The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-12-14
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! .. FOX The YOUTHS 3. :
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glowing fingers sparks flew in every
direction. The fiend was floating mid
way between the floor and the ceiling;
il reached up its right hand. with the
fOrefinger extended. and touched the
ceiling. some plaster fell, and blue
smoke curled out from where the
finger had rested. Then the dend
reached down with his right foot unit!
the toes touched the carpet, fame and
smoke rose from the spot, and the room
was filed with the smell of burning
wool.
oh, don't do that" cried Tom.
Mother wouldn't like It. She'll be
very angry if the carpet is burned
The fiend laughed again, and again
the thunder rolled overhead.
Much ] care for your mother. or
your father either" he said. I'm not
afraid of them. but they're afraid of
me-
Tom realized what desperate Cob
lin he had 70 deal with, who was afraid
of neither his father nor his mother.
Il ear do a million things your
father cannot do" Dragged the iiend
with a malicious leer. L can go
thousand miles whiler your father is
taking a step"
The tiend saw. that frightened as
Tom was he did not believe this. for
Tom knew his father to be the great
est man in all the world, and that no
body could do the things which he
could; but he did not dare to contradict
a 1iend who was powerful enough to
set fire TO the house by merely touch
ing ii with his toe. and so he was
silent The fiend seemed to read Toms
thought. Tor he said:
oh. l See You don't believe thar. so
IL show you what l can do. I'll go
ten miles and back here before you
can wink and with Shrek the fiend
shot out of the room. There was an
instants crackie as he left, and in
another instant he was back grinning
at Tom.
There" he said. i've been ten miles
away; I touched a tree and ii blazed
up like a powder magazine. Coming
hack my foot rested for the hunuredth
part of d second on a barn, and now
look at it.
Tom gazed out OF the window, and
sure enough their neighbor's harm was
in flames. He shuddered as he recog-
niZed the power the goblin possessed.
nevertheless. ne was a brave little boy,
and he asked with some unconscious
contempt in his voice:
rs that all you can do2 To go about
burning peoples things is not very
nice. at least l don't think So
oh, no, that's not all 1 can do" said
the fiend, again laughing his thundery
times; you are as frightened as you can
be now"
Yes. know T am said Tom.
quaveringly. But IL l were as power
full as YOU are I wouldn't go about
frightening little boys. Anybody can
do that
.'Oh. no." shouted the fiend. appar-
emily not liking what Tom said. Il
haven't shown you yet what fright is:
what l have done is nothing to what
can do, and since you dare to talk to
me like that. I'll teach you a lesson"
he shrieked, and with that the fiend
split into a thousand pieces, with the
most awful crash that anyone ever
heard. The room seemed to fill with
flame. and the yell of the fiend was so
terrible that Tom threw up his arms to
cover his eyes. and fell fainting TO the
floor.
His father and mother We're hurrying
home through the rain. They saw the
light of the burning barn and it made
them very anxious. at last. coming in
sight of their own cottage. they were
horrliied TO see flames breaking
through the roof: the mother gave a
cry Of despair as they both pressed for
ward, realizing that their only son was
locked up in the burning house. With
out waiting for the key the father put
his shoulder 10 the door and forced ii
open, for he was a very strong man.
The house was filed with smoke and
he had great difficulty in making his
way to the small parlor. where by the
light of the flames he saw his little boy
lying on the carpet, his head resting on
his arm.
The father quickly raised the in
sensible child in his arms The cold
rain splashing on his face quickly re-
vived him. and he was soon able to tell
his parents what he had seen, and what
the fiend had said to him. They
looked one at the other and the mother
began to weep. She was afraid their
little boy had lost his mind, but that
turned out to be not the case, for when |
Tom grew up he became one of the /
most famous men of the day. His name
all over the world. He was a
great electrician. invented many use
full things. and the man who invents-
useful articles gathers wealth, so Tom
was rich, rejoicing in having money
because he had a boy of his own to
whom he could give advantages he had !
not himself possessed when he was
young.
When Tom the second was the same |
time of the lightning fiend's visit, his !
father took him on his knee and told !
him the story that I have set down |
Young Tom was greatly interested and |
* /