New-York tribune., 1904-08-13
DENNIS AND HIS ONE FRIEND.
Finding the Way to the Heart of Little
Imp.

NOW Dennis" said the nurse the only square
thing for you to do is 10 come back and take that
medicine"
..won'tr' said Dennis. I'm goin' back Z N.York
Amt goin' Z stay this Of place no longer"
He stumped of shoulders hunched hands deep
in his knickerbOcker pockets his prematurely old
little face snarled up into a sullen scOw The
nurse looked after him, trihe discouraged. Den
mis- was certainly the bad boy Of the lot. Il was
not quite a week since he had come. one OF a
partv OF unety-odd East Side boys and girls. for a
fortnight al this house maintained through the
sumner in the Connecticut hills by an organization
IN New-York In that week he had established
such q reputation that whenever there & piece
OF naughtiness that could not be traced to my
particular child the matron and the kindergartner
and the visiting curates said a matter OF
course "Oh. it's Dennis" The nurse, though, had
instructive sympathy for bad boys, and she
always stood up for Dennis. But to-day he had
really been outrageous. He had taken the horse
out OF the stable and ridden IL without leave he
had had q fight with another boy. and he had
wound up by absolutely refusing take q dose
OF medicine which the nurse had prescribed for
HIS sore throat AS he flung out OF the room he
contrived 10 knock and break big bottle Of
ammonia. Then he disappeared from that part OF
the earth for three hours.
About sunset q small and dusty figure appeared
before ths nurse. It was Dennis
IN take that med cine now" he said. The nurse
gave It TO him IN a matter-of-fact way and began
10 talk about something entirely remote from the
ing that whole evening and the next Torning his
behavior fawless OF course. he had a re-
lapse: such goodness could not last.
I wonder where lie during that three hours
said friend OF the nurse. who had cople out with
her husband 10 spend day and 70 whom the
nurse told the story.
OF IN the woods somewhere, probably said
the husband Chewing grass. kicking the tree
stumps' 20 mad he couldn't straight. Then he
besan 10 get hollow inside, and then he began 10
think that maybe he hadn't acted right"
Everybody calls Dennis bad" said the nurse
but he's got spot in him that you touch, If
you're square with him. The other day I had lot
OF the children up-garret telling them stories and
Dennis would not behave He found an old shoe
and kept pounding the hoor with it. going round
and round the rest Of rs in circle, TIL couldn't
hear ourselves SPEAK I asked him 10 stop. and
Dennis, I want you 70 come to ne
I want YOU TO come here I repeated
You're goia' [ shut me up in that closet. he
No. on my honor I told him L only want TO
talk 10 you, man 10 man. Well. he came by dc
grees. and cook him outside and talked. I told
act so badly when I hadn't come up there 70 keep
order, but Just 70 have good time with them all.
that and When we'd gone downstairs he came up
oaa e %6sn T6 fnS M 9h shSRn Ssh GahdE ana S'
He has a wistful little face, remarked the
nurses friend. 4 was noticing him this morn
SWisttulr' said the nurse. 7 don't suppose that
the nine years he's lived. You ought to see the
home he comes from : knew his people when 7
I went there-thev live in two rooms in tene-
1ee9E house in cherry-st. There was such litter
mercy knows what,-that 7 could hardly pick nv
Wy IN Denniss mother sat there in a dirty
hunting around through the litter on the hoor: from
that 5e vas SIS s b,n gs FOR ia az ysrtIs & on M InGseG
'aio no attention to him by and By his step