Coeur d'Alene evening press. (Coeur d'Alene, Idaho) 1907-1929, 1909-04-29
o. sALLIE MENnEEM


clang behind me. The thought was
dreadful. I'm afraid l was too fine
grained for the business.
Month after month my hours OF
sleep grew less till / feared insanity. |
One night woke up at midnight after |
having slept two hours and knew there
would be no more slumber for me till |
the next time went to bed. I was so |
desperate that got up with the in
tention Of going into some house where
l had no right and there snatch an
other couple Of hours sleep. had a
crib in view, a small house with not
much in 1t. But l was looking fol
sleep, not plumber. went there, took
out pane Of glass, entered and went
upstairs to find place to settle down.
l stood in a dark hall looking into a
room where a night lamp was burning.
In the room a woman was in bed with
a child. both asleep. The child was
sleeping on the front of the bed. very
near the edge He was a boy and, l
think, about FIVE years old.
On n narrow lower bed, close beside
the other, slept another child, girl Of
about three She was sleeping in the
center Of her bed on her side and had
her chubby fist up against her fat
and none of them except the woman
had any covers whatever.
What interested me was that the
boys head was hanging over the side
Of his bed and so much of his body,
too, that 1t looked to me as IL he was
about to fall. He was restless, and
knew he would be over very soon.
Somehow wanted to see him fall,
though / kept in the dark so that he
wouldn't see me If he woke up The
next kick he made sent him over. He
fell couple of feet, but didn't wake
up. He landed partly on the little girl,
! but she didn't wake up either. | ex-
pected she would, as she moaned once
or twice In her sleep and turned over.
but finally she slept as peacefully as
before.
1t was such a delightful picture to
one suffering from insomnia that l
kept on watching the children. The
boy continued his kicking and crowded
the girl, pushing her with every move
to the front edge of her bed. 1t must
have been half an hour that he kept
this up, when there was a thump. and
the girl lay on the floor. But she
seemed to be as comfortable there as
on her bed. AT any rate, she showed
not the least sign of waking.
Meanwhile heard the muttering Of
distant thunder, and while l was look
ing at them all there came one terrific
crash loud enough to wake the dead.
The mother turned over, but neither
of the children moved. Then followed
one crash after another, and l expect
ed that at least the mother would
wake up and take look at her chill
dren. But she slept on. She must have
been very tired or had lost a lot OF
sleep or she couldn't have slept
through those terrible bolts. Never
had l heard such thunder before.
The only effect the storm had on any
of them was to increase the restless
ness OF the boy. He rolled and tum
bled in his sleep like a ship tossed by
the waves, sometimes lying for a few
minutes close against his mothers bed
then rolling over to the outer edge Of
his own. I was sure he'd in time tum
bile out of this bed, as he had out Of
the other, and was bound to see hin
do II. Sure enough, before expected
IL he gave a lurch and landed plumb
on top Of his sister.
Neither of them awoke.
reckon women know in their sleeI
what's going on with their children
for. now that the storm was over ant
everything was still as the tomb, tn
mother sat up In bed. glanced at be
children, got up and put them In thei
proper places. Then she went back 4
bed herself and was asleep in a mo
ment.
well" | said to myself, IF that
what a clear conscience win furnisl
I'm going 10 have a clear conscience.
I went back TO my room resolved new
er TO enter any mans house again bu
INV own. at least not for plumber.
: went to bed ard slept like a top 10
twenty -four hours.
kent my resolution, found honors
bic employment and prospered- But
didn't forget the family that eonverte
me. The mother was q widow. and
: having a hard time to get on. mad
her acquaintance and married her.
But none Of my family know that
had been q burglar or how ! came
know them.