The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1897-08-19
JACkIJs BURGLAR

OILY seemed "a heisttsb lbs dsrE nsss 80
increase the ui,ery Of the pl,oo, II "a
email. s3nIs room. With DO furniture, e
eepi couple ot broken chsifs grin,
ushle aud broken psekins case sod
seemed place scarcely o. tor hshiItioa
Yet cd the q por vere three castse sifs'
mstire.ses sod 90 ore Of them, 9Th bi
seafv itcc tsrel ar 30 the dismsl sk,
|Hsht ab We. lsy boy He vss only
'su.all bgy. bat his isos ~ss like an olt
macs .ud bis lmbs Wsrs strnnken sps
isaried asG tlia BE lay looking ~
iuto the isss OF msn who bent over him
/ shall he all night by and by, dad, b,
said, 10 aweAk voice. ] shall be al rlsh
ss soon IS the sun creeps ups bit and
can get ont Don worry, dsd. p'fsp,
/ shsIl be able to do something soon
P'rsps could make tome boxes or som'
thing II could sii up bit.
T~o big tears ooursed down the mac /,
cheek snd fell on ,h, boys hand HI
turned sway hurriedIy snd began w'lk ~
to and fro eeross the ssrret,
Imust get tue doctor to you somehow,
be- said, more to bimseIi than the boy on
the bed, n fetch him by force be must
come It's no good putting it of any
longer,
No no. said the boy, with the thought
iulness OF an old man; wait sbit. ! msy
be oil night tomorrow.
The msn plunged bic hand into his
pocket and sighed With two pence be
tween him and starvation, what was the
use OF fetching doctor who would order
eggs and milk for this boy2 What was
the use Of anything except to sit snd stare
at the skyIight and sts've'
John Eudleton was 4 man who had once
been in good position, Only year ago
he had believed himself to be out Of reach
Of want; bot misfortune bad oyertsken
him, his bank had lost money in a hun
dred different ways, i'll luck bad followed
him and be had fallen from bad TO worse.
until he st last found himself. with his 10
Year old son. 10 sn East Fad slum, penni
less heart sick, hopeless. with sickness
overtsking them, with no prospect Of any
thing better than hand to mouth exist
ence aud with a crimnsI Jail bird "a
common co lviot for a companion.
John Endeton was proud man. 1t
was bis pride perhaps, that had led Lim
TO refuse good berths that be would have
been thankful for nov, and be hsted the
man who shared their gsrret. II be could
have afforded It'll he could only have
made sure of the necessary pence-he
would have rented the entire room in order
TO keep his boy from contact with the
mao; bat be had reached such hopeless
state OF his existence that he was thankful
# he found himself able TO provide for one
decent meal day and be was Obliged to
tolerate him, although bis very presence
seemed poison. He hated bis coarse ways.
bis bad face, his evil breath and the
thought that he was within almost yard
Of his son made him shudder.
Jem Btooker was the leader oia gang.
There was no better known criminal 10
the whole OF London than be and hs was
proud Of his reputstion, proud OF bis wick
edness and proud even OF the time he had
done 10 Portland ? icon. He was foul
mouthed, bad tempered and had been con
victed OF uumberless crimes; but for some
strange reason little Jackie Endleton inter
ested him. #...
In the early morning, when be staggered |
up 10 the garrel half drunk, the sight OF
the thin, White face on the dirty mattress
sobered him. The touch OF the boys
hand dragged back bis memory through
a thousand byways to the fresh country
where, when be was small lad, he had |
played with his sister in green fields un
der blue skies. Something in the boys |
eyes recalled bis mother, something, too,
in The droop Of the lit le lips reminded
him OF hers ss hs had seen them lsst
wh,n she had been dying With shame for
her son And the big gsunt man, whose
heart ras black with crime. who had re
sisted the overtores OF missionsnas and
sneered at prison chaplaius, found him
self suddenly overcome by 10 year old |
boy who was dying OF starvation in q mis-
cr.ble garret He scoisd and swore al
himse ( as he did it, bat it becsmeB reRu |
lar thing fer him to bring oranges aud
sometimes grapes on bic return to the gar
rel at night
And Joon Endletou hated it, he resent
81 ii fercely aud shrsnk back when Jem
Brooker approached the bed and looked
down at Jsokie's face.
Az the winter passed TO The spring
J sokie seemed to grow wesktr instead Of
stronger, aud At Isst, With solitary sbJl
liug in bis pocket. John Eodeton set oil
10 desperation for = doctor II snything
happened TO the boy be would have moth
ing 10 live for and the thought seemed TO
choke him. But be knocked at the doc
tors door without sucsess. The doctor
was busy. too busy TO attend to him un
Ill night aud when night came he had for
gotten sll about It snd Jsckie lay in .
half fever, moaning aud tossing tsstlessly
from fiie 20 side, While EadletUu sat over
him With rage st bis beart.
WAen toward m0rDiag. Jam mouu,ed
the cysakiag stairs 10 Lis usual ball drunk
20 fubion and staggered Toto the sarret,
be roau3 E1dleton sitting by the side Of
the mattress ui,h hi, isce 10 bis hands.
A pale moon ser shalt Of hight on the
.lesrias boys face sbd IL looted white