The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1901-04-16

hastily the account Of a murder. writ
ten In usual newspaper English. and
saw that It Tailed with what my vis-
itor had said.
Now, sir" he continued. Il don't
want to be tedious. and won't go over
a whole lot that I might tell you. !
have suffered a thousand deaths for
that crime. But. before God. have
been straight ever since. just as ! al
ways had been straight before then.
I must have had a good mother.
don't believe 1t was her fault that
never knew her ! never did want to
do anything wrong. Since that ter
rible day ! have never touched a drop
Of liquor, although. as you may sup
pose, I have had plenty Of chances.
I have been in this town going on
three years. I got a job In a paper
mill about a month after / came here,
and have been working there ever
since. / began as a common laborer.
but have worked my way up, and for
the last year have been getting 50 a
day as foreman. | boarded around at
different places at first, but finally
struck the Widow Emmons house,
and haye been there for about two
years. She lives in the north edge Of
the town. Do you know her? No?
Well she is a good woman. She has
been kind to me-
He paused for a while, seeming un-
der great embarrassment, and fumbled
with the lapel Of his overcoat.
4 may as well confess. sir, to you.
as you are Gods man, that I love
her Don't tell it." He looked guilt
ly around. as though he suspected
someone might have overheard him.
1t is not for me, a criminal, to love
her. who is as good as an angel
She's got two children and nice
little home. She keeps boarders. /
hadn't been there long till I learned
the struggle that little woman was
making against fate. It seems there
is a mortgage on her property. She
told me about It. Not that I ever con-
versed with her. as You may say, as
friend and equal; but after my days
work I would drop into the kitchen as
she was getting supper, to dry my
boots, or some such thing, and she got
into way of talking to me about her
affairs. The interest on the mortgage
is something enormous, and, what
with keeping her children n school
and making ends meet. she kept run
ming behind. She might have got
along better If she had set a poorer
table, but she said she never could
stand to see working men have poor
food.
"As ! say, / often dropped into the
kitchen, and sat around. Them chill
dren kind o. took to me. Phil he'd
climb into my lap and make me tell
him stories till he'd go to sleep, al
most every evening. / tell you Phil
is the most beautiful child ever saw"
The man rubbed tear from his
cheek, and continued: He Is the
most confding little fellow you ever
saw. Why, when I would look at that
little head laying on my arm, and all
them curls falling over my coat sleeve,
why it just" ne drew out his
and mumbled into t.
Laurie. the little girl" he went on
in a minute, ''is a likely one, too, I
tell you Smart Why, there amt
nothing that that Young one don't
know. Whenever she gets into a new
reader she just up and learns It by
heart What do you think Of that2
well, when I found out the eircum-
stances, I sent the biggest part Of my
months pay regularly through the
postofisce to her. marking It, From a
friend. remember the first time she
got any money I sent her She told
me about It, and wondered who in the
world It could be. She was mighty
pleased, tell you. Her face flushed
up and her eyes frightened. Why, sir,
the saints O. heaven couldn't be pret-
tier than that woman was then.
But, IN spite OF all. the mortgage
couldn't be paid. It is due in three
months. It's killing that woman. II
she loses her home, what will become
Of her-and little Phil? She's rassled
too hard with that debt to have It down
her now. Now. sir, I'll tell you what
| thought Of the other night. I was
awake, just a-thinking Suddenly a
thought hit me-like it was a brick.
II knocked me clear out Of bed. I got
up and stood like a fool for a few
minutes. Then I put on my clothes
and walked out where I could get some
fresh air, for my head was bursting.
Mr.. Mercer, there is just a thousand
dollars needed to make that woman
happy. Mr.. Mercer. that's the price !
will bring in a court Of justice.
Ratcliffe paused. ! supposed he ex-
pected me to say something; but
couldn't think OF a word. and SAT adget-
ting In my chair. At last he went on:
But I could never see them again.
Think Of Phil. and the pleasure Of sit
ting by and seeing her work. When
these things came to me 7 thought
couldn't stand to do It. Then I said
A. frrFs.4 Wa4s q