Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1907-07-15
DAILY STORY
HOW HE BECAME
A STEPEATHER
lOriginal.l

on it, shaking hands and handkerchiefs |
at him, a pretty young woman prettily |
dressed touched him on the arm and, |
handing him pasteboard box, said |
hurriedly:
DO please see that this is delivered |
/ must get on this train
Walter took the box, and the lady, |
Selling the guard rail as it passed, step |
ped on the car and was carried away |
Then Walter looked at the box. 1t was |
the size of a shirt bOX-probably had |
been shirt boX-and without wrapper
or string. At one end he noticed Il hole
half an inch in diameter. The weight
was about ten pounds. But what star
tied the young man was that there was
no address Then he was more startled
still at Il sound that came from with
in. 1t was like Il child's toy lamb
bleating. Walter removed the cover,
and there, buried in fiannels and lace,
was newly born baby.
One of the station men was pssSing,
and Walter called to him.
Say, here's Il box a young wom~.,
who has gone out on that train handed
cred. There isn't any address on it"
whats in it,"
"a baby
The dickens you say"
I'm going to turn it in. Just take ii
to the station master, will yOu!"
Not much 1 won't. You can't play
that game on me"
The man went on. Walter carried the
box to the station masters office
where he told his story and requested
that the official take the box off his
hands. 1t had been turned over to him
fraudulently in the station and natural
ly fell to the railroad company for at
tentiOn.
Young man. said the station mas
ter. "if you want to get rid of your
baby you'd better leave it on the steps
of founding asylum"
ut isn't my baby"
Cant receive it." And the man
turned to other duties.
Walter went into the waiting room.
The toy lamb bleating began again.
Walter took the cover off the box to
stop the noise, which was attracting
the suspicious attentions of waiting
passengers, and couple of women
, caught sight of pair of tiny arms
fighting the air. They came and
| peeped into the box.
La sakes." said one. "the dear little
thing, Just think of carrying Il baby
that way
"Y' ought to be ashamed o your
self" said the other to Walter. The
child's hungry. Where is its mother"
Gone in the last train" And again
Walter told the story.
Has she deserted you?" asked n wo-
man who came up only in time to hear
| the end of it.
That's cock and bull yarn" said
another. ITS n contemplate way of
trying to get rid of your poor helpless
| offspring"
| Walter fed called Il cab and took the
baby to his own bachelor quarters.
| There he called upon his landlady. who
procured a bottle. warmed some milk
fed the child and put it to bed-in Wal
ter's room. Leaving the door ajar SO
that the landlady could hear the little
one cry, Walter went out and applied
at the founding asylum to have it
taken in. In the first place they were
full, and in the second they did not
propose to have man put Il baby upon
them that he was abundantly able to
take care Of himself. under pretense
that it was not his child Walter went
back to his room and with the help of
the landlady continued TO take care
OF the founding from day TO day.
month to month.
| Walter said nothing to any one about
the baby. He was expecting to be-
come engaged and dreaded lest some
inkling of his having a child in his
keeping might get out and his story be
disbelieved. One day his married sis
ter, Mrs. Brown. called at his room to
see him. With her was Miss Charles,
to whom he was engaged. Mrs. Brown
insisted on going UP TO Walters room
and taking his fiancee with her to see
what bachelors quarters were like
The landlady, as instructed, guarded
the way, but Mrs. Brown was Il deter
mined woman and forced 1t. In com
pany with Miss Charles. she entered
| w dltcI > anu dSlttp cil lHt
bed, was the baby. Miss Charles went
home and wrote to Walter for an ex
PLANTATION. OF course his tale was not
believed, and the engagement was bro
ken.
Walter had standing advertisement
in newspaper that the lady who had
left baby in box with a gentleman
at the station could have it-no proof
of property required-by addressing =
472, office of the paper. The day after
the breaking of his engagement, while
he was in his room finishing his toile
for dinner, the landlady came up will
who should it be but the young wo
man who had put her baby off on him
Seeing the child on a lounge pulling
away at it's bottle, she rushed fran
tically to it and snuggled it to he
bosom.
There is another story, which neeC
not be given here. though it may b,
well to mention that it is story of ;
young married woman driven to DIES
4