The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1899-07-12

4
with smile.
The boys were waiting for a cable
car To pass and for a policeman 10 pass
around the corner
Suppose" whispered John Swan,
suppose he/should get run down and
killed. like Jack was"
wave OF CONSERVATION moved the
crowd. Nobody had thought of that.
But Bill broke the spell OF indecision
| by spaSmodic and determined attempt
TO escape. He understood now what the
kids were up to.
NO you don't" cried Harold Brown,
/ sitting down hard on his head. You re
I going to see how you Hike it yourself"
Him run over and killed." cried
| Connie Waite. do you suppose any one
would run over such a big lummax as
| he is?"
'Taint but two miles to the power
house. Any one could run that" said
| Bennie Phoenix.
Course they could
Hush up. kids; get ready" said
| Robbie owen. Come on, big Brownie"
The car had passed and the boys
| dragged Billy into the street. He would
not walk, so they had To drag him full
length through the dust. But when
Robbie and Harold dropped the rope
into the cable slit he bounded TO his
feet and thrashed around like mad
bull. But the little fellows were too
many for him: they held him on the
track. Every boy in the crowd was an
expert at fastening tin cans 20 the ca
BILE. and Robbie and Harold did not
blunder at their JOB. In a minute the
stout rope was securely caught
and away went BIZ. The crowd of
small boys broke and faded into the
night
on one side OF the power house the
speed OF the cable never exceeds eight
miles an hour, on the other side II runs
much faster. Bill was attached TO the
swifter cable. Many time ne had
tried TO catch car going at fun speed.
ana failed. Then, he had raced with
the cable for fun, now he was racing
for his life. At first he bent forward anu
ran like "A hound, with all his might,
but. do his best he could not run fast
enough: the cable was pulling him
down. He needed his hands he needed
more breath. But he could not pause:
he bounced from one leg and made a
gigantic stride, he bounced from the
other leg and on he went, speeding like
an ostrich over the nard pavement.
How il hurt his feet. how IL Jared his
spine: how the cable jerked him along
"Only two mile To the power house.
only two mile TO the power house, only
two mile"
He couldn't think nor feel but these
words were whistling in his dizzy
brain.
tie couldn't tell where he was. He
did not try. His eyes stared straight
ahead, and all his energies were first in
one leg and then in the other He must
not miss his footing. Lights flashed
from the street corners, lights flashed
from the stores: lights. red. white, blue
and green, were ribbons OF color
streaming by. Shrill cries and yells
and whistles were the same to him,
streams of sound trailing behind. Ev-
erything was sweeping behind him, the
two miles were sS1eepIng behind him,
five minutes had swept behind him,
eight minutes. Two miles is not fir at |
the rate that Bill was pacing IL. But |
he was almost winded, his ankles were !
giving out, his head was "A buzz, but |
on he bounded. The power house must |
come soon.
But between Bill and the power house |
lay the tracks of the B. and G.. rail- /
railroad crossing, Bill had not thought |
OF the crossing, he did not think OF /
IL now until the scream of an engine /
warned him and the light of the bull's
eye was upon him. Then he went down
on his face. But on went the cable and /
on went the trailing boy. The guards
man had lowered the gates. he was
his bell, but on went the cable
and on went the boy, and on came the
Kissing engine.
Had Bill kept his nerve and kept his
on his feet he might have saved him
SELF but the eye of the engine had
faxed" him. The cable got him across
the tracks. all but one dragging foot:
that was run over by the engine
The power house is there. just be-
yond the Il. and G.. tracks. The cables
ends there, and there ended Bits fear
full run. Dlen cut him loose and sent
him i'm a patrol wagon to the hospital
The affair was reported in the MORN
ng papers:
The boys name is William Rice. He
ives at 81 Backaway court. His moth
With the result that two alarms came |
her numerous family by taking i'm
washing. William is errand boy at the
Mckinley Park grocery, corner OF For-
.leth and Green streets. He is the only
iependence Of his hard working moth
ar.
The perpetrators of the cowardIy
Iced are still unknown. The boy ia
game and refuses TO peach In fact. |
ne Is too delirious TO say much about
he affair. He mutters over and over:
l done IL TO little yaller dorg. | done
I 90 little yaller dorg.' We surmise
hat an interesting tale h attached In
hat same little yaller dorg'
Mr.. Brown read this account at the
breakfast table, Robbie owens father
cad II between sips OF coffee Most OF
ne neighborhood boys h. IL at their
breakfast tables. Before school they
net at the Swans shed their faces
urning. their hearts humping in their
title bosoms
I'm going TO the hospital to see
Iim' said Harold Brown. winking
cry fast. Tn going to see him, and +:
m going TO own up" ,
80 am L. cried Robbie Owen. el-
'owing his way 10 Harold's side. $50
nm l." Chorused the other Brownies
nd the rest of the neighborhood boys.
more or less stoutly.
You needn't to-" said Harold IT'S
u our fault on account Of Jack Me
nd Waldo and Davy are going TO own /.
-. Father says IL was the. meanest
hing he ever heard 0f. and he's going
'itn u.s.
The Brownies went to the hospital
18th their father Robbie Owen went .
D the hospital with his father. The
eighbOrhood fathers made up a hand
Dmp nurse for BiIlV's unpt her and Mr.