Middletown transcript., 1894-12-08
laughed aloud as if in great relish of


himself understood.
"What do you mean. Mike9"
"Jist phat Pm afther sayin', sur.
Five hun'red dollars to Patrick o.
Toole, an five hun red dollars to Den
mis- O'Toole."
"Out of your damage money!" Mr..
March asked, between two short breaths
of astonishment.
"That'd be it sur. Where else
would the likes o. me be gettin' five
hun'red dollars?"
"Where, sure enough! Why" Mr..
March gazed at the old janitor with a
comical mixture of amazemeit and
friendly contempt, "why-you old
foolp
Mike stood quietly with broad grin
on his face.
"Do you mean 10 say" went on the
gentleman, "that you're going to give
such amounts out of the two thousand
dollars you got as damages from the
street railway for injuries which have
made you a cripple for life?"
"Such amounts" seemed little be-
wildering to Mike.
"Would ye be thinkin' l ought to be
dividin' aiquil wild 'em, bein' they're
me own brothers. sur? he began.
$50 long with you'll" said Mr.. March,
with laugh and stamp of his foot.
"Mike," he continued, seriously, 'if
you do mean such crazy thing, hope
you will hear me when 1 advise you
against it. Why, man, you are getting
old. Your two thousand dollars is
almost all your dependence for your
old age,-for you and your wife"
"It's the ould wife and mesilf III be
airnin' this many year yit, sur, phase
the Lord"
"But, Mike, think of the difference
this money will make in your comfort.
with your simple ways it will make
years of ease in your life. You can
sit by your fire in your own snug hired
room, instead of working hard, you
with your crippled limb"
The old man set his lips slightly to-
gether as he gazed at his employer.
Mr.. March had once or twice noticed
the mildness of the Insignificant gray
eyes looking out from under lids red
dened by exposure now the mildness
was intensified by smile of rare
| sweetness.
"Musther March," he said, II know
1t all, none better nor mesilf | know
jist how much aisier it is TO sit by the
lire nor to go out in the perishin' cold
wild the ache in me ould bones. But
ye see, sur, they're me own flesh an
blood Pat and Dennis. They feel
the pinch and the hardness jist like
| mesilf. Would it be mesilf I'D sit by
me fire takin' me aise knowin' things
was harder for thin nor for me? Be
me soull Musther March, Pm thinkin'
it's the stingy ould rascal Pm bein' not
to give thin more"
"Mike. you're fooll' repeated Mr..
March, but more quietly than before,
and simply to gil in the pause.
eth be raichin' 'em the mornin' of
the blissed Christmas Day." Mike
took few limping steps in growing
excitement. ''Think of it, sur! It'll
be maxim 'em feel rich! It'll bring
the shmlle to their faces, and the laugh
to 'em, God bless 'em! on His own
birthday It'll aise the ache that no
one but tf1e biissed Lord lord fh an tthimsilEes til hi
knows Of"
Yes, there was radiance added to
the gentleness in the faded eyes,-a
radience written by joy of which few
in this self-seeking world know the
taste.
Without saying more Mr.. March
wrote the checks, to which the old man
added his tremulous signature. AS the
sound Of Ike limping footstep died
away in the hall, Mr.. March turned
again to the five checks still on his
desk.
'They look small, ll,-yes, they do"
Mechanically he added a cipher to the
one nearest him. "That looks better" !"
| A cipher was added to each check.
"One hundred. Two hundred and fifty.
They'll all have to be written over
again."
Mr.. March leaned his head on his
hands, less in hurry 10 get home than
he had thought. The glorified face of
the old servitor was still before his
minds eye. Mr.. March doubted if
ever in his life he had looked into a
happier one.
"Cutting down his bit of a nest-egg
so,-the poor old simpletonl Likely
enough to end his days in the poor.
house yet.
But it was with a softened smile that
the rich merchant thought it. Then
his mind ran over his own affairs
Propered from his first beginnings
he had, during these few later
years, taken huge strides towards 8
collosal fortune. Seven figures i;
would take, he we'll knew, to expires:
what he was worth, and the initia
figure would not be one of the smaller
ones, either. His own family liveG
we'll, but not extravagantly; his yearly
expenses were but small proportion
OF his rapidly increasing yearly in
come.
"And Tve never made anyone fee
rich. Old Mikes ahead of me there. ,
With shrug of his shoulders he drew
towards him one of the checks ant
added to il another cipher.