Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-11-03

the same, I'd rather see Kid o mine take
| his chances in the ref than in the pen, an
| 1 gave it to that kid straight. l told him
what he'd find at the ref, an what he want,
| ed to steer clear Of an then l explained
give the shop the slip. He was very nervy
| kid, an there's mighty few refs 7 nerVy
| kid need stop in if he's got hankerln 1or
| the open. Wy they had me in ret wnen
| l was twelve years old, an L dldn stay
| there a week They got me back after
| while, but 1 mooched again, an they re
| lookin' for yet.
well, the judge he gave the kid what l
| told him to ask for I'd explained to the
| kid how he wanted to put his plea when tne
| judge asked him if he had anything to say
| why the court shouldn't pronounce sen,
| tence on him, an he got off his song ard
| dance all right. 1 can hear the kid now
| when he came back to Jail. He came up to
| me an said, 'Ruderick, if l can beat that
| school I'm going home to the gov nor.
| You've done me good turn, do you Know
| it" Course l jollied him along little an
told him not to get too Sunday schooiy an
! of sudden when he got home an the next
| day the sheriff took him away. An tor the
| next three years Ruderick Mcklowd usea
to pat himself on the back ev'ry now an
| then when he thought O the kid. l pic
| tured him at home, you know, nvin M VIII
| his gov nor goin' to school, fallln IN rove
| with nice girls, an gettin' to be one o the
| towns promisin' young men, had to 90
| bit In the pen about eighteen months a1ter
| the kid was sent to the ref, an whenever
| I'd get real down in the mouth like. ABOUT
| the latter end O. things, an what's what, I
/ used to say to myself, Well. Ruderick. you
| did that kid a good turn, anyway, an Ia
| brace up I remember once wakin' up IN
| the middle O. the night out or dream.
| I'd been up In heaven. an Peter ne
wouldn't let me pass the gates. Your
| bad lot, Ruderick. he says I couldn't let
| you pass f you WAS me own son.. re
| member t said to him as we'll as II I'd
| said the words out loud Peter, l says,
amt you forgettin that good mark t got
for bein' square with that kid? an then 1
woke up. I'm just tellin' you this. you
know. SOS you can understand how things
was"
There was pause in Ruderick's rarra-
tive and the bolts of the iron door OF
place quite other than heaven were shot
back to remind how far from heaven
We were. Every one thought that the ;unse
had sent for the men to be sentenced, tut
it was a false alarm. The turnkey had
| letter to deliver to one of the court prison
ers and we separated into groups again;
and Ruderick knotted the broken thread OF
his "reminiscences.
Are you listenng?' he said.
Sure I replied; a man cooped up Is In,
terested in everything If he wasn't he'd
go off his head.
He continued:
about three years after meetin' the kid
got settled in the pen across the river from
this town where we are now. The same
judge had hold O me once before. an he
was hostile an gave me five years; guess
I'd earned it. The place began to get
an we had to double w, an who do you
think they gave me for a cell companion?
That kid! There he was with his hair
cropped an the stripes on i'm: knew him
the minute they showed him into the cell
% Kid I says, this amt reg'lar; howd
this happen? Did the gov'nor cut up
rough!
'Ruderick.' he says, never went back
to the gov'nor I done you told me an
mooched from the ref-mooched the second
week But they got me again. A farmer
7 TO f0r hraa L CT in
after, he sent for the copper at the ref, an
they took me back. The super gave me
lickn for fair, an told me f give him the
slip again he'd stick me in the dungeon.
Well, I seen kids bigger'n me come out O
the dungeon; l amt baby, but 1 couldn't
stand for 1t: amt got to lie about it.
the boss kids O. the shop. An you know
what that means Ruderick,' he says, the
kids that amt bosses look to you an
think you're a dead fly bloke. They keep
crackin' you up as a Professional, an after
a while you begin to think yourself that
you're hot stuff. That's the way it went
with me anyhow, and at the end of the year
didn't think any more bout goin' back to
the govnor. I'd made up my mind t 1
would be hot stuff an Professional an
one night another boss kid an me. we
jumped out one O. the windows an got
away. He knew Of place where there was
simoleons lynn loose, an we went an got
EN-, an. been . hit hittin it up that way ever
for goin' on the dip, an the judge gave us
both three years. I thought they'd put US
together but they didn't. He's in the cigar
factory, an I'm over in the foundry. Gosh,
it's hard work in that foundry, Ruderick
The guards, got it in for me. He does me
every time he gets chance. I've been in
the dungeon twice already
We'll, l don't need to tell you how felt
that kidt I'd been bankin' on! l supposed
l ought to "a braced him up again an
talked to the warden about him, an got his
gov'nor on his track but fellow like me
amt good for two stabs at reformin', an
done just the opposite; mans skill aches
in him till he gifts it out, JUS like the right
Professional l didn't do it right away. For
nearly six months I kept squeezin' my
brains to figure out what l ought to do but
| it's temptation to fellow like me to have
a chance to make a good thief out Of
| smart kid / don't know if you've ever been
| in the same fix yourself, but to
| times the temptation is great to hang on
| what you knows worsen whisky. You
| see I've always been a crook, an l can't
help figurin' out what l make of
nervy kid if l can get my blinkers on him.
Course. after what I'd told him three years
| before in the Jail bout goin' back to his
govnor an bracin up, it seemed eatin my
words to give him the steer / did, but 1 was
square with him. One night l told him
what l would or wouldn't do, just as he
wanted. Kid / says to him, can put
you next, if you like an make you a first
| class CRATER. but you want TO make up
| your mind for keeps whether you want to
mess. You got to forget all about the
gov'nor. Once a CRATER, you got to stick
| to it if you're goin' to succeed
| g 'Ruderick, my gov nor II never see me
again. I'm "a thief, and he'll feel better
thinkn I've croaked.'
He meant it. an for the next twelve
months-he celled with me for a year-I
done my best to make him a wise one. I
| don't know if you ever trained kid not
| but let me tell you that there amt anythin
| nicer in this world than fashonin' a young
| ster with brains. It's just like trainin'
kid O. your own. You watching him gettin
next day after day. an you keep sayin' to
| yourself, I'm dom this. They got to give
| me credit for him. It's discouraging the
| devil when the kid amt smart, but that
kid t had was smart they make EN-.
! He'd catch on to what I was describin' to
| him fore I'd even finished what 1 was
| sayin'. L see, I see,' he'd say, an l could
| go on to something else.
What surprised i'm most was the priv
! leges bloke get in the pen If he knows
| how 1 had i'm out O. the foundry an in
| the feather pickin department-the softest
snap in the place--a week after I took hold
OF him. There detective t had the
| run O. the place, an he an the warden
| grated together. The fly cop 'ud find out
-,