Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1896-01-02
have been herr. hope 'tviIl always
be So"

IuuCy kOOub uuO JuIyuuCoC uOvcAlkca
was In his private Office when hiI
daughter reached his place Of bust
ness. A ragged woman, with child
In her arms, was standing outside hi
office door In conference with clerk.
He cannot be SEEM" the clerk wa
saying, 80 you'd better go away"
"Why can't he be seenw interposet
Mildred's fresh. clear voice, with ii,
wilful ring. "Of course he can be seen
saw him through the window; h
isn't busy bit-come on" to the wo
man, I'LL take you in" And suitini
the action to the word she opened tn,
door and introduced herself and hel
poverty-stricken companions to hel
fathers notice.
The clerk shrugged his shoulders.
I'D rather 1t was she than me-" III
said, taking beggars in there" and
then he went about his business.
There was n mixture of emotions or
the merchants face; pleasure Mt his
daughters presence and annoyance a,
the sight Of her companions, but ht
rose to the occasion with the air Of one
who was in the habit Of doing his
duty.
what do you want, my good wO
man?' he asked the wretched-loOkine
creature before him.
Il want help, sir"
"But don't you know that can't help
everybody; even If gave away all I've
got" he demonstrated. But why
don't you put down that heavy child
and not carry herr"
"She can't walk. sir; she.is paralyzed
on one side.'
There was hopeless, quiet despair
in her tones and face, something diff
ferent in her manner from that OF a
professional mendicant. 1t was this
difference and the sudden interest in
AIildred's eyes that made the rich man
push chair to the woman and bid her
seat herself and her burden.
"Why did you come to me?" he in
CURED. "and where is the father OF
your child?"
Something like a swift fash of pain
passed over her set features as she
replied to his second question first.
MY husband" she said, with almost
imperceptible emphasis. died four
years ago, and L came to you. sir. be-
cause he was an Englishman, and l
heard that you were born in London
yourself. / canot work, because / have
no one to take care of the child. and
she is helpless. So we have sunk down
to what we are. We can't die. it seems.
sir. and we must beg or starve; and I
can't let the child starve, if begging
will feed her."
There are chldren's hospitals" he
said. why don't you go to one Of
them?"
II have tried them. but they will
not take her except for a few weeks at
Il time. as she is incurable. and five
weeks ago they sent her back to me-
and since then I've not been able to
work OH account of carrying her about
with me-"
did you ask the city for help?"
Eyes, sir; 1 stood for three days out
side the Mayors door. but could not
get to him, and so I thought I'd try
YOU"
All this time the pale little creature
in her arms had sat with her big bright
eyes fastened on sample doll that
lay on the merchants desk. A seven
year-old child, with the developed in
tellect of one of three years, she was
but baby i'm her speech and thoughts.
She looked old. and she was unnatur-
ally quiet. You could not imagine her
crying. even for hunger and cold, and
yet you could only treat her as an in
FAINT. AS her mother ceased speaking.
she held out her arms rapturousH
towards the doll
OH she said. with a sigh of inef-
fable delight. 1.-THE pretty baby, the
pretty, pretty babyr'
An impulse that he did not stop to
analyZe made the merchant pick up the
plaything and place it in the crippled
arms. A food of happiness fairly del
uged the wizened little face.
For me!'' she almost screamed in
her nervous delight, "for me-"
u. lOt .Ou. nC WIlllt IL SuS-
picious moisture clouded his eyes; then
pulling himself up, as 1t were. to the
of life, he handed the
mother bill.
where do you live?" he asked, land
what is your name?" And then, as If
afraid that he had let his emotional
nature get ahead Of his business sense,
he added. "but would you work If you
could?"
God knows I would. sir" she said.
"and / am very thankful for this. L
live in Thatcher's tenement, on Water
street, now, and I am Mary Wilkin-
SON."
There were no profuse God bless
yous" as she left the Office but across
the white despair of the womans
there had broken an ir-
radiation of light as the mother looked
Mt the happy face of her crippled
eiild. who had forgotten all of her
hunger and cold in the blissful pos
session of the pretty. pretty baby"
Father" asked Mildred, as the door
closed. "are there many such in the
world?"
Thousands such, child; we have beg
gars all day long"
'Such beggars as these" she per-
sisted. "who would work IL they could;
people without any chances?"
ooh, yes, yes" a little impatiently,
said the merchant, for he felt that he
had alraaIy wasted too puoh time
on the subject, not to mention having