The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1905-02-26
EAy Charles D,ckens

Hal r-@LfvI1R TWIST was the son of
$%f "A poor lady who was found lying
65 MI III he street ono day In q, village
5ea mYnf7m near london, almost starved ana
B5S (tHf{ESSHu very ill she find walked q long
tS;sfT1'1-8t way, for her shoes were Worn
10 pieces but where she came from or
$SIwheres she was going nobody Knew 5 as
she had 10 money, they took her to the
8$poorhouse, where she died next day With WITH,
AZ dit even telling her name leaving behind
@3 her only al gold Iocket, which was AROUND
Nh her neck, and a baby &! n sa.,
s3. The rocket fell into the hands Of the
s ma tron Of the poorhouse, who was named ne !.
Mrs. Bu,nbe. 1t contained the dead
mothers wedding ring and $@ rs MIS- y =
% Rumble was q dis honest Wolllall s.ic ~.
both locket and ring, intending some time
ITO sell them. 3!
Tho baby was left with no one to care
s$ for it to grow up ut the 4poorhollse VIII
II Inc other wretched orphan children VINO
wore calico dresses all alike and had little lit
s.,$ to eat and many whippiflgS ~ 3is 4. 45s
55 Mr.. Bundle was @ ponpous,} sell I'M s.
4aportant bully who broW-beat every one
TI weaker than himself and scolded ana
$Sc,1fred the paupers to his hearts con-
81 tent. 1t was he who named the osloy
6fs..Oliver TWIST He used 70 name al
the babies as they came along py 5lHe3
letters OF the alphabet. The one before before
Olver was named SWu 81 !, e.,,,,e
# Olive with q r; the mex W ollld pc IN ~ r.
win 4 he next wilkins and so on down 10
8 "a. 55ss Then he would begin the alphabet
sail over gain. s 81. sss 81
& Little Oliver the baby grew without any
Idea OF who he was. When he Il was as 2 :.
5 year old he was sent Q the poor lai 40,
where an old woman took care of orphan
WI children for a very small sum apiece eachN
week. This money which was paid 5by
the town was hardlyHcnough to buy hem
food but nevertheless the old woman took
Il good care to save the bigger share Il for
KS herself. i n. T|i3t
He lived here till he was "a pale hand nd.
some boy of nine and then he WIS
taken to the Sworkhouse. where, With
HI many other boys OF his own age or older,
W. he had to work hard all day picking
50 oakuIl1.
The boys had nothing but thin Cruel
85 for their meals, With an onion twice q
week and half a roll on Sundays. They
$ ate in "a great stone hall in ono end OF
which stood the big copperSof Cruel which
g Mr. Bumbie ladled out. Each boy got
only one helping, and the bowls never
I1ieeded washing, because when the meal
was through, there was not n drop Of
8 cruel left in them. After each meal
they all sat staring at the copper ana
ask for more. i.si
One day they felt SO terribly hungry
that one of the biggest boys said that
unless he got another helping Of cruel
he was afraid he would have to eat the
s3 boy who slept with him. The little boys
81 all believed this and they cast lots to
5s see who should ask for more, and 1t fell
IA o Oliver Twist,
So that night after supper, though he
was dreadfully frightened Oliver rose and
@ went up to the end OF the room and said
10 Mr.. Bumble I" Fleasc, sir, + want some
more" ,
Mr.. Bundle was so surprised he turned
pale. .What!", no gasped. @
please, sir" said Oliver again, II want
AZ some more - ,s3
MI. Dupittls picked up the ladle and
struck Oliver on the head witt, IT.. then
Il he pounced on him and shook him. When
he was tired Shaking him. he dragged him
aia away and shut him up In q dark room,
where he stayed a whole week, and was
only taken out once q day to be whipped
A. Then, to make an example OF him, a
notice was pasted on the gate OF the
workhouso offering a reward to anybody
who would take poor Oliver away and do
2 what he liked with him. 3
The first one who came by was q middle
aged chimney sweep, VINO wanted n boy
E5 TO climb UP the inside of chimneys ind
clean out tho SCOT. This was dangerous
thing to do, for sometimes tho boys who
a did 1t got burned or chokcd with the
Il smoke, and when Oliver found what they
were going to do with him and looked
at the mans cruel face, he burst out
n crying. so that a Kind hearted Magistrate
nterfered and would not let the chimney
sweep have him.
Mr. Bundle finally gave him TO the VIII
hge undertaken, and there he had to mind
the shop and do all the chores. lie slept
under the counter among piles of empty
collins. The undertaker's wife beat him
y often, and whenever he was not at work
nc had to attend funerals, which was by
no means amusing, so that8he found life
no better than 1t had been at tho work
house. The undertaken lad an appren-
tlcc. too, who kicked him whenever he got
near enough,
All this wretchedness Oliver bore as
we'll as he could without complaining,
WIZ But one day the tcow3rdly apprentice be-
gan 10 say unkind things Of divers dead
mother, and 1his he could not stand. His
anger made him stronger even than his
a, tOrmentor, who was more than n head
taller and much older than Oliver, and he
sprang upon him, caught him by the
throat and after shaking him Till his
S teeth ratified, Knocked him fiat on the
floor,
sja The big bully screamed for help and
cried that he was being murdered, so that
ga in.% Oliver told them what the nppren.
t!ce had said, but tliat made no differ.
elice The undertaken sent for Air
e Bundle. and between them they logged
him TIL he could hardly stand and sent
him % bed without anything 10 eat
Til then oliYer had not shed tear
hut nov, alone in The dark, he felt NC
miserable that he cried for u long time.
There was nothing 10 do, he thought
~ at last hui TO run away. So he TIED
up his few belongings In II hundkefehie
and, whiting till the first beam OF sunrise
he unharred tie door and ran away as
fast as he could, through the town int
The country
@ He hid bGhind hedges whenever he say
\ anybody for fear the undertaken or Air
BUNDLE were after him and before Ions
ne found Il road that he knew led L
London. Oliver had never seen n city
hut hethousht where there were so laan!
people there would certainly De something
j. - ts.gN IL