with hoarse,
trembling voice. When the lamplighter
came home she called him to her: Here
take your hoy,n she said in her toughest
manner, ~ have taken care of him for the
last time-have enough of ir'-and she
put the sleepy child into the mans arms.
Then she went home with her baskets, over
an hour later than usual.
The next morning the little man came
out of the house at his customary time TO
begin his daily work. When he met the
eyes of the old woman opposite he stood
still, and sitting down again on the door
sill he looked thought ully at her. faint
recollection OF the comfort of the evening
before came to him. He had never had
mothers care and knew nothing of a
mothers love. Did he feel touch of this
as he lay in the arms of the old woman?
Suddenly he stood on his old place be-
fore the basket of shining apples, but ne
looked across them into the face of the
old woman and said-this time without
any thought of the apple: "Say, Ill
marryyou."
She could not refrain from laughing at
the little fellow, and without hesitating
she offered him the incest apple in the
basket. 1t was the only offer of marriage
she had ever had in her life.