The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1895-04-07

q meal. This was not often lately. but
pietro did not complain. for he was iopi
o. little two-year-oId Tommy. and as Pictro
was the only person in the world VINO ever
treated him kindly, ever treated him at all,
except to kick him out of the way. Tommy
was fond of P.etro.
How did This happen, any way asked
the policeman lazily when he had nnlnsneu
reading his paper. He was not much in
terested in the case. for he had, not assisted
IN making the arrests. and would not be
mentioned in the newspaper stories
Joe was drunk last night" Lizzie began,
when Lena interrupted with:
No drunken than Maggie. She filed that
bottle three times to my knowing"
Lena pointed TO a soda-water bottle on
the cold stove.
Three times is u cents said the officer.
"Whered she get the price2"
The women looked at each other know
lngiy, but Gid not answer the officers ques-
Lizzie continued: .Joe's been up agains-
Il three laws. spending the rent Pietro gave
He was drunk. but he did not beat Mag
gle. This morning he found the dispossess
was him that spent Pietro's money that
should have gone to pay the rent, and he
beat Maggie till Pietro got him to stop. joe
went out then and got drunk again. When
he came back Pietro was gone, and Joe
done Maggie with the knife"
on. Gesu. Oh, Santa Marian moaned
tne italian woman to whom the men were
n.sking a running translation of Lizzie's
W. n e. OtF 1QNrlY.N mUTmuT6O
Pietro. gently touching the child's still,
lace resting against his breast.
Joe hadn't worked for a week." said
Well. an honest man can't find work
every day" Lizzie exclaimed.
rms was a stab at Lena, whose man
was a pickpocket, and when it Was trans
Iated to the Italian women they shrugged
Lena. Their husbands were honest men.
Some gathered waste paper. some peddled
fruit from push carts and some swept the
Well, he had a right not to ask her to
make a living for him-and women chased
No one responded to this, and she added,
going over TO the policeman's chair and
looking out of the window: II wonder the
wagon wouldn't come"
She looked out or the store paved cour..
where, through a network of intervening
clotheslines. she could see women and chii-
dren sorting paper from the big bags the
men brought in from their carts on the
street; writing. paper in one pile. newspaper
in another. glazed paper in a third, and
straw paper and board III a fourth. They
wereNnot working with their usual solemn in
the whole family, helping the husband and
father, can sometimes make So a week.
There was an unusual and powerful out
side interest which made them frequently
cast anxious and expectant glanceS at the
mouth of the tunnel-like ~ssegewa which
led to the street. 1t was through that pas
sageway the wagon men must come with
the box. Now and then one, more impa~
tient than the Others, would send a child
out into the street to inquire if the wagon
was in sight. Lena overheard one of the
children return and report that the wagon
could not yet he seen from either end OF
the bend. and then she said to Lizzie:
Come into my room. / have the price"
AS she passed Pietro she stopped, patted
the baby's hands and said: I'll send out
for some milk for Tommy"
Pietro smiled his delight. He had given
Joe all of his money, 10 cents, in the morn
ing, as a bride to stop beating Maggie. and
he sorrowed that he could not buy milk for
Poor ,Towmy! Poor Towmyr' he said.
TOMMY lik-a milk. good-a milk.
The two women went into the back room
on the floor below, and sent out one of
the children in the hall with s cents and
two bottles-5 cents for the gin and 3 cents
turned filled and a mouthful of gin, was
given to the messenger-he declined the
Pietro walked up and down the little
room with Tommy, up and down, up and
down, turning each time so that the baby
might not look into the next room where
the thing was in the corner. But Tommy
would not have seen. for his eyes were
looked down the gloomy stairs to see if
the women were coming with the milk. He
could hear them shouting songs in the
milk.
Poor Towmy, Poor .Towmy"' crooned
the old man. He took off the red handker-
chief from his throat and laid it over Tom
my's head, for it was chill in the room.
Pietro thought hard of some other way of
getting food Tommy could eat. Some of the
other women in the house might send out
for a '~penny's. worth of milk. he thought,
but he dreaded to ask them then. He knew
they were all excited and expectant over
the event of the coming of the wagon. and
would resent any suggestion of a task which
might cause them to miss a detail of the
ceremony.
After the wagon has come and gone.
then, if the agent don't come soon I'll ask"
thought Pietro, and he held the baby
closer to his rough coat, for the room
seecaoG more chill.
Suddenly the court was alive with ex-
element as a swarm OF children poured
They heralded the wagon men, and the
windows of the front and back tenements
were instantly crowded with women's
heads. There was a frantic rush up the
stairs of the back tenemen ahead Of the
wagon men, but this was roughly checked
by the policemen on guard.
The wagon had been delayed, and before
the men had gathered up what they came
for the agent arrived-the agent of the
society which reScues children from that
rescues by the law are IN jail or in the
morgue. Before the face of that agent the
children fled in terror and their mothers
hid them.
where is the child?' the agent asked
as he entered the loom.
The women pointed to Pietro, who
frightened, smiled, ~clinging closer to
The agent in a kindly manner took the
red handkerchief from off Tonnmy's head.
placed his ear to it's heart, and then Said
to the wagon men:
This goes with you, too. 1t is not a
case fo- me"
Pietro. felt of the baby's face. sasped
o h Gesu! Oh, Gesu. Poor Towmy.
Poor Towmy,' and the women walled, "Oh,
Madonna"