Connecticut western news., 1894-09-13
BUDS COPY.

DUD COf |.
 The city editor opened the door and peered impatiently through the clouds of smoke rolling up over the long cen ter table in the reporters room
 Did you get that story. Carleton2' he asked.
 "Carleton's not in yet, Mir. Howard, one of the men replied "He''-
 But the door shut with bang, . open . minute later, when the same worried voice inquired:
 Where's Bud? No; suppose he im't to be found eitheri Did any one ever know him to be on hand when he was wanted? Here, Bud, " as the grimy faced galley and general utility boy in question came in with his proofs, Ego down to the foot of Esstreete and find Carleton There's wreck of the point, but it won't do us any good unless he gets here with that copy pretty soon We go to press at 8 o'clock-in just two hours Bud''-
 He stopped with half smile, for the boy was already part way down the stairs on his way to the street.
 None of us knew exactly why we gave the weird. shriveled specimen of boy hood the name of Bud Possibly it was because of the certainty we felt that he would never become blossom. He was thin shouldered. sunken chested little fellow, small even for his 12years, with sharp featured, unchildish face, and the suggestion of seternal oroup in his voice He had drifted into the office one stormy night about a year before the time of which write. and although his request for "a place" had been prompt ly refused he had calmly staid on and become a fixture He was not communi- catfve about himself, and we were not particularly curious. One of the women proofreaders discovered before long that the gray rat under her desk was not more constant habitue of the office than was Bud. He spent the hours between the time that the paper went to press and the arrival of the day men at II o'clock sleeping on pile of empty mail sacks in 8 dark corner of the engine room, but from that time on he was alert and ready for business
 AS "understudy" for Frank, the reg ular galley boy, he was fast picking up knowledge of printing and had oc- casionally displayed a surprising amount of information regarding the general makeup of a newspaper. Strongly i'm bued with the idea that all things were secondary in importance and must be subservient to its requirements, noth- ing pleased him 30 much as an errand of the kind just given him by the city editor, and we all knew he would re- turn on time if he was alive.
 Carleton was a new man on the pa per, 8 little green in the business, but with those for news" and a sense of honor and the eternal fitness of things. coupled with reliability of statement Mir. Howard had looked over his staff that night before giving the assignment "Get to that wreck, Carleton" he said testify. "You are the only man here who can write it up without hay ing the waves roll mountain high. And the new reporter had torn thick section from the block of copy paper and hurried away.
 Bud found no difficulty in locating the wreck, although he could see its dark spars outlined against the sky much better by running along the wa ter front as far as H street The storm, which had been raging for three days and had finally caused the disaster, had subsided trifle, and from his distance the great, black hulk seemed resting easily npon the waves On account of the hour there were but few spectators -only the hurrying life saving orews, the patrolmen and the inevitable groups of ragged wharf rats And Bud observ ed, with delight, that not another paper had a reporter on the scene. He looked l around for Carleton, and some one told him that the 'chap" that had been writ ing there for a long time, sitting on an overturned small boat, had at last right | ed the little craft and set of for the half submerged ship
 "He hadn't oughter either," the man continued 'This water ain't as peaceful as it looks. We had hard pull gettin in the last trip with the passen- gers, and the wind is lisin higher every minute"
 \ It was true that the clouds had begun to roll again, while the lightning threw ever sharper and more jagged fangs across the sky. The crew on shore made nasty preparations to put out There were still many people aboard the wreck | "a number of them women and chil- dren- Bud was the first one in the boat Come out of that, youngster, said a sailor. "Be quick with youp
 I'm goin," cried the boy. "I've got to see Carleton-I've got to, tell youp
 The sailors hand was on his collar, but Bud clung to the seat with desper- ation, the muscles in his little hands standing out like gladiator's
 I've got to get something for the pa per-" and his voice rose to shrill | scream.
 The man lifted him out, sat him-no, ungently-down on the wet sand and pushed off the boat. With a fierce cry the boy was after him, clinging like a monkey to it's side The sailor loosened the boys hands, and he dropped back ward into the water He scrambled to the shore and stood choking with impo- tent rage, strange oaths pouring from his lips and his frail hands beating at the air
 The wind increased in violence The
 thunder was terrific, and the heavens
 were cut with broad, white blades The
 night grew ever blacker, but he could
 see by the flashes that the hfeboat rolled
 heavily and seemed in distress He sank | down and dug his hands deep into the