The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1897-02-04
THROUGH A WINDOW.

man had gathered about rude tables for .
few social words bufoe retiring, for even
men who arein hopeiessly hard LUCK ars
wont to CRAFTY their grcgarious instinots
They were telling ths.s life stories. Some
Of these tales were obviously untrue. Joe
Rogers voice bad the ring Of sincerity.
II don't blame Katie for leaving me, I"
he said. "At least wouldn't II 1 didn't
know that man had persuaded her to give
me up. He oourted her before we were
married. but he had courted long time,
and she had gotused to seeing him around
just as she was to seeing the pump In the
yard and the front gate. came to town
later and took her fancy somehow, though
i wasn't the solid man the other fellow
was. had foated too long and got too
much like the water soaked driftwood that
has been cast on the bank. But she took
to me, and l bestowed upon her the one
honest affection of my life. / surprised
myself by the way / stuck towork after
we were married, and when the baby was
born was as proud and happy as king.
i was toe happy, guess for you've got to
takea good deal Of vinegar with your sugar
to make the sugar last, find. The trou-
BILE came with the failure Of the house
worked for. ! tried In vain to get other
work after the concern broke up. We lived
In village, and / thought II went to q
city could get something to do. I kissed
the wife and baby, and thought I'd send
for them sure In a month or two, but it's
been two years now and here am" He
looked at the rude tables and the flicker
Ing lights that served only to emphasize
the darkness. The stalwart mans face
took on adeeper moodiness. The weazened
old man opposite him asked In q weak,
little voice, "An didn't they wait for you,
Joeg'
"She didn't" said the stalwart man.
"she wrote me kind letters at first and
tried to cheer me when / complained of
not Ending anything to do, bl5 after six
months they changed, and after awhile
there were no more, kept on hunting
employment and trying TO keep out of bad
COMPANY until n MOI lee that she was going
to bring suit for divorce on grounds Of
descrtion and failure to support was served
on me. After that I didn't care and never
have since very much-at least not about
her But don't mind telling you, boys
that cried for the child Many night
I've dreamed felt his little arms about
my neck, and when 1 awoke and missed
him I've cried like child. heard three
months ago that my wife had married the
man that had courted her first. l didn't
much blame Ter, but hated to let him
rule my little one. 1t nearly drove me
crazy.
"1've been in hard luck ever since l lost
my job in thNt little town in Ohio. I've
tried hard TO get on my feet. You know
how it Is. But here am. Along about
week before Christmas couldn't stand 10
any longer felt that ! must see that kid.
! couldn't have raised SIS TO save my life.
But ] haven't been beating around this
coantiy for nothing, and I got over to
Ohio on II side door Pullman without much
trouble
There WASH t any danger Of being rec
ognized In the town where had spent the
happiest year and half of my life When
] was there, was well dressed and acted
as though the earth and the fullness there
of were mine. Now l go at a different
gait, and | didn't take the trouble to pull
my old hat over my face. The poor clothes
would discourage any interest So they
did passed some old neighbors on the
street, but they didn't give me glance.
You may imagine that hadn't light
heart that Christmas eve 1t wasn't the
sort Of II return l had thought about all
DAY and dreamed about at night, but !
braced up for l had made up my mind
that would see the baby They cOnldnt
deny me that.
II made straight for the house of the
man my wife had married. 1t was cot.
tage set back from the street little,
among evergreen trees. 1t was a better
home than ever could have provided for
them. My heart softened little toward
my wife as opened the gate. One could
not blame her, after ALL She was good
woman, but light one, one Of those who
never get beneath the surface of things.
She may have believed that wasn't doing
my level best to get something together
for the baby and her, though Go6knows /
did. My hunger was not for her, but the
baby.
"A light shOne from one of the side win
dows. l made my way around to the tree
that cast its shadow on the window. A
terrible thought came to me as put out
my hand TO lean against the tree 1t had
never seemed to me that the baby could be
dead. What if it We're? ] felt as though
some one had struck me Il fearful blow.
ltwoS so sudden and so strong that stag.
grr"d and gripped the tree harder Then !
got courage 10 look at the window
~ boy stood with his back to me He
was Watching the woman, once my wife,
who vas clearing the table. She spoke to
him, and as she leaned over him / caught
sight of her face, changed very little since
! met her first, three years ago Women
like hat get few lines on their faces. They
cam suffer much. The boy still stood
with hiscnrly, yellow poll toward the win.
dow. | remember thinking in stunned
kind of way that all the sunshine of my
life was imprisoned in that little head.
prayed for the first time in my life,sand
God answered my prayer The little fel-
low turned around and pressed his rosy
Incc to the window. 1t was my boy, bigger
and stronger and Older than when kissed
him Eoodby two years ago 1t was the
same sweet baby face and he was smiling.
He must have discerned some shape in
the darkness, for he puckered his little
lips into suppressed OH His mother
came to the window and drew down the
shade. 1t was the second time she had
shut out all the light from my life That
was all boys. l felt for minute that
would cut my throat and let them find
my body on their doorstep for Christmas
present Then it came to me that ought
to come bac't 10 St. Louis A man has
promised NE work us soon as the winter Is
over thought l would wait for It, for,
fellows, don't want that boy to be any
more ashamed Of his father than can
help when he grows up. Good night"
He climbed the rough board stairs to his
bunk, the hopeless, battered wrecks look.
ing after him. The weakened old man
sighed. Poor deyill' he said.-St. Louis
Republic.