The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1906-11-27

u. 4. III Nr'AD u lIIC 1 4 81 -
SYNOD the necessary none was
to complete Little Joe's
..n" ut Barium Springs (Presby-
...1 Orphanage. The Prcsby-
standard this week is a beautf-
uruhanage number, giving pic
uf the Orphanage, the gradu-
. class and other classes. 1t is q
,..H THANKSGIVING edition. Perhaps
m.ost Interesting sketch in the
.-u.r is a story of Little Joe's
.r-n." particularly appropriate now
... the money has been raised to
..H|-ta it. The story is as follows:
..o day, just about his time of the
Xxx years ago, a tired looking
..au came to the Orphanagc, bring
t#o little children. She came
... the pOOr-hOuse, where she and
.uiIdrcn had been taken when her
-H.ad died. The youngest child
boy, a tiny boy, frail-looking.
-.. woman said goodbye to the Chill
... and went away. The little boy
....t after her and cried as loudly
a.. lungs would let him, but the
knew she must leave him, SO
... went away while he cried.
... crying made his head ache. and
...It"d his mother more than
He begged to be taken back
..- poor house. His mother was
-..... and that was all he cared. It
net until after dinner that he be-
-.I IL be comforted and make friends
with us. Then we saw little Joe, the
s.. Dright-hearted little fellow who
na#. everybody love him.
Il the afternoon he went to the
sHlyaTd, where the boys were saw
wood, and offered to sing for them.
"an boys were aStOniShed when he
..ug and left everything to bring him
f.. the house and AVE others hear him
We soon came to hear his little
voice everywhere. Sometimes he sang
will. "a laugh in his voice and c0tnn-
ttun- he sang to keep from crying
auf then he made other people cry.
This tiny mite of a boy talked more
-.anIlt being a MAJ than any other
boy i'm The house. He knew perfectly
we'll he wanted to do-build a
church.. His idea was to build it with
his own hands, drive the nails and
mckee the walls stand. He didn't know
that there would be any reason why
il. should not ~gather'up the material
#htrcrer he found it and put it into
his church. He built barns for his
stick horses that way, and nobody OBJ
l.c1rd. Friends, sometimes in writing
nf it. say it was his dying request that
his money be used to begin a church,
bat his is Il mistake. He didn't know
That it took money to build a church.
Before he came here, going to
church had been the greatest thing in
Joc's life. 1t meant something to him
ter they sang IN church. When he
came here and found pianos there was
81 new gladncss in his life. Sometimes
the piano music would make him
dance with gIee, and at other times he
would stand by the piano While a
@irl practiccd exercises and sang the
gN"lcises she played.
Love in little Joe was very strong.
rs long as he lived he talked about
pickle" the little dog he had played
With at the poor house.
In our big family he was very much
ncJted and he loved everybody, but
.no big boy at Synod's College was
his hero. At last the time came for
This hero to go away to school and
tovn the little heart had another trial.
Every day he would ask his matron
If She thought "ONter' (Oscar) would
come home today. Often when nc
heard q train he would leave his play
and run to see if "OXter' was on that
train. When Oscar came home it
Was to stand by his grave where they
had laid the little boy who loved him.
The last Christmas of JOe's life was
tho happiest he had ever known. He
wrote a letter to Santa Claus which
somehow got into the paper and Joe
-at cverything he ask There were
frur or five narps, q fiddle a banjo
.Id 4 drum, and horns.
During the holidays Joe sang for
eome visitors and each gentleman in
the party gave him some money. It
was forty cents. and this he had put
away.
i1Jt1 III III iAtC wv "N' AADS
noU for a few days, but we did not
fo"I uneasy about him. One morn
i.- his matrOn kept him in bed until
tno Superintendent came to see If he
.a~ Well enough to be up. After
PROMISING him that he might get up,
the superintendent started downstairs.
When he had gone about halfway
down Joe called to him, "GoOd-by,
Ir. Boyd" 1t was his last good-by
IT, Mr.: Boyd and the last time he
spoke to him.
The baby boy was up all day and
didn't seem sick. That night he
oIimbed into his matron's lap and
talked for the last time of being Il
nan. One Of the big boy was at the
rianO learning a new song, and lille
,Jec was being rocked his little voice
E"incd occasionally (and as true as
lror) in the music. .
Next morning when we were getting
up Joe called to his matrOn and when
she went to his room he asked to be
allowed to get up with the other boys.
Sine had one of the boys take him UP
aud carry him downstairs, but before
.. got to the next floor the little body
.=d gotten limp and the little heart
had stopped. We laid him on Il bed
"Hd sent for help, but he was out OK
'ue reach of human help.
The family was at breakfast Wn"A
+.. srDerintendent came into the am
Z room and told them that little Joe