Waterbury evening Democrat., 1906-04-30
THEHEROISM OF EATERS
B. WALTER L. z1AwLEr
Copyright. 1908, by Joseph B. Bov,es.D

Copyright. Isos, by Joseph B. Bovles.D
 To the grown-up dwellers in the Or slchard street tenement he was known
 enly as the newsboy on the corner, or the paper boy, but to the children of the To-
 cality he was 'Tatters." The name was applied in ridicule, because his clothing
 was well worn and his reefer thing oi rags and patches, but 1t stuck to him
 long after the neighborhood came to know him as boy of family who worked early and late to support mother and some younger brothers and sisters.
 The lad had stand" on the street corner. not table or shelf with can vas or board shelter as most local news dealers, but stand in the literal sense, and there he could be found with the earliest editions of the morning papers and again through the afternoons when extras" followed each other at short intervals. When business fell of be- tween the morning sales and the coming of the wagon with the nine o'clock edi- tions of the afternoon papers, Tatters would run errands or deliver parcels for the butcher He was not a good boy. He had never been to church or Sunday school in his life, and could swear like . pirate whenever circumstances seemed to justify strong language; but he was honest and manly. Tatters had incurred the enmity of the less indus trious newsboys of the neighborhood by minding his own business and refusing to shoot craps with them. He did not regard gambling as vice, but it would interfere with his business, so he thrashed few of the urchins who called him names and held his stand" on the corner by standing on 1t during business hours. His one diversion was going to fires. If there was fire in the neigh borhood Tatters was always one of the first spectators on hand, and he main ,tained a speaking acquaintance with the members of the engine company situated in the block. and to them con- fded his secret ambition to become a "hookey when he growed up;" hockey fn the dialect of the East side meaning member of hook and ladder company of the fire department.
 There came time one day, when Tat tsss, leaving his pspers with the butch CT and running to tenement house fire ct the first alarm. got chance to show that he had in him the stun of .wh5ch heroes of the hook and ladder are made When the reporters from police hee6uvaIters arrived at the scene of this paHtcuisr fro they found tenement in ruins, . block filled with crying and ehsttering women and children. the fire men dragging out their hose. . squad of police struggling with the pushing throng at the fire lines. and all the other incidents of commonplace confusion De- euliar to the locality. The reporters made their way to the police roundsman and the battalion chief, who were com parins notes for their respective reports.
 Anyone burned or hurt?" they asked of the roundsman.
 Nav, the whole bunch got out" the reundsman replied.
 Any rescues, chief7" they asked ths commander of the nremen.
 None that you want, I guess. I be- iieve they dropped some kids out of a window before the truck got here, but that didn't amount to anything" said the chief of the battalion as he signaled his men to return to quarters.
 The reporters had passed out of the fire lines and were forcing their way through the dense crowd when a bare headed girl of ten pulled the sleeve of tie man in front and said:
 Say. is youse goin' to put sonethin' ia de pspes about Tatters and what he eone,"
 'who Is Tstters. and what did he dor i. the reporter asked. scentIng material for a descriptive or special story.
 Why. be saved Mrs. Franks txo Kids I onten de fort floor back fore de hookies got here
 Where is he7"
 ~Baek at his stan selI'n' pspes jest 1 Ike he aint done nothIn'."
 B. this time the reporters had cleared I tae worst Of the crowd. and they were c cIiekiy surrounded by eye witnesses of . tse hsrolsu of Tsttsrs. all eager to tell i the story in the hops Of getting tks.r ov1 names in the nevspzpers- The ssory they told stripped of unnecessary cstafIs. vzs that Mrs. Frank. vho lived fn the burned ts-sEent. fosrrh foor fsck- hs6 e0-e out leaving her tro -nan children locked h a room She returned to sr6 flames bursting iron tss thirS-eoor rinSous. and the stair rey bla<k win smoke Betveeu five