The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-09-15
..o.c.o.c.c.o.o.o.o.o.c.c
BY E. F. STEARNS
t.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.,

 1 boy, with shyness that sat queerly on his wise little features, faced him and
 then looked away.
 Say it--it ain't much," he said. but
 we'll"
 Hanford molstened his lips and braced | himself
 "Why. thank you, Matty," he replied | cordially. Do you know, if there's one thing l enjoy, it is apple dumping" 1 Matthew's face radiated.
 1 y"Honest?"
 "Honestv' said Hanford
 And he ate 1t! Yes, he ate 1t like
 man, although Graham, the assistant
 manager, sat in the very next office and
 might at any second have appeared in the l doorway. And when it was done, when
 the last awful greasy mouthtul had lis-
 appeared, then and only then did Mat
 thew relieve himself of satisfied sigh
 and walk silently back to his duties.
 The rolling months were bringing 1 trouble to Hanford The men, almost a 1 solid phalanx of German brawn now, l were growing more sulen and lazy. That
 was a phase beyond consideration for l disciplinarian such as Hanford! | He read one day of a so-called social l ist meeting in one of the halls on the
 water front stampeded by the police, who I narrowly missed capturing the orator Tn l chief one Bergman. Hanford wondered l absently if it could be his own Berg
 man-Herman Bergman, numbering and I hairy who tended the sulphuric stills? l He laughed at himself and cast aside the l notion as ina ginatve. Then he recalled 1 the groups which broke up on his ap- ] proach, the mutterings, the scowls that were directed at him just as he passed I He sat at his desk in the last hght or :, a late May day, some four months later, | 1 ton, The office force had departed and : he was quite alone in the upper part or the building. Out in the factory proper 7. they were rushing at couple or hours overtime, and. it being pay day, Haniofa
 had waited to pass out the enVelopes , himself. Before him lay the cash poN'
 bristling with its rows of yellow en-
 velopes.
 He found his chin on his breast and ierked if I'D impatiently. He was grow
 ing morose these days for more thah l factory troubles contributed to hls darker
 moods. The Material Angel-well, he had
 resolved to forget 1t. Let that end IL
 He shook his head and reached over TOT | his pipe. L..
 Then his ear was caught sharply by ouick step on the riclkety stairs With l out His head came erect and ne hs- tened with some astonishment'
 Slap slap, slap slap! A soft bounce
 told of the oncomer's landing outside the
 office. The door flew open uneermoh- ] iously and Matthew burst ln' Ills cheene f were flaming, his eyes glittered Wide Wlth excitement, his breath was iapoi e''
 Hey, bossl'' .,-.s
 "Eh?" Hanford stared. whats wrong 1 Matty?" .,
 stayed!'
 1 What fellows?"
 why, Bergman an HeneKel an | Schmidt an the little Dutchman! Matty
 panted.
 "sav' they're goin t burn the joint''
 "Whats that?" asked Hanford' "on-
 deringly. s.u.,rh+
 goods, I did!'
 l You heard--! . :, An that ain't all! They're soln
 COD the pay roll. them four! 1 The slinerintendent stared at the smai' | 6eure in mild amazement. Unquestloh- l ably, he was very much In earnest on | ouestionably, also, excitement was ie
 dering him incoherent and propaply very l incorrect Hanford sat him down In d.
 nhair heside his desk and resumed his l own seat The boy quivered ana shii 'e" | and baked and champed.
 of vou have heard something tell me
 precisely what 1t was. .o,, l "Lemme git tn coppers nrst
 Nonsense. Repeat what you nave
 heard s r,o,st- | ened his lips, took sharp preaeh anu | fled off in frantic haste' -, ! art ain't no con game-honest II an |.
 I was down there washin bottles-nossl'' l Toe didn't get 'em done. l guess ne wen.
 home early, yessir. Anyway Wan'eu
 git 'em ready for mornin' an stayeu. 1 Well. I got 'em done couple 0 minutes
 ago an I went out t find sack I
 sen,a, f, dry me hands an that's when l
 heard em. Nossir, they didn't see me. | An that's what they was saylh sure 1 Rer9man was tellin' 'em-yessir, Herm l Bergman. He was sayin' it was Wlchel
 f'r youse people t be rich an them starV. 1 in an earnin yer money or soinetnih. l An ne said the time was comm Wheh | they could all start in an hx thihgs,
 an, the navroll was their own money an more. too an they oughter have it. An | Uencllel said somethin' bout burnin the
 nlace. an Bergman said it'd be another l lesson fir capital and he laughed so l It'd make yer blood run cold. Anyway,
 they're comin Will l get the copperss l There aint much time' l 'No, we don't want any coppers, sald
 Hanford, quietly. Haven't you imagined | a good deal of this?"
 l "Wot?" the relation of employer and 1 employe had melted away; they were man l to man. "'Magined it! l guess not! Didn't | I hear 'em? Wasn't l there when they
 was sayin' 1t? Ain't me mother Dutch?
 Couldn't understan 'em? What? l "Yes, yes, yes, but
 l Now, I'm goin' t get them coppers" 1 "You are not going to bring any 1 nolice in here" said Hanford, severely.
 'Sit down in that chair again, Matty' When you are quiet
 "Aw-quiet"' Matty was out or ms | chair and half across the room. Ills eyes snapped, and his thin hand out l stretched toward the other, trembled violently. You look -here! You're up against it. an y ain't wise SeeE | But V are, just the same! What.n you do when them fellers come Tn here an start t mix 1t up? Hey? If the's only 1 them four it's four t one, and any one of 'em's bigger'n you-only maybe the little Dutchmanl Whats goln hannen when them crazy Holsters start I f, rough house it? Why, they'll hand you a couple O good bats an yell croak," he cried wildly. "They don care i-they'd just as soon! An what's that | poil o' yourn goin' t say when they fnd ye-stiff an wit yer nut cracked! Whats she goin' t say? Hey? I'm goin | fer them coppers"
 Like a flash of light he had disap-