The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-08-02

a moment and wouldn't answer. but then
the tears began to roll down her bruised.
discolored cheeks. and she confessed that
she idn't have enough food to give the
baby. She worked hard. but her husband
drank and took every cent she made and
beat her every day into the bargain. She
was fond of the brute in spite of all that,
and told me a long story about the heav-
emily nature the fellow had before he be
gan to drink so hard. l told her she ought
to 20 to court inc complain of him. but
she wouldn't listen to that and abused
me roundly for advising a wife to turn
against her man.
FINALLY ] told her / would give her a
quart of milk every day. ] wouldn't give
her the money. because I didn't covet the
privilege of buying bad whiskey for her
husband; but l would pay the nearest
milk depot to supply her with a quart a
day. That would feed the baby and leave
a little for little Joe. who didn't look
quite as well as he did when the two first
began calling on me. After that I didn't
hear any more about the case for a week
or two. Then my friends turned up again.
The baby looked worse than ever. and
the woman's face was a patchwork in
blue and green; but little Joe was quite
rosy. l didn't understand. The baby was
in a bad condition and | did what | could
for IL. After l left my office I went down
to the milk depot. The man said my wo-
maj n0u her quart OF MIX every udN.
81 puzzled over the thing that night.
The next morning the trio were at my
office. The baby's blue eyelids were
closed and | thought at first that IL was
not breathing. but found a faint fiutter.
j couldn't see any reason for such a state
of things. so once more / led the wo-
man into my private Office and shut the
door. Then | said:
Nov, look here, There's a mystery
about thi. and you've got to tell me what
is the matter. That baby's starving to
death and l want to know what you've
done with the milk
1.-THE woman looked scared and turned
pale between bruises. Then the she gave a
sort Of wall and jumped up, still holding
the baby.
"'No. the baby didn't have the milk.
she said i'm a frantic sort of way. i gave
it to little Joe. There wasn't enough TO
feed them both and Joe began to get sick
and | loved him better than | did the
baby. ] amt had a crust to eat myself,
but I couldn't let Joe die. The baby's only
a girl, and if she does live she'll be un-
happy like me. and I don't love her like
j do Joe. ] thought both of them were go
ing to die, and i couldn't live without Joe.
so | gave him the milk and just let the
baby have a little. May be you think /
amt suffered watching the baby. but |
couldn't spare Joe. Some day he'll be a
man, and I'll be proud of him. A man can
do anything. but a girl would do Just
what I've done. Joe shan't die
She was screaming the words out and
seemed almost crazy. The thing was aw-
full; Il made me feel heartsick.
why, you IDIOT l said. Why didn't
you tell me? I'd have looked out for Joe,
too
Just then the baby opened its eyes
great. uncanny. weird eyes in the tiny
face. 1t stared at me In a miserable way
that made my heart come into my throat.
Then all the light died out of the eyes,
but they still stared.
'"There was no use saying anything
more to the mother. She sat down and
looked at the baby I'm a quiet. TUNE
way. Then she reached out and put one
arm around little Joe and held him tight.
I told her | would keep on paying for the
milk as long as she wanted IL, and she
and Joe and the baby went home.
Il never saw them again. when ] went
to the house they had moved and no one
seemed TO know where they had gone.
Joe's the fellow who has just murdered a
man i'm a Bowery saloon. ! wonder what
the girl would have been? It's a queer
world