The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1906-01-08

"Got q IN thai an Old miser llyln' at
70 = street had fine lot % swag in
his chimbley Them miser buffers is
list the kind | likes 10 handle, seem
lher money don't do en- nor nobody
else no good ms better in circulation.
| goes 10 70 n finds il a trap. | only
had TO shake the back door TO open
up. n went into the kitchen. There
wasn't nothin there but an old cook
elove. a chair N few cookin' pans
lfangh' on The wall. If il hadn't been
i mlser's place, Id "a went away |
drops my boots, n with my lantern in
my left hand n nay gun ia my eight
them nsers II die for their money
mounted the stairs. what didn't have
no CARPET on 10 EN-. ! got halfway up.
when | heered the softest leetle voice
say:
Mamma.
''Y' didn't never hear child call to
It's mother III the middle Of The night,
did y? WAL. it's jist like Il voice com.
in outen the blessed regions the min
ister used to talk about when | was
boy.
Il want drink O. water the little
thing said | heered the mother git up.
s'pected them kind o people didn't
have no water upstairs n that she'd
come right down But she didn't. She
went 10 the winder, | spect, IA must
q got some water for the next |
hcered was child drinkin' with the
noise they makes-sort o gupin it
down n The mother said:
There, go 10 sleep sweetheart
And instead q sayin' il like one o as
she said il like lady | knowed she
was a lady, got run down.
There wasn't much 10 this. but it
happened in the middle o. the night,
and YOU know. at that time things IL
inpressin'. specially revolver muz-
zle at a feller's ear. and couldn't git
the little ans soft voice outen my
mind. nor tue mothers, neither. Any
way, Sumep'n ratified me, for stepped
back, then mp not KNOWN which way
10 gG:and E1fe stairs. cfeaked.
'Aklmma, said the little voice did
YOU hear thar noise:
mo, darlin Go to sleep; there was
no noise
F" Is il burglar
No. of course not
"'What is a burglary
a man who takes things from other
people Now 20 to sleep
But fbe child insisted on its mother
goin 10 see Mhal tue noise was about.
so She got IN and stood moment at
rlle head q the stairs, The little un
must a ratified me terrible. cause in
pntinNmy lantern under my coat let |
out ray O light The woman saw
II. Ia the coolest way IN the world she |
said:
Yen are welcome TO anything You /
can find here Heaven knows If there |
were anything in the house that could |
pawn for breakfast for my little one |
| would pawn It,
Madam | said. bringin' out the
light do you and your child live here
alOuetF5
eyes
No old mslg
"'No
Il believed her and biddin' her good
night went outen tie house the same
way come In. The next day learn
ed from the fcller as put me on TO the
miser business that in layin' down the
number he intended 10 make il ~. bus
his blo0miu' figures was So bad That
tnk his fora :.
II couldn't gil the soft voice of the
child outen my ears somehow, nor the
pale, sufferin face or its mother as she
stood there at the head o the stairs
lighted by nay lantern. Id had big
streak o. luck lately, aud II was about
time got run in ag'in. II wasn't long
before the cops had me cornercd and [
know IL was matter Of a few days
before they'd git me. Course when
they got me II meant al least another
The plumber had on hand? There was
two ways come up 10 me how TO use IL.
One was TO lessen my time by givln' II
up 10 the owners. the other TO hand It
over to The woman with the child.
WAL / made up my mind TO give it
TO her. ! turned II all into cash. |
knowed II I left It with her without q
deceivin' story as 10 her comm by 1t
she'd Try and find the owner
went TO her house the night before /
was tux, lifted the Kitchen h'arth aud
put the swag under. In the mornln' /
posted letter 10 her telIlu' her that
onct miscr lived In that house and
had left a heap o stuff under the
kitchen h'arth. He was dead long ago
and hadn't got no relations
u hadn't morc'n got the letter posted |
before a cop put his hand on my Shout
Ter"
The narrator paused 70 relight his
pipe. that had gone out.
They offered 10 knock FIVE years
Dff'n my time" he resumed. IF I'D tell
where to End the stun. but it wouldn't
lone me no good anyway. Twenty
years was same as fifteen to me. Be
sides, broke Jail in three"
did the woman find the swagY'