The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1907-08-02
CHAPTER l.
there DO hope, doctor?"

IF she had gone to the-the
- workhouse infirmary-would she
have livedY'
The doctor paused. The gulp before
that hateful word was not lost ON him.
He tried professional severity and be-
slowed some care on the buttoning of
glove.
81 am surprised" he said that an
excellent woman like your mother
should encourage your feelings of-er-
repuCnance tOward-er- ConfOund it,
boy have you no relatives or friendsT'
$50. sir. We dfe alone I'm the world"
And hard up, ehY'
The boy dug hand into a pocket
with the stolid Indifference of despair.
He produced shillings and some pen.
MES. He picked out the silver, and the
ma. redeemed in protest
"iont be stupid, Philip. That is
yols name, is it not? When l want my
fee | will ask for 1t. Your mother
neeGs nurse, wine, chicken broth.
You are old enough to realize that a
doctor practicing in Deighborhood
like this might want such things HIM
self and whistle for them. But in the
-er-infirmary they are provided by
the state"
would my mother have lived had
she consented to be taken there q
month agoT'
p Again the man wondered at the stony
persistence of the questioner, fear
less looking, active boy of fifteen. at
tired in worn clothes too small for him
and wearing an old pair Of boots sever
al sizes too large. The strong, young
face, pinched with vigils and privations;
the large, earnest eyes, heavy with I'M
shed tears; the lips, quivering in their
resolute compression over a chin that
indicated great strength of character.
appealed far more to the doctor than
the whimpering terror with which the
children of the poor usually meet the
grim vision Of death.
The wrestle with the glove ceased,
and kindly hand rested on Philips
shoulder.
NO" came tie quiet answer. MAY
God help you, she would not have
lived"
God does not help anybody" was
the amazing retort
The doctor was shocked, visibly so.
"That is n foolish and wicked state
ment," he said sternly. do not let
your mother hear such awful words.
She has lived and will die q true Chris
tan. l have never met woman of
greater natural charm and real piety
She has suffered so much that she
not punishment. Cast away these
terrible thoughts. Go, rather, and kneel
by her side i'm prayer"
For an instant the great brown eyes
blaZed fercely at him.
"Am to pray that my mother shall
be taken from me?'
even that If it be Gods will"
The CLEAN of passion yielded to utter
helplessness. The boy again brought
forth his tiny store of money.
Surely" he said, 81 can buy some
small amount Of wine. In the shops
they sell things in tins that make chick
en- broth, don't they? have a fire and
kettle. Would you mind telling me-
"There, there! You go to your moth
er and endeavor to cheer her up.
will see what can do. What! Would
you argue with me? Go at once. l in
sist. Listen. She is calling for you"
In that poor tenement there were no
aecrets. A rickety staircase, crudely
built against the retaining wall of the
only living room on the ground floor,
led steeply to an apartment above and
eliminated in an opening that suggest
ed trapdoor The walls, roughly
paneled. were well provided with
shelves and pegs. The back door was
fastened with a latch, a contrivance
rarely seen in the London of today.
The front window looked out into a
badly paved court girt by tumbledown
stables. A smaller window at the back
revealed a dismal yard darkened by
lofty walls Although little more than
"a stones throw removed from the busy
Mile End road, the place was singular
1y quiet. 1t was already dead and
only waited the coming Of men with