The Washington times., 1911-05-21

Z cerned j We Irleo 10 make neT reel Sc
when / stop to think about it. Ruth
| has really lived three lives. Sne mas
| lived her own and she has lived il hard.
| She not only has done ner daily tasks
as well as she knew how, but she has
tried to make herself a little better
every day.
That has been a waste of time be-
| cause she was just naturally as good as
| they make them, but you couldn't ever
| there's been day when at night she
hasn't thought she might have done
something little better and lain awake
to tell me so.
over again every single thing I've done
except the actual physical labor. Why
every evening when l came back from
work she wanted me to begin with T:SU
a. m. and tell her everything that hap
pened after that.
And when / came back from school at
night, she'd wake up out of sound
sleep II she had gone to bed and ASK
me to tell her just what I'd learned.
Though she never held a trowel in
her hand I'll bet she could so out to-
day and build a true brick wall. And
though she has never seen half the men
I've met, she knows them as well as
do myself.
has proved to me time and again that
she does. I've often told her about some
man I'd Just met and about whom !
was enthusiastic for the moment and
she'd say:
STell me what he looks like, Billy"
"Id tell her and then she'd ask about
his eyes and about his mouth and what
Kind of a voice he had and whether he
, smiled when he said SO ana SO ana
whether he looked me in the eyes ut
that point and so on. Then she'd say:
Better be a little careful about him."
or II guess you can trust him, Billy"
Sometimes she made mistakes but
that was because | hadn't reported
things to her just right. Generally I'd
trust her judgment in the face Of my
own.
Then Ruth led the boys life. Every
ambition he had was her ambition. Be
sides that she had a dozen ambitions
for him that he didn't know anything
about. And she thought and worked
and schemed to make every single one
of them come true.
too. II he worried a half hour over
something, she worried an hour. Tnen
again there were a whole lot or otner
troubles in connection with him Whlch
bothered her and which he didn't know
Besides all these things she was busy
about dressing us and feeding us and
making US comfortable. She was al
our clothes and mending our socks
Then, too, she looked after the finances,
and this in itself was enough for one
woman to do.
Then though this wasn't plenty she
kept light-hearted for our sakes. YOU'D
find her singing about her work when
ever YOU came in and always ready
with smile and Joke.
And II she herself had a headache
you had to be doctor and lawyer
rolled in one to find 1t out.
So / say the least 1 could do was 70
make her trust me so thoroughly that
she'd have one less burden. And want
ed to bring up Dick In the same way:
Dick was good boy ana l II say Ihat
he did his best.
Ruth says that II I don't tear up
these last few pages, people VIII think
I'm silly. I'm willing so long as they
believe me honest.
no ones business, but IL ! couldn't give
Ruth the credit which is her due In THIS
undertaking, I wouldn't take the trouble
to write II all out.
wanted to do and asked his advice on
the best way to go at II. The latter
went with him and helped him get his
license, took him down to the news
paper offices, and introduced him 10 the
other boys.
The newsboys hadn't at that time
formed a union. but there was an agree
ment among them about the territory
each should cover.
Some OF the DONS ildu
regular trade In certain places. and OF
course 1t wasn't right for a newcomer
| TO infringe upon this. There was con-
siderable talking and some bargaining.
! and finally Dick was given sIahu III
the banking district
This was due to Dicks classmate
also The latter realized that boy OF
Dicks appearance would do better there
| than anywhere.
staked him to a dollar. and he started
off in high spirits. He didn't have any
of the false pride about the work that
at first I myself had felt.
He was on my mind pretty Inuch an
.bot 5ay and came home curious and
a little bit anxious to learn the result:
He had been back after the morning
editions.