The Brandon news. (Brandon, Miss.) 1892-1961, 1907-10-24
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out. The doorknob turned-Terry's
eyes were sharp-and the door swung
slowly inward. He came out. He
was straight and broad and tall, as
usual, and the lonesomeness clothed
him like garment. He wore it al.
ways when he came out, and Terry
was sure he must wear it other times
toto his meals and to bed. Terry
could not picture the Lonesome Man
without his lonesomeness on. No.
oh, no, not as smiling and alert, STEP
ping briskly off!
He came slowly down the steps,
slowly down the street. The gar
ment of lonesomeness seemed to get
In his way and retard his progress
In Terry's mind that was the whimsi-
cal explanation of the Lonesome
Mans slowness.
Nearer and nearer - in another
moment he would look, and when he
looked Terry always felt little cold,
as II the wind had changed and it
was blowing up storm. 1t was just
as everybody said - the Lonesome
Man had grudge against all chill
dren now, especially boy children, be-
cause they were alive. His own'little
child was not. Terry himself had al
ways an odd, painful sense of guilt
when the Lonesome Man looked.
He's goin' to now!" shivered the
child on the humble doorstep. Then
wondrous something flowed over
his spare little frame, his arms, his
legs, his soul. 1t was Courage, but
Terry did not know. 1t engulfed him
in warm flood. He Strengthened in
it's embrace and returned the look.
1t did not seem to be Terry, but the
Courage that spoke: How do you
do" gentle, polite Courage.
The Lonesome Man almost paused
= trifie.
Il don't do at all. How are your"
"Oh!" shivered Terry. "Oh, I'm
pretty cold, thank you. It's windy,
isn't it?''
But the Lonesome Man was gone.
The Courage had gone with him, and
Terry was frightened Perhaps it
had been very bad thing to do, to
how-do-yOu-do a Lonesome Man. He,
would like to ask somebody if it was,
but he would not ask the People, be-
cause any of them would be sure to
say yes.
He sat on, summing himself in his
useless, monotonous little way, and
looking upward, slantward, at the
windows Of the Throne Room. Terry
did not know what was really in that
room, but he knew what he imagined
was there. He had furnished it with
a little gold throne-an empty little
throne. Before the Lonesome Mans
boy had died it had not been empty.
Then little king had sat on it, and
the Lonesome Man had gone in every
day and worshiped him. Everybody
said the Lonesome Man had made
king of his boy and worshiped him,
but the little gold throne was only
Terry's; no one had ever mentioned
that.
1t was not so very high up from
the ground to the Throne Room.
Folks-burglars and things-could
easily climb to it, up the veranda
posts. Then step or two, carefully,
along the sloping roof, and there you
there the burglars would be.
If the shades were up Terry
got to his feet and went nearer. The
shades were UP. Ever since he had
come to live With the People, Terry
had longed to look into those win
dows.
The crown was probably on a shelf
handy to the throne-or perhaps sus-
pended over it, with wonderful con-
trivance to lower it down onto the
little kings head at the right time.
What if he were to climb up those
veranda posts and look in some day?
What if-to-day! He shot out of his
slouching little Incidence and put on
alacrity in every inch of his lean,
tense, tiny body. Here at last was
something he could do-something
spiced pleasantly with difficulty and
possible danger. Just the climbing,
even with feet that did not match,
that had no especial terrors for
Terry. But supposing some one
found him out! The Lonesome Man
was not at home, but there were the
servants-and there were the People.
The People was Terrys private
ly coined name for the relatives who
had opened their humble doors to
him when his mother and father died.
There were good many People, all
able-bodied and efficient and with
feet exactly matched Privately, it
was their able-bodiedness that made
them offensive, in way, to Terry.
The fact that he ought to be grateful
to them did not cause him any trou-
BILE.
I'm goin' to!" Terry suddenly
calculated aloud. Gee, gee, gee,
I'm goin' tot" He threw a hasty
glance all about him with newborn
iwariness and proceeded to do the
daring thing. He crossed the inter-
vening green space, wound his lean,
unmatching little legs about a post,
and started slowly upward. All APP
prehension slipped back behind him