Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1903-12-18

the first tramp | came to. He sat les
the fountain on the corner seat of a
long bench. | touched him gently on
the sleeve and said to him:
"'My good man, how come you to be
here"
The newspaper man leaned forward
absorbedly, his eyes agleam.
Were those your exact words!' he
inquired in so rapt n manner that the
president once more let fall the fork.
Reynolds, d%isdaining the question,
sought in several pockets for a pocket
handkerchief, and, finding one at
length, delicately mopped his lids.
The story he told" he stammered,
''would have brought tears to the eyes
of the coolest hearted.
1T was not so different from the usu-
al run of such stories,' faltered Reyn-
Olds. He had seen better days; be
had not always been obliged to sleep in
a park, ETC.; he had Il wife and two
children; he had been unable to sup
port them; they were all three with his
wife's mother. AS ] say, it was lot so
much the story as his manner of telling
it. 1t affected you beyond description.
1t couldn't help but affect you. took
a five dollar bill from my vest pocket
and thrust IL into his hand"
And then" queried the president,
what did he do?'
He became so deeply affected" re-
turned Reynolds, that | whirled about
and left him. unwilling to witness the
Overwhelming nature of his gratitude"
He sat down. The artist coughed
slightly, covered his mouth with his
hand a moment, relit his cigar, which
had gone quite out, and blew the
smoke to the ceiling.
The president motiOned to his neigh
Dor TO rise. His name was Caruthers.
He scanned his listeners attentively,
frowning as he talked.
MY experience said he, "resembled
to a certain degree that of my friend
Reynolds there. | must have visited
the same park. Union park, was it?'
with a nod to Reynolds.
YES" replied Reynolds; Union
park"
Il circled the fountain" he went on,
land proceeded to Il long bench, where
| stopped near a seedy looking individ.
ual who in spite of the steady fall Of
snow sat mapping there. | tapped him
on the shoulder, reused him from his
sleep and asked his history. 1t was
rambling, as hat related by Reynolds.
He had seen better days. Most of us
have. He had not always slept in
parks. Few have. And, like Reynolds
tramp, he had a wife and two children,
whom he had been obliged long before
to send home to the wife's mother.
Like the story of Reynolds tramp,
there was nothing out of the ordinary
with the exception of the manner in
which he stammered and shook telling
it."
At this point Caruthers appeared to
experience some little difficulty in ar
ticulating. When he had recovered,
Really" he finished, lit was distress
ing; most distressing. 1t grleved me
deeply. | thrust IA five dollar bin into
his hand and hurried away"
He had hardly time to resume his
seat when three members of the club
rose simultaneously.
There's some fraud about this!'
they cried. I'VE went together. We
saw the same man. He had the same
wife and two children who were liv-
ing with the same old mother-in-law
BY Jove! We were so distressed we
gave him So apiece, and that made
fifteen good old solid dollars between
u.s."
They flung themselves back in their
chairs and gazed in an excited and in
dignant way from one face to another
In search of some reasonable explana-
ton of the phenomenon.
The newspaper man suddenly stood.
1t was as If he had just walked up.
"Was hV tall and thinT' he question
ed. did he wear a shaggy red beard,
long hair, an old SLOUGH hat and a rag
ged gray o%vercoat out at the elbows
and fringed with a mighty fringe
around the hem? l say, we're his shoes