Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1900-10-20
the broom.shop" whispered the

! guards had drawn the little hand. en-,
CINE from its house and hitched the
hose to the hydrant nearest the shop
From all the other buildings the men
were being marched to their cells.
"These men," hurriedly whispered
the foreman to the warden. What
shall | do with thcm?"
Get ,,cm inside as soon as you cam
| This won't last long, the front of the
building is cut Off. It'll all be over in
ten minutes
The foreman gave an order. At that
instant Il woman came running down
the prison yard. Reaching the ward.
ems side, she fell against him heavily.
why, Harriet" he exclaimed, what
Is the matter?'
"Oh," she gaspcd, Tommy! Tommy.
Where Is Tommy?'
A guard ut the end of the engine-rail
turned ashy white. He raised Il hand
to his head, and with the other graSpcd
the wheel to keep from falling. Then
he cried, "Mr. .Ictfrics, IL believe
Tommy Is up there in the stock-room.
He went to look"
The warden clutchcd the mans arm.
up there? Up there? he cried.
The sudden approach of the woman
and the words that followed had
wrought 80 much confusion that the
men paid no attention to the foreman's
command, and he had even failed to
observe their In,', ,.r "tt.ntioii, III tnc
excitement of that moment.
Great God"' cried the warden.
"What can do-what can do? No
one can live up there"
There was II crash. One of the win
dows fell out. 'Get LADDER! some
one cried. a guard ran back toward
the prison-hOuse. Then, in the midst
of the hubbub, man in dingy gray
suit stepped out yard from the line
of convicts. His prison number was
2O3l. He touched his little square cap.
IF you'll give me permission, think
! can get up there" was all he said.
You! you"' exclaimed the warden.
mo, no. will tell no man to do it,
There was Il second crash. Another
window had fallen out, and now the
tongues of flame We're tapping the
outer walls above.
The convict made no reply. With
bound he was ut the end of the line
and dashing up the outer stairway.
The wardpn's wife was on her knees,
clngng to the hand of her husband.
In his eyes was dead, cold look. A
few of the men bit their lips, and a
faint shadow of n smile played about
the mouths of others. They all waited.
4 convict had broken Il regulation
had run from the line! He would be
punished! Even as he had clambered
up the stairs guard had cried, "Shall
shoot?'
The silence was broken by shrek
from the woman kneeling at the ward.
ems feet. Look" she cried, and
pointed toward the last of the upstairs
windows.
There, surrounded by halo Of
smoke, and hcmmed in OH all sides by
flames, stood Il man in Il dingy gray
suit. One sleeve was OH fire, but he
beat out the flames with his left hand.
Those below heard him cry, 1--WE got
him" Then the figure disappeared.
Instantly 1t returned, bearing sviIiu-
thing in its arms. 1t was the limp
form of Il child.
All saw the man wrap smoking
straw round the little body and tie
round that two strands of heavy Irvine.
Then that precious burden was low
cred out of the window. The father
rushed forward and held up his arms
TO receive it.
Another foOt-he Rugged the limp
body of his boy to his breast! On the
ground ii little way back lay woman.
us if dead.
"IIerc's the ladderw cried the fore
man, and at that moment the eyes that
were still turned upon the window,
where stood man IN n dingy gray
suit. witnessed spectacle that will
reappcar before them again and again
III SONS or the night.
The coat the man wore was nblaze.
Flames shot out on either side Of him
and above him. Just as the ladder was
placed against the wall, cracking
was heard-not the cracking of fire.
Then. like II thunderbolt, a crash oc-
cured that caused even the men in
their cells to start. The roof caved in!
In the prison yard that line of con-
victs saw 2034 reel and fall backward,
and heard as he fell, his last cry, I'm
a-comin', warden"
He was Il convicted criminal, and
died in prison-gray. But It would seem
not wonderful to the warden if. when
that mans soul took flight, the Re-
cording Angel did write his name in
the eternal Book of Record with the
strange cabalistic sign, ring around
Il crOss-that stands for good behav-
Companion.
New Theory of Scasickness.