The free press., 1894-09-20


Lees doorway and bloomed in the
windows. Most of her vines and
flowers were planted in tin buckets
and cans, but what did that matter?
They grew there beautifully, and when
you were in the plain room and could
see how the sunlight streamed through
the vines and plants, you would say
that the costliest lace never draped a
window so delightfully."- as that curtain
OF green leaves. And yet Mrs. Lee
had her anxieties. Poverty brings
them in abundance, you may be sure,
and though Mrs. Lee sung as she kept
the machine going, she was thinking
how she was to solve some of her
wearisome problems.
eff could have gone to school
Just one moro year, mamma, L could
have been advanced enough to teach"
Minnie was saying as she basted some
|
young. She had not learned her
mothers patience. Two tears rolled
down her cheeks and fell upon her
work.
"But you couldn't go Minnie, and
I wouldn't worry. A way will be
opened if you'll only wait"
"Bide wee, and dinna fret" sung
Ray the family bookworm, as he
glanced up from the geometry over
which he was poring from morning
till night.
Ray had his mothers cheerful spirit;
yet even he was very silent sometimes
during these sessions of what he called
"The Committee of Ways and Means"
There was a very sore spot in Rays
heart. He had been going to make
himself civil engineer, and had
studied SO hard, and here he was,
stopped at the very beginning.
So, there they were-the Lees on
one side of the town and old Simon
Greer on the other-a whole world
apart, one would have said, with no
possible chance to bring them to-
gether. The old man had money, and
would not use it; the Lees could have
used money so we'll, and did not have
it. Separated, not only by the width
of the town, but by the width of the
world
But it came 20 pass one day that
.he old house was thrown open, and
mon went in with EXPLANATIONS of pity
and horror. Old Simor Greer lay
very still IN the corner and did not
rail at them as he would have done
once.
In spite of barred door and boarded
window death had gone in and claimed
him. There was an inquest and
pauper funeral in the potter's field,
and that was the last of him.
"Cross as the crater was, l would
ave been frindly wild i'm if he would
"a let me" said Mrs. Mcclure to her
neighbors; "but he was that quare
everybody was afraid of i'm but my
little Mike and Dinnis Rafferty,, an
they aint afraid O. the old boy hisself.
Many's the time they've hung about
there, shoutin' an calm i'm names,
as boys will, ye know, Mrs. Murphy,
an We can't expect to find old
heads on young shoulders, an it's
glad am that ye can't. An there
they are, this blessed minute, playln
about that creepy ould house like
they'd been born there, an ye couldn't
pull me inside of it wild log-chain.
There was no need of a log-chain to
pull Mike and Dennis inside Of it, and
they were even then having lots OF
fun. A vagrant dog, passing along
the street. could not resist the temp
tation to look in and see what 1t was
all about.
"There's a dogl Let's ketch I'm
an tie somethin' to his tail y crled
Mike. "Here, doggie, doggie !!
Flattered by these gentle attentions,
the dog came in, wagging his TALL
Within two minutes Dennis was hold
ing him, while Mike rushed out IN
search of tin can. An old rusty ana
battered can was picked up from un-
der the edge of the house, string
was produced from Mixes pockets
and two minutes more saw the can ana
the dog careering wildly down the
street, the former having been given
kick "to start him off.