Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1902-05-15


devil and doing my work generally,
and that gives me enough, but these
poor chaps, hard worked, homeless,
with no break or change-God help
them and mew And his voice sank
low.
"wcll,' 1 persisted, '.lid Mayor re.
form?"
Again he reused himself.
Reform? Not exactly. In six
months he had broken through all re.
straint, and, mind you, not the miners
fault. Not miner helped him down.
It was a sight to make angels weep
when Mrs. Mavor would come to the
saloon door for her husband. Every
miner would vanish. They could not
look upon her shame and they would
send Mavor forth in charge of Billy
Breen, Il queer little chap who had be.
lOnged to the MAYORS in some way in
the old country, and between them they
would get him home. How she stood
it puzzles me to this day, but she never
made any sign, and her courage never
failed. 1t was always bright, brave
proud face she held up to the world
except in church. There it was differ
ent. | used to preach my sermons,
believe. mostly for her-but never so
that she could suspcct-as bravely and
as chccrily as could and as she lis
tened, and especially rs she sang-how
she used to sing in those days.-there
was no touch of pride in her face.
though the courage never died out. but
appeal, appeal. could have cursed
aloud the cause Of her misery or wept
for the pity of it. Before her baby
was born he seemed to pull himself to
gethcr, for he was quite mad about
her, and from the day the baby came
talk about aolcs!-from that day
he never dr.? INK n drop. She gave the
baby over TO him, and the baby simply
absorbed him.
"He was new man. He could moi
drink whisky and kiss his baby. And
the miners-it was really absurd If il
were not so pathetic. 1t was the first
baby in Black Rock, and they used to
crowd MAYORS shop and peep into the
room ut the back of i'll forgot to tell
you that when he lost his position as
manager he opG1cd a hardware shop,
for his people chucked him. and he was
too proud to write home for money
Just for ii chance TO be asked in to see
the baby. I came upon Nixon standing
at the back Of the shop after he had
seen the baby for the first time. sob
bling hard, and to my question he re-
Piled:
Its just like my own
'You can't understand this. but to
men who have lived so long in the
mountains that they have forgotten
what baby looks like. who have had
experience Of humanity only in its
toughest, foulest form. this little mite,
sweet and clean, was like an angel
fresh from heaven. the one link in all
that black camp that bound them to
what was purest and best in their past.
"And to see the mother and her baby
handle the miners-oh. it was all beau
tiiul beyond words. l shall never for
get the shock got one night when l
found Old Tickets nursing the baby.
he was, sitting, sober enough, making
extraordinary faces at the baby, who
was grabbing at his nose and whiskers
and cooling in blissful delight. Poor
Old Ricketts, looked as if he had been
caught stealing and, muttering some
thing about having to 90, gazed wildly
round for some place in which to lay
I.,,1, IN, h.t,
saying in her own sweet, frank way:
oh, Mr.. Ricketts'-she didn't fad out
till afterward his name was Shaw
would you mind keeping her just a lit
tie longer? l shall be back in Il few
minutes And Old Ricketts, guessed
he could wait.
But in six months mother and baby
between them transformed Old Rick
etts into Mr.. Shaw. fire boss of the
mines. and then, in the evenings, when
she would be singing her baby to
sleep, the little shop would be full of
miners, listening in dead silence to the
baby songs and the English songs and
the Scotch songs she poured forth
without stint. for she sang more for
them than for her baby No wonder
| they adored her. She Was SO bright,
So gay, that she brought light with her
when she went into the camp, into the
pits, for she went down to see the men
work. or into a sick miners shack
and many IA man, lonely and sick for
home or WIFE or baby or mother, found
in that back room cheer and comfort
and courage, and to many poor
broken wreych that room became, as
one miner put it, the anteroom to
heaven"
Mr.. Craig paused, and I waited
| Then he went on slowly:
For a year and Il half that was the
happicst home in all the world till one
| day
He put his face in his hands and
shuddered.
81 don't think I can ever forget the
awful horror of that bright fall after
noon when Old Ricketts, came breath
| less to me and gasped, Come, for the
| dear Lords sakc.' and rushed after
| him. At the mouth of the shaft lay
| three men dead One was Lewis Ma
vor. He had gone down to superintend
the running Of Il new drift. The two
men, half drunk with Slavln's whisky
set off shot prematurely to the.I
own and MAYORS destruction. They
were badly burned. but his face was
| ,y,tA ~