The advocate., 1894-03-28

promptly GOlu w ScJ OUT ana go TO
work" at something heaven meant him
to do-if heaven took any note Of him
at all; but in Kansas men with Lena
Graham hearts are seldom chosen
county commissioners. "My dear sir,
were we to treat the poor sympathetic
ally, or even civilly, we would be over
run-thev'dswamp the treasury. We've
got to have a man for poor commits
siOner that will talk rough to these
pauperS. Taxes are high enough as it
Is." Such is the logic of the average
county commissioner. 1t was not Lena
Graham's logic. After a whispered con-
sultation with her aunt, and having
obtained more specific information as
to the family'S residence, she immedi-
ately left the meeting, and, utterly re-
gardleSS of the beneticent teachings of
political economy and the Oracular wis
dom of county officialdOm, went her
unscientifc way to "pauperize" these
suffering people by extending to them
Christian charity. She visited the af
flicted household, and going out to the
nearest grocery, hurried the delivery
man around with food in such quanti-
tears flowed, that the house ''looked
like wholesale grocery" Returning
to the little house she went about put
ting it in order, and then held the baby
while the wife prepared supper, for
she had tasted no food that day, and no
sufficient food for weeks, and gave the
sick man some of the delicacieS Lena
had brought to tempt his palate. BY
this time it was getting dark, and the
general managers daughter, carefully
concealing her identity lest it might
arouse prejudice, was about to depart,
all aglOw with the glorious feeling
which comes of doing good, when the
poor woman she had so generously be-
friended, embracing her in impulsive
gratitude, said:
"God bless you, dear! We have suf-
fered more than l can tell, and you
and a WOrkingman as poor as ourselves
almost, are the only people with hearts
we have seen. Mr.. COtterell has paid
our rent, or we would have been in the
street. He has given us money to buy
medicines, too, and l have had to pre-
tend we had plenty to eat when we
were starving or he would have made
us take his last cent. And | have
found out he walks to and from the
shops so as to save car fare-and think
of his helping us! He has father to
help, too. God bless you, dear! There
are some angels yet, heaven be
praiSedP'
The tears came to Lena's eyes, but
they were not tears of sorrow. Already
her benevolence had been rewarded of
heaven through this poor WOman's
words.
"Where does this Mr.. Cotterell live?"
she asked.
"He boards at the Cottage" said
the woman; and further inquiry elic
tied more definite information as to the
location of that public institution.
Promising to return on the morrow,
Lena hastened to the point some blocks
distant where She could catch a car,
and happened to take one filled with
men going home from the shops. AS
the car got further up town, one shop
man said to another near Lena:
"John Cotterell is going to kill him
self walking away up town that way
after working hard all day. He Oughtn't
to do it, even to save his daddy's farm.
See yOnder how tired he looks. He can
hardly drag one foot after t'Other."
Lena looked out the window, and at
the next crossing she got out, went to
the sidewalk and waited for John, who,
with his head down in a brown study,
as had been usual with him of late, did
rot see her till they were face to face,
and her voice had reused him from his
reverie. 1t was the corner where he
usually turned into an almost deserted
side street which led to his boarding
house some blocks away. He was as