The Atlanta constitution. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1885-19??, 1898-09-26
SARGE PLUNKETT.
Another Chapter on the "Hork Day"
for the 0rphanase.
A STORY FOR THE CHILDREN
The Importance of Small Things
in the Matters of
Life.
For The Constitution,

/
"And grains of sand makes the earth
! added another.
"And big trees from little acorns" said
| Il smaller one still
This put us all in a trend of thought
| which led to the discussion of small mat
tiers and things. and to their results erin
| er for good or for evil Naturally TINS
! got Brown to discoursing upon his IA
| Vorite hobby
'"rhe price of drink" he said, more to
| himself than his company.
"A small matter-very small" he went
| on In his dreamy way. without seeming 10
! speak to any one in particular.
And yet" seeming to arouse hlmSeil
! from his dreamy condition. land yet II
! all the drinkers Of Georgia would unite III
| denying themselves of just one dflhk-
! lust one-on next Saturday. ana turn inc
| price into q fund for this work Day
! what a sum it would be for the orphan
! agc-tt would mean thousands. IL "oulu
! put a hundred thousand chidreh at "oih
on that day. 49,,
| ''Whv not apply the same to any other
| article of common use suggested lot
| am sick and tired of hearing All the GYMS
! of the land placed at the door OF WHISKY ,
! and ! knew that there was Wne'o "s '
| friend would land
! ..WeI " he said slowly "thc price of one
! drinl, IS such a small matter that 1T natu-
! rally occurred to me- ana theh' dS
/ studied upon it 1 was almost ",'l'"-
! founded at the amount 1t would make IL
! all drinkers would derry themselves Jnst
! one drink and devote it as Sn@geSteo-l'
could apply to many other Things JUST %
| we'll" -,.,,,
NV old friend spoke these words 50 SLOW
! " and solemnly that | saw ne was Sett'nE
! the sympathy of the crowd and nave
discovered that l must hustle 1ny7l, u
won't he in it in the matter Of popularity
i
II could tell you little story on t"'
! price of a drink that, when / had imShed'
| I Will be bound you would never asie'
! that it was such small matter
| The story, the story SAID the cn W.
| dren. and Brown looked grum. l"r H0
| knew he was gone. | began:
'TTnder the trees in tho'forh OF the ro"u9
used m stand a comfortable house with
all the usual outhouses of country nome
| I know there is nothing there now, hot
| even a sign, save a bulge in the Erou"H
where the chimneyS used 10 stand an"
| the mound grown over with grass flght az
tine fork where the forge Of the PACK
e,litt ueoJ TO be for my story IS OF
hIacksnIth His shop was here, MS chll-
! dron Dlaved under these great trees. MS
houscs stood a little back and there he
had as good a woman for a Wlie as ever
was known. He had been Il "rlhNel ouc'
"A hard drluker-but he had quit, his
home had grown prosperous, his wife had
GROWN cheerful and two as sweet chlIdreh
as YOU ever saw blessed bis life and give
him a promise for the future.
''Ijttle Tom was the boy, and so good
he was that he became the pet Of All the
neoDlc who came and went about the shop.
"W7hue this boy was quite small, yet
he was not small but what he could re-
member well the drinking sprees his faith
err used to have and of the misery ana
l1ovcrty IS brought his home.
Passing hastily to arrive at the story 1t
is sufficient to say that Little Tom was
ALWAYS along whenever his father went
into the village He was along on TINS
occasion. and sit by his father as he pulled
the lines over as good a team as there was
about They had been to the village, ana
were well on their way back home when,
TO the horror of Tom his father pulled
the horses to the right and refined up in
front of a 'doggery,' then common i'll
many sections.
.,apa. please don't stop mere pleaded
little Tom ptifuIy; but before he had
time for an answer his father had dropped
the lines into his hands and ut one bound
landed on the ground, remarkinG
"TIold just a minute-juat minute and
into the doggcry he stepped
THE blacksmith was a iov,al, good-heart-
cd fellow, and asked those inside to take
a drink with him.
Just one drink, boys he said. and
quick about it. for little Tom IS holding
the team outside and they're a little wild
one drink, just one, and quick about it,
1T was Il matter of Il short time for the
crowd to fill their glasses, but just as
they had drank drunken fellow stag
gered up from a corner and insisted that
he had been insuIted by not being invited
to- drink lie would take no excuse, and
quicker than I coald tell it there was
general row in the doggery, a man lay
dead upon the floor, pistol had been fired
the horses outside had ran away and lit
tie Tom lay dead among the rubbish OF
a wagon by tree up the road!
"They buried poor little Tom but the
story does not end there-I wish it did.
The coroner's jury placed the killing at
the doggery upon the blacksmith. ana
called it murder. I have no desire to go
through all the details. Suffice it to say
that the blacksmith was found guilty
with a recommendation to mercy, and went
to the coal mines for twenty years.
"Thc story does not end here-l wish 1t
did The expenses of the trial stripped the
backsmth's home OF everything amt left
the poor mother and daughter in destitute
circumstances, and they had to go out into
the world to procure living.
'The story does not end here-T wish It
did The poor mother grew weaker and
weaker until at last she dled; ana mere !
might end the story, but"
What became Of the little girl?' asked
all the children, anXiOusly.
"SEe was taken into an orphans home
i don't know as It was this one here at
Decatur but when I told this story some
years ago ! heard of her. and she had
been cared for and had grown to be a
sweet mother and a good wife somewhere
in North Carolina.
"But the story does not end here. Long
wears after the incidents related, me and
my wife and Brown and his wife, We're
sitting on the porch at home and we saw
a moor lettering man approaching the gate
and h, looked al us if there was some
thing he would like very much to know.
The women thought it was some crazy
tramp. but me and Brown went down to
where he was, and law and behold! there
before us vas
THE blacksmith!
"Uc looked at us in dazed kind of way
and then turned and wabbled away NUT
terinG RS he went:
""The price of drink-the price of
drink" "
Great results come from very small
causes sometimes. ] DO hope that every
reader of these letters will do something
for the orphanage at Decatur on next Sat