The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1893-04-14

Grace approached the poor old way
farcr standing there alone and wiped
the tears from his wrinltled cheeks
with n trembling hand.
Come, brother" she said, gently,
''come with me-"
And holding him by his ragged
sleeve, Capt. Grace stcercd him along
street after street until she had landed
him safely in one of the refugees estab-
lishcd and maintained by the army for
such as he.
Then unwittingly she set her face
toward her Golgotha.
1t was nearly four o'clock when she
entered the Norfolk street tenement.
Up the black, crcaliing stairs she picked
her way to the fourth story, pausing ct
n riclcty door.
The room she entered was quite fresh
and neat from its recent scrubbing.
There was Il pot of scraggy geranium
in the window. A little girl of six was
playing with some battered toys npon
the floor. A pale face, white as the
fabby pillow on which it lay, looked up
with q wan smile as she entered
GLOW arc you to-day. my dcar?"
"oNS't N'pt. uTucc, itS Sic UcnJ over tn2
sick woman. Better? All! that's good.
Has Lieut. Sally been here?"
Eyes, she went downstairs about fif<
teen minutes since. See how nice she
has made everything look"
Yes, the lieutenant is a hard work
cr," said Capt. Grace, trying to mend
dsjointed doll for the child, who exhib-
tied her treasures with pride.
There were various other little scrv-
ices her quick eyes noted, and time
slipped away in their performance.
Suddenly there was a commotion.
Sounds of hurrying feet and confused
murmurs deepening to sullen swell of
voices were heard.
Across the threshold, in through the
heyhole. in every Granny of the tumble
down door, something gray and ghastly
came drifting and creeping in little
wreaths and puffs.
And on the instant terrible voice
somewhere shrieked the awful word:
''Fire!"
The engines came lcaping like live
things down the narrow street. There
were frcnzied shouts, cries, prayers, tu-
multi, chaos.
Like flies, the wretched inhabitants of
the wrctched tenement chung to the
walls, the windows, the narrow fire es-
capes. There was the clatter Of horses
hoofs, the bang of the ladders as the
fircmen flung them in place, and, above
all, the heavy drone and hum of the
ponderous engines.
"Tallc her first" said Capt. Grace, in
dicating the sick woman, as big,
brawny fireman, his eyes blazing with
heroic excitement, plunged through the
crashing window into the room. he
gave the Salvation Army girl look of
sturdy admiration, and went down the
ladder with the woman in his arm.
The child was clinging about Capt.
Grace's neck, her little face buried on
her shoulder.
Don't be frightened, darling" said
the girl, patting her gently; 1.-The good
man will como baclk.,n
He came, stretching his arms for the
child
keep stiff upper lip" he shouted
to her, amid the smoke, the falling of
timbers, the wavering of the floor under
her feet.
1t was just then that the pillows of
smoke rolled apart for a moment and
the crowd saw the Salvation Army girl.
She was llnccling in prayer.
Through that maddcncd, cursing
crowd, made up OF toughs, loafers and
bruiscrs, ran a groan.
Men old in crime turned their hard
encd faces away as the black smoke
shut her again from sight. Then came
the last fearful crash and Capt. Grace,
steadfast, brave, faithful unto death,
was promoted.
EDITH SESSIONS UPPER.