The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1901-09-20

own way. This sometimes resulted in
queer turns Of fancy, according to the
view Of things. as when he
was found in the early morning sweep
ing up grasshoppers from the lawn to
feed the fowls, and carefully treasur-
ing pocketfuls Of gravel while he was
still new to the situation.
"Sure, It wor the lashings Of hop
pers we had out on the perraries, but
niver a stone to the size OF a pea
there. Ye have them betther disthri-
buted here, and It's a fine country,
though the things do grow small" he
decided, approvingly, when the waste
of his efforts was pointed out 10 him.
It would appear that the Mulllgans
had drifted all over the West in an
aimless fashion, "saking health and
bettherment," as It'd expressed It. till
the death Of the father left his mother
free to return 'for the making Of me"
he confided to Mr.. Kane.
'"Sure, lad nades to be looking up
to a good man, me mother says, and
it's a power of t'achin I'll made to
come up to me name, l do be think
in"
The amusement that Mr.. Kane je-
rived from the glorified ideal upon
which It'd was basing the formation
Of his character gave way sometimes
to a fieeting wish that he had cult
waited more of the virtues which It'd
credited him with possessing. There
are drawbacks to being held as little
less than a saint by even an ignorant
Irish boy. Suppose, now, that It'd
could look beneath the surface and see
the true state of the man within him,
how would the revelation affect the
lads moral growth?
Mr.. Kane shrugged his shoulders
and threw off his uneasiness. It was
by no choice of his that he had been
held up as a model Let the effects of
the establishment fall where they be-
longed. It was not likely that he was
going to change his business methods,
his sharp dealing, his keen seizure of
apparent advantages, simply to spare
the tender susceptibilities of this small
vagrant; nevertheless the thought of
It'd was at the bottom of more than
one reform that he made in these
days.
Meantime It'd was cultivating a ten.
der heart among other things, and
when he had the misfortune to set
his foot unawares on a toad one lay
he was the more hurt Of the two.
"Pd no more scrunch the crature
and it sitting by to DO me a good turn
than you'd squeeze a tenant, sir" he
protested, remorsefully.
There are some tenants that neeC
the thumbscrews put on them. It'd"
"Of course, just as there are pertaty
bugs and cutworms and squash beetles
to clane out. It's a fine thing to have
the head to pick AMI choose amoongs
them as weed out the docks and Law,
the cabbages, to hould the helpin
hand to the wake and nadey, and turf
the cowld back on the undesarvin.
I'm feared I'll be long learnin' all tina
from you. sir"
ooh, you aspire to a share in tn
management Of the tenants, too?" ir
quired Mr. Kane, with that sarcasti
accent which was quite thrown ava
upon It'd.
I'm studying hard to be fit to go i
] 20 ,vD,yt11 n
be nading me in the garding," admit
ted It'd, modestly. "Tll be worth N
keep there outside of me schoolin',
will that. yell see."
"If this thing goes on" he said t
himself, "Pll be renewing the ma
mortgage and letting the Hope far
slip through my fingers. It's sheer in
becility on my part. Who wants a
inconveniently active conscience
these days? I'll throw off the yoke BIT
fore it fastens tighter. I'll discharg
It'd and send the Mulligans packing
! But to look into lids trustful ey'
! and make this decision known WI
more than Mr.. Kane cared to DO
that moment. 1t might be better
/ talk the matter out with lids mothe
, he concluded. A little bribe, now,
persuade her to move on, say, witho
betraying his part in the transactio
q would make everything smooth al
o easy.
4" Mr.. Kane had not seen Mrs. Mul
r. gan. It'd had caught his fancy, but
had felt sure that the mother wou
II be bore, and had avoided the houI
it Well they had transformed the de-
Is late shanty into rather a picturesq
n spot by the vines they had train
g over it, and the woman displayed sol