The evening times., 1896-01-14

|
out from them something of the nature
OF the place, but to most OF my questions
tney preserved stolid silence. / might
as wei have talked to a brick wall. Fol
instance, l asked how long they were al.
| lowed to stay there with their children
and though l looked at both the women, and
they looked at me. received no response.
/ wondered IL they were deaf.
The woman who was nourishipg her
| babe laid 1t In one OF the cribs and went
| out TO attend to other duties. 1t stirred
| and cried. and l went and sat by it and
| rocked 1t to sleep. II was wee little
mite of six weeks. and its mother was an
honest but hard-lOoking woman. OF some
| 35 years The other woman was pale and
| enemic looking, and as sour in the face as
! though her daily beverage was vinegar
] She. too, went out. and rocked the baby
| into quictness and took up another on my
| knee, while my three-year-old friend came
and balanced herself on my rocker. and the
| other little girl again sat soberly down in
| front of me. i trotted the boy to Ban
bury Cross. to the infinite amusement Of
the little girls, ami the baby, too, and
racketl my brain for nursery rh yfnes.
We weren't left alone long Another
| mother soon came in in Il whirIwind OF
impetuosity and caught up q little fellow
who had been sitting ON the floor with his
head laid down in front OF him. She in
uuiRtb Ill riOt OI cflueuTIHents. ana the
child that had been patiently quiet be-
came all ut once excitement u nj delight.
1t was very touching sight. The mother
fed the child bread and milk from a cup
she brought in with her, and another baby
creeping up for food she ordered ii away
I'm not going to feed you: you wait tel
your mother comes. Tharsthe way the sore
mouth got all over the house. You go
away
HER PATHETIC REPLY.
/ watched her awhile. and then asked IL
the work was very hard in the house. She
looked al me in surprise for a minute with
out answering. and then shrugged her shoul-
ders. and. looking again at her baby. said
Work is hard everywhere, ism it, baby?
Work is work.
l seemed to he utterly unable TO find out
anything Another mother came in and
caught up her child to her breast and sat
down near me. She was rather pleasanier
than the others. and proffered the informa-
ton that her father had been to see her.
She hugged the baby rapturously. and
hung over il with a broodins tenderness
which / had not noticed i'll the others.
Then l observed that this little fellow was
the one that had tried to play with i'll the
first instance.
Yes, my father came to see me- she
went on in the intervals OF kissing her
child, .'and he has forgiven me and says
] can come home. But l can't take my
baby" She lowered her face over her
child. Il have got to adopt him out"
Yes: you'll adopt him out. Look at the
way you 90 wild over him now and can't
tend to your work" And the other woman
laughed a trifle bitterly. But the little
mother only half smiled and half cried and
crooned over the baby.
The situation was full of the pathos of
a roma nee. ] felt sure there was a ro-
nance back OF it. A story of tragic moment
was back OF every one of those children,
frozen up in the complete reserve of each
woman. through which could not break.
The thing that could not understand was
why there should be bitterness among
them. The mother OF the babe in the
crib came back and stood for moment
to observe that ! WAS lulling her child by
rocking il.
isn't this a beautiful little boy" l said
to her. indicating the little one on my knee
Il don I see anything so very beautiful
about him. she replied, with the same hard
emphasis tlat she had used before.
Don't you? Why. look at his eyes, and
his forehead and his rosy little mouth
For reply she said one word. 'Humph.'
ALONE IN THE NURSERY.
When the dinner bell sounded through the
house was alone in the nursery and decided
to remain with the babies until re-
lieved OF my charge. The devoted little
mother ran in and said / had better go down
il / wanted dinner; that she was going to
stay there with her baby.
/ went downstairs To the basement. Din
ner was served in the kitchen, where
and other evidences of the prog
ress of laundry work Were about Mrs
Fleck was seated at the head of the ia BILE,
and fbp loup hoard was surrounded with
girls. Not one Of them seemed Ia be Of
any degree of Intelligence, though many OF
them were pretty. They did not wear
regulat tion costume. They seemed to all
be girls in trouble.
The dinner that was served was of corned
beef and cabbage and turnips. There was
good bread. but no butter. aud there was
no coffee or tea. The meal progressed in