The star. (Reynoldsville, Pa.) 1892-1946, 1892-05-11
FOR HETTY'S SAKE.

There be more heroes in this world,
according TO my way of thinking than
ever get talked OIL In the newspapers,
or have the Victoria cross presented TO
them, or have books written about
them after they are dead and gone.
All the same, I've never been able
to make up my mind as to whether
one man I've known was q hero or
not. Maybe I'm heavy kind O. chap,
and things don't strike me so clear as
they do others; but IL l tell you the
story just as it happened, you can put
what reading you like on it.
Pm miner down Staffordshire way,
have been a miner all my life, and
reckon Pm likely TO stick to the pick
till some explosion comes along and
makes an end of me.
worked with gang in the Nine
Pits colliery about fifteen years back,
and there was one man there who
hailed from South Wales as | got pretty
friendly with.
Pve called him "man," but don't
know If the title comes right. He was
more like a stunted boy than a man,
and more like some queer animal than
either. He was n dwarf. He had
monstrous large head and shoulders,
and pair of little, bowed, twisty legs
no bigger than child's of nine years
old.
His backed was crooked; he had
lot of hair on his face, as those Welsh
men have, and his eyes had look in
them as never get TO tho bottom Of
they were deep set in his head, as
black and as bright rs bit of silk
stone; and sometimes there would
come cloud into them and dull them,
and he would stare out before him as
though he were tranced; it was a sad
look, too, as we'll as dull, and / never
could make out what he was thinking
of then.
You might think that, being so mis-
shapen and little, he wasn't much
good in coal mine; but l can tell
you there wasn't man of six feet
among us stronger than he was. To
have seen him swing his pick would
have made you hold your breath; he
went at the work like steam. and he
could walk, you see, down some of
the narrow, low galleries where chaps
like me would have to crawl.
1 lived along with my father and
sister then. We were precious poor,
and father used to say he hoped Hctty
would marry some one able 10 keep
her, and so give us lift that way.
Hetty was powerful pretty. I've
seen sight Of women, as you may
suppose, in six-and-thirty years. but
L have never seen one that could come
near her for good looks. Bright and
light she was as sunshine, and she had
bit Of temper, too.
Ono day new hand came to the
pit, Jim Marwood by name; a pleas
anter man to look upon than Jim you
never saw. See him on Sunday going
to chapel, clean and smart, as straight
az pole, with blue eyes looking so
frank and smiling, and you'd say he
looked picture.
lie had struck up mighty affection
for me before he had been month in
the gang.
You would have thought twas a
wonder he had lived so long without
me. He told me all about his friends
and such like most confidential, and
I found ont he had to keep his mother
and hadn't sixpence he could call his
own.
All he told me told Hetty, and she
would listen, with a lovely color in
her checks, and 60 on talking about
him after had stopped, TIL oil of a
sudden it came upon me that him and
her knew as much of each other as l
did, and more, too, and liked what
they knew to degree that was con-
siderable.
l was trifle put out about it, for
knew he was poor, and it would bc q
bad lookout IL they was to come to-
gether; still, as I've said, I'm heavy
and slow in most things, and thought
I'd better hold my tongue awhile
longer.
Well, one day--I remember It as
clear ~ yesterday 1t was between