Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1906-04-20
The Redemption
of a Hunchback
BY ELEANOR H. PORTER
(oopyrlght, 1906, by Joseph b. Bowlosj


chanced upon an inner secret drawer;
and there found-torn straight
across from top to bottom-a closely |
written manuscript.
Carefully matching the Jagged edges
together read this:
So her name is Alice! It's pretty |
name-but what is that to me? What |
have l to do with pretty names or
pretty faces, or yet with pretty fam
cies?
Remember? What indeed, do not
remember?-ah, yes; there are some
few things, after all do not remem
ber kisses, save those of compassion;
nor smiles, save those of pity. I do
not remember romps and games, save
those that for me bore defeat.
do remember eyes, my moth
er's eyes, always mournful when
turned on me; and other eyes, my
fathers, always quickly averted, If by
chance they met my own. There were
still other eyes, round, widely-opened,
curious, yet frightened, my playmate's
eyes, always following me about with
fascinated horror.
Was it the eyes that first told me
was not like other boys? Or was it
the Mirror? The Mirror was fearful
thing of shifting lights and shadows
1t reached from floor to ceiling in
mothers room, and it said that one
was small and ugly, and that ones
head set far forward on shoulders
that were high and squarely cut. 1t
/ ,N,, a;rrIt
and slender like Toms or Dicks or
Bills, but that it crooked and curved
and punched into a great round knot
below ones neck.
School? All, yes, remember school.
1t was thing of hard, high seats, and
! Of boys and girls, all tall, so hopeless
| ly tall; a thing of large, round eyes,
all mirrors, and of romps and races
in which l alone had no part.
School was followed by college, and
college was but school intensified.
When it was over l took up law.
And now from early morning until
late at night l work and study, save
that at four each day I walk in the
park. 1t was in the park this after
noon that l saw-Alice.
She sat alone on one of the seats,
and I stood for long while watching
her from behind a screen of shrubs.
Her pretty head was tilted back
against a tree trunk, and her brown
hair flashed golden in the sunlight that
came slantwise through the trees.
Some dainty worsted stuff of pale blue
lay in her lap, while her slender fin
gers toyed with two long knitting
needles of ivory.
By and by girl older than himself
came hurrying up.
Did keep you waiting, Alice?" she
said.
Alice. But what, indeed, have to
do with pretty names, or pretty faces,
or yet with pretty fancies?
My brain Is on fire, my hands trem-
BILE. and I can scarcely breathe; but
must write, even though l am forced
to resort to my old trick of using my
left hand-my right wrist was
sprained to-day.
l must put this thing into words
then look at them, study them, and
understand what they mean.
When l reached the park to-day
Alice was already there, laughing and
playing with a kitten. The ball was
half unwound so that long coils OF
blue lay loosely over Alices dress and
over the grass at her feet. Suddenly
the kitten, with the ball between hel
teeth, jumped to the ground, bounded
across the path and the narrow striI
of grass and into the roadway beyond
Alice, with a laughing protest
: sprang to her feet, and, passing the
blue thread hand over hand, quickly
reached the struggling squirming bi
of mischief, and dropped on her knees
at it's side.
1t was then that l heard the wilt
, clatter of an unguided horses feet, ant
saw, coming around the curve above
: a driverless horse and a swaying
empty carriage.
r Alice gave a frightened little or.
and rose to her feet. The kitten sour
, ried across the road into the bushes
but the girl stood irresolute.
In one awful moment l realized tina
LHe ohiy lHin6 petmoeh hei anu PoSSi
BILE death was my own puny arm.
l could not reach the girl, but l nigh
the horse. Oh, for the broad shoul
5 ders and strong grip of man-no
the feeble grasp of a pygmy!
l dashed across the grass and hurle
' myself at the beast, which seemed S
t hopelessly huge and untamable as
a lowered for an instant above me.
4 might as we'll have tried to check tn
: speed of cyclone. The animal shoe
y me off as though were trouble
some fly, and dashed headlong down tn
Q road But that one instant of attac
n caused him to swerve ever so slight
l in his course, and only the wheel G
e the carriage grazed Alice's dress as b