The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-06-06
4 MIsF1r IN TIE rEvDER1o1N.
roor Preparation Of n YounE Mau for late
Hours and Its Results.

FoNtb " III SUI
Tho nighthawks know him and so do the POI
licemen In the precinct. Tho walters in the all
night restaurants learned to know him first, and
they have enjoyed his acquaintance probably
more than any OF the others in the curious circle
OF those no called his friends. All of them have
prontcd by his acquaintance, and maybe tho
walters have Jared better. II the scarfpins. 80
bills, and rings that have 1oated away from him
TO all sorts OF aforementioned people could DO
traced there might DO found among these benc-
iicinric9 persons who received even more than
the walters from his Irrational bounty. But II
wns the steady, nightly flow of his bounty that
brought profit most to the walters.
Io came into the heart Of the town suddenly,
but not from any remote point. No distant
country village sent him, nor did no hail from
nm ambitions Western town. He came from
Brooklyn. But he splnshcd into the Tcndcrloin
with the manner OF n church deacon and the mp
pcarance of a country divinity student. His
appearance never changed much. although his
manner did. Ho remained as serious looking
and he spoke with tho sanio gravity and embar-
These may have been natural fca-
lures. but there had been in his life plenty Of
influences that might have strengthened them
in habit. He soon foil into n pace that might
have discouraged n veteran of the Tenderloin.
But he showed. in = way that gained him popu-
larity, how bad his preparation Ind been.
Going to prayer meeting regularly until he
wns almost 80 was never tho way to train any
man for the Tenderloin. Rut he spent many Of
his evenings in n small Brooklyn church. 1t was
n Protestant body. where all who came regularly
were likely to pray before the rest of the regu-
lar Christians. and he often led them in meeting.
From the church to his homo was but q short
distance, short enough even for the docrcpit old
woman who was his companion to walk slowly
along with him, leaning on his arm. She was his
grandmother, and, besides tho servant who at
tended Thorn, there was not n soul in the drab
wooden house, which was one of a long row, and
differed from its ncighbors only in the fact
that 1t was n little stiller and quieter
than even tho dullest OF them. There
were many years Of ~this-years in which the old
woman, the prayer.meetings, and the drab
house were the limits of his life. 1t was no won
der that he grew stupid. That he was dull in
school and hopelessly deficient when an appli-
cant for admission to college WAS something that
neither the old lady nor the other old people in
the church, nor. for that matter. the Snug. scri-
ous-looking young ones ever knew. They all
looked upon him as a very pious p~crson-uuite
as pious as his grandmother. which, in view of
his greater facilities for evil, was rather sur
prising. But nothing surprised the persons who
prayed in that basement on Wednesday nights
and went 10 church upstairs on Sundays. Emo
ton was pitched there in a minor tone that
never varied.
They may be surprised when they hear about
him now-if they ever do. Nobody ever sup
posed during all those years OF prayer. at the
% qnie i hease eai that som se piSn r SnH s, Was for I'm ihs
itselfin that stupid head. He looked as dull and
patient, and changed very little from one year
to another. Nobody ever came to see him. He
was never known to spend any part of n com.
Portable income that had fallen to him through
1ne a9S he anne al ms to p" ehnrsh al slo mu,' on nsp %ednes shat
night one Of the women whispered;
1t was true. That night the preacher prayed
for the old lady. and so did her grandson. She
died th nf, nn6t dq Esr I f1S1c all the E w rsSI ibs ,s church ,fnls
that her grandson ever put foot in the church.
The -drab house was rented, and as he moved
likely to hear of him than II he had moved West.
But the walters, the nighthawks. and the po-
licemcn began TO know him then, and 10 this day
they retain their old acquaintance. Something
OF the former feryor has departed. for he has
that Mss likely to t's spstter amy A. hand IAN iG reached Ui %po out
to catch it is not so liberal as it was. There is
still some OF it, for the grandmother died rich,
and all that he had went in only one way.
Walters tell still OF the men or women picked w
anywhere who sat at table with him. ate the
pensive beverages. They have seen him
take an expensive pin from his scar
a take IT si and they can an r%emembs h w%o ofl ~oq he
emptticd a pocketoook OF every bill it contained
by anybody connected with the stage. When a
mar said he was an actor. or when n woman
claimed 10 be an actress. there was no end TO hi,
liberality. He never talked or smiled. but sal
with the g!um look that years OF tho drai
wooden house and the prayer meetings had
painted on his face; When his money was gone
he would often stalk out of the place, mutterinl
10 himself. while tho group he had left behind
him laughed if he was known, or wondered. if Fl
were the first night OF their meeting.
The suppers arc fewer, the wine scarcer. ant
the jcwelry quite used up. He may still be seer
rushing through the street morning and nigh
Of n gait which is almost n run. Sometimes h,
il smiling to himself. and sometimes there is
frown on his commonplace, dull features. Ru'
he is always talking to himself. If it is late a
night and he is. yelling instead Of talking, tn,
policemen let him continue unmolestcd. for h,
never does any harm. He can raise his voice II
restaurants and barrooms, whore every body els'
must be still, for he IL known in them all. and 1
seems to be such = short time now that there
no use in interfering with him.. He talks on tn,
great topics of the day-politics.w war. and bust
ness. The fact that he talks chiefly TO himsel
does not depress him, for even TO himself h,
was never heard TO mention the grandmother
the wooden house, or the prayer meeting.
IrU-Wrv Nr ~ -n