Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-07-03
My Foreigner
Continued from page 10

Continued #
they mixed husk to the flour to make it
farther go. Even before the day of the Saints
Cessna and Damian they mixed husk when
they made the bread. Because the flour get
so low. by the day of the cold Saint George
they eat but two meals. When Saint Nicholas
come, there was no bread. Then they little
money borrow from the lender at much inter-
est. Soon it give out, and they then do what
many do, they go out and for morsels beg.
When the lender see this, he become nice to
my mother. She then but the girl, you re-
member. He then offer the more money to
lend. But as you say he the string tied to
it. He make nice eyes at the girl, the same
girl who now is my mother He became ia
mliar He persist, he prosecute, until he in
suit Then she go to the priest.
You cannot know the priest. He is not
preacher as you have preacher. He no en-
thusiastic about religion. He more as officer
to make people come to Russian Church.
Because the girl no belong to the Cars
church, he no listen to her when she ask pro-
lection and when she ask to be let to marry
the man she love. For she love the young
man who now is my father, and he no belong
either to the Cars church. At last, the
priest make paper, and she sign it. That
mean she must by the lender be let alone
promised this, that if any children to her
come they must join the Russian Church.
80 | was born the slave. When | be-
come the age, resent. They fog my father,
they put him in the prison; but they soon
let him go out, for the war with the Japan
come, and they forget many things when
men to shoot and die they need.
when | come back in defeat, | talk
against the Government that gives its sol
diers not fit food to eat, not clothes to keep
warm, not good guns and powder to shoot.
| talk against the Government that does not
let its soldiers the truth to tell. Then they
me send to Siberia.
And so they me from my people take
when l do no harm. They break my life
because l talk the truth. l am human
being. love my people; but they must us
separate and send me to the living death"
His voice faltered as he finished. 1t was
plain that he had once loved the country he
now hated; but his love for his people was
still there, and the call of the home ties was
sounding in his heart. l had him walk with
me out under the autumn stars. We ran
race in the bracing air. When we returned,
he took down his violin. 1t was Sweet land
of liberty, Thy name | love" that he played,
and | was glad that could hear his soul vi
brating in the strings.
THAT winter passed. Another spring had
come. The last snow had about disap-
peared and the plants in the lighthouses were
nearly ready for transplanting. The air was
full of the spirit of the rebirth; but | was
not responsive to it. A sense of foreboding
hung over me. l could not throw it off.
Since that night he had said nothing about
his home, although at times l felt that the
subject was near his lips. An old Fifth Read
ra1 cotC Inv
gathered quite so much dust as did the other
books on that particular shelf. And when l
allowed it to open carelessly in my hands,
the page that fell under my eye contained
those verses beginning, Rock me to sleep,
mother, Rock me to sleep" | told him,
one day when he was porting over its
pages, that he might have it for his own.
Sometime later | found written on one of