The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1898-02-17

Walkeu out aSaln-aSk1ng MIN as we
went out at the door ''if he would let
us set on the fence and watch it rain?''
! The light shone brightly in the shop
windows, and there were sounds of
music, revelry and mirth at one of the
houses we passed, but the rain damp
ened our spirits for enjoyment, so we
hurried out of the town seeking for
the sheltering roof of some old barn.
The night was quite dark and the
rain added to the gloom, but a heavy
shadow near the road soon showed
that we had found what we wanted.
We stripped off most of our clothing
after we had found our way into
the barnard lay down on the hay
and listened to the pattering of the
rain on the roof; doubly musical to
us row sinee-we had found shelter
from its pitiless drip. Towards morn
ing we put on our clothes and being
tired, buried ourselves for a good
! long snooZe. We were wakened early
by the barking of dog-and we could
hear a man forking hay into the
horses. The dog kept up a furious
barking and the man would urge him
on with Rats, Jack! Sick m Jackr'
Jack would no doubt have routed the
rats could he have gotten into the
NOV where we lay. In little while
the man went out calling to his dog:
Come on, Jack, let's go to breakfast
| The rats would have liked to have
gone to breakfast too, bat we were
afraid to show ourselves. We got
down out Of the NOV, looking out at
the door to see if the coast was clear,
we made a break for the road shouting
Rats, Jack! Catch 'em, jack" as
man came out of the house just as we
reached the road.
! We had to do without breakfast but
noon brought us under the motherly
care of a gray-haired, kindly-faced
| grandmother who lived with her son
/ in great brick house. There was
4 no one at home but the old lady and
! a young girl of about IA. To my plea
for something to eat the kind old lady
said: Certainly, certainly, no one is
ever turned away from my door"
She took us in the house and had the
| girl show us to the wash room, where
we found water and towels for good
clean up. She wasn't content to hand
us out slices of bread and pieces of
pie, but made us sit down in a cool
! room while the girl set the table in
the dining room with the best that
the house could afford. To this day
the memory of that old woman's kind
ness fingers in my heart like the balm
ofsome precious ointment that soothes
the broken spirit to sweetest rest. No
mother ever gave better words of
counsel than that sainted spirit did
to us poor wandering boys. Did we
want home?-she would give us one
with her son. What dinner awaited
us when the sweet faced girl told her
grandmother everything was ready.
But why linger over things that be-
long to the dim regions of a shadowy
past. The dear old heart is with the
saints, | trust-and the sweet faced
girl, if living deserves all the happi-
ness that life can bring.
Along in the afternoon we came to
fine two-story house, with an ample
yard in front filled with ornamental
trees and shrubbery. We opened the
gate without hesitation and walked
up the well graveled walk knocked at
the front door, but no response. We
waited awhile at the door-after ham
mering lustily-then walked around
the house looking for a side door.
There was an extension in the rear,
with double porch, the ground floor
being paved with stone. We knocked
at the door but all was silent within.
There was an endless profusion of
hunting and fishing outfits hanging
around under the lower porch, and
our mouths watered with the thought
of cold lunch of fried fish. We tried
the door but it was securely fastened,
The house dog was lying on the trap
door of an outside cellar way, under
the porch, but he manifested no dispo.
ton to modest us. We made bold
enough to go into the cellar, hoping
to find something to eat. The cellar
was large and well kept, but did not
find anything in the provision line
except two or three sealed quart tin
cans in "a box in a corner of the eel
lar. We found an inside stairway
leading up into the dining room. We
lost no time in skipping the dancers
to the floor above where we found the
table set and covered with dirty dishes
of the households last meal. What a
hungry set they must have been;there
was not a crumb of anything on the
table, not even grain of sugar in the
sugar bowl. We searched the cup