The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1892-12-24
"Do, P'EASE, GOOD BIR SANITY TAUs,
BRING BS SUMFIN TO "a ANYWAY"

"DO, PEASE, GOOD MIR. SANITY TAUS,
BRING Us sUMFIN TO EAT ANYWAY"
Mr.. Andrews came from behind the
screen with tears in his eyes and in his
hand a wad of bank notes, which he
silently poked into the little stocking,
and then, sitting down again, sank into a
reverie. Mr.. Brattle did not disturb
him, Silence reigned, broken only by
the mournful howls of the wind, which
rose after midnight. At length the two
men whispered anxiously about Hugh's
protracted absence. Something they
feared must have happened to him. He
came with the dawn, looking so worn
and haggard that his appearance
startled them. They didn't know it,
but he had gone through over twenty
hours Of almost continuous exertion
without a morsel of food, and that as tho
elimination of weeks of starvation. He
reported:
Zone of the men, the most important,
had gone to Laurel Run. and l went over
after him."
Fourteen miles, there and back, over
an exceptionally abominable mountain
road" Mr.. Brattle explained, soto voce,
to his companion.
He will be here" continued Hugh,
"before s o'clock. l thought Miss Brat
tie might be anxious, so | stopped on the
way back to tell her you were safe, sir. "
"Thank you, Hugh. That was a good,
kind thing to do, and not a little one, for
II fno1r yrO17 q rood tLo1e roS1o SOD e $1,000
way, and you musthave been very tired. "
"Oh, that's nothing, sir. I'm glad
went"
Did you see Mary herselfy'
1.-THE minute after | knocked. She
was so anxious she had not gone to bed,
but when | left her mind was easy. She
told me to wish you a merry Christmas,
SIR"
my Godf" exploded Mr.. Andrews.
"The idea of a merry Christmas here!"
sit depends or you," responded Mr..
Brattle to him in a low tone.
Presently Mr.. Corrigan, tousled, testy
and surprised, emerged from his bed
room. All the hospitality at his com
mand he extended to his visitors-he put
more coal in the stove. Then he took
down the woman's gown from the
clotheshorse and handed it into the bed.
room that Mrs. Corrigan might dress
herself. When she came out she brought
the coarse gray blanket from her bed
and laid it over the sleeping child in
place of the jacket, which Mr.. Corrigan
then put on.
Mary Brattle came owe on horseback
at a very early hour, bringing with her
a big basket full Of bacon, bread and
coffee.
II knew you had guests this morn
ing" she said to Mrs. Corrigan, "whom
it is my duty to take car of, so | hope
you will not be offended at my helping
you to entertain them" Her tone was
so frank and friendly that it won the
matron's good will at once, and no re-
bellious pride p%rejudiced her against the
prospect of a good breakfast. In a few
minutes the bacon was sizzling in a pan.
and for the first time in many months
the aroma of coffee amazed the atmcs.
phere of the miners home. Alice
awoke and shifted it. With a scramble
and plunge she was out of bed and in
the middle of the family room, staring
with wonder dilated eyes at the prep
aratiors for breakfast and quite OBJ.
livious of the presence Of strangers,
Throwing up her hands, with a shrill
scream of e~cstatic joy, she cried:
"Oh, gran'ma, Sanity Taus did tump
The strikers committee appeared on
time, and the superintendent formally
introduced to them his companion, "Mr.
George Andrews, the new president oil
the Black Eagle Coal Mining company
"Men," said Mr.. Andrews to them, "a
have only recently been elected to the
directorate and made president of this
company. Until now | have never been
in the anthracite country, knew nothing
of the conditions of existence here and
would have been powerless to change
the company's policy if | had known.
All that is changed. We have a new
management. know the facts-thankS
to Mr.. Brattle-and am happy to. say
that u have power to act as my judgment
dictates. Work viii be resumed in the
colliery tomorrow at old rates; shut
downs will be rare in the future, and
all the old hands are invited to take
their places again-except the Slavs
and Hungarians; we will have no more
of them"
The happy news flew abroad as light
spreads when the sun rises; joyous hur-
rahs everywhere welcomed the ending
of the strike, and Merry Christmas
was heard on all sides from lips which
certainly would not have uttered the
words that day-except perhaps in bit
ter irony-butfo for the unexpected ending
of their misery. And Mr.. Andrews
helped to make the day a merry one by
ordering the opening of the company's
store and distribution of such liberal
largesse of provisions as banished hunger
and carried comfort into every honest
home in the community. Cd
He Meant 1t.
Mr. Larkin-'You are the dearest thing
on earth to me-" @