The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1912-05-05
BY LOUISE HEtLGERS.

Home,
A home NAV mean anything from
four walls and a roof. to heaven.
Just then it meant a filthy attic be-
meath a sloping roof. broken. smoke
begrimmed window. cold crate and
a hideous odor OF stale drink
OF furniture none. Such poor fiot-
sam and jetsam as the room had once
held had long since passed into the
untcnder hands OF the pawnbroker at
the end OF the street
In one corner al the room. how
ever a mattress. too dirty and torn
10 fetch the price u even half
mint" offered resting place OF some
sort to the diseased body OF little
ctippled lad who sa' dpon II. huns H.
cd up. with two brilliant eyes in a
to white face perched next to him,
snmeAAat in-the &txl4 Il N i'm nudal-t
Slafrow. Il boy slightly older was busy
In the construction of some implement
Of torture. the material for which con-
sisted OF frayed piece OF string and
a bent twig or two,
Not much she didn't Kick and
saueal!" he Was saving with en-
nhasis. she blacked one of the COO
per's eyes treat. Six weeks ard is
what dad saws she'll get"
He tested the str<ngth of a knot
Z tIpuSHtlullN upon Il SEilliN t4iAftiA'
81 'spects it'll be the work us for
YOU" he concluded. with the dispas-
sionate sympathy We can afford TO
give Il friends troubles.
The work. house. Dread word lie
'l'4ie cripple trembled at the Thought
How often had the drunken woman he
called mother" thrown II at him as
the direct threat of all. as the worst
thing that could happen to them h@'h.
an incompatible disgrace! Drink.
blows. hunger. suualoT. all that had
made up his short lie He vas used
to them. But the workhouse he haH
h.rn led to helieye held even worse
things than these.
He ciept closer to the boy who sat
beside him. Lucky. splendid did friend.
who could run and walk as he
list: who could hold horses heads In
rt1r streets NM ~r. r,e-rs:~s'4 -t.sss's-
times had meat for dinner on Sunday,
and d father who hadn't merged into
the unknown; who. best OF all, had no
dreaded shadow Of fise wurkhouse hoy.
erinG over him.
"Wot's 1t like. the work us. AIRY =
lie demanded In "A husky whisper And
This little mind searched piteously "a
he spoke for some new cruelty he lad
not yet met.
Il dunno" his friend spoke abs emily.
busy over his TOW. do they-~do they
Il your" the small cripple pressed
slowly.
Not that I knows Of" he observed.
cheerfullv even his obtuseness moved
by the white misery ON the Others
face. They'll give you a decent lot
to eat. And you'n have a proper
doss to sleep on--better than wot
To,j get 'dre, So Hts 'elapce swept the
tta,ai~x.
ware It amt 'ome-it's charity" He
brought forth the last word with all
the venomous rancor of the underfed
and underlined poor.
Charity Another dread word among
the poor, III their hands 1t becomes
a stone to hurl at the very gates OF
heaven.
But the other was not listening. a
brilliant flush had stolen the paleness
from his face. The workhouse lop1-
ed no longer "a spEisonhause of terror
before him A place where they gave
YOU enough to eat. and didn't hit you,
and where there might even perhaps
be a pillow to prop up an aching back
seemed TO him n place so full of beauty
and wonderful things. as TO merit COM
pariSon with the remote heaven
kindly district visitor had once or
twice spoken to him about.
He fell TO wondering when exactly
they would come to take him there.
He awoke from n rose-coiored dream
To discover his friend was describing
volubly the details Of the street ac-
cident he had witnessed that morning.
Ordinarily speaking, the little cripple
would have gloated over. the descrip-
ton. 1t was only through his friends
eyes that he ever caught glimpse or
what went on in the busy outside
world. but just at that moment he
had no room for anything In his
mind But the workhouse.
He had had nothing to eat all the
long, hot day, and he felt dizzy and
weak
AIRY. AIRY by
A shrill. staccato voice rarg up the
stairs and pentrated into the dlngy
room.
AIRY thrust his treasured toy in his
pocket and rose hastily. The ole
woman don't art make n noise." he
observed. annovediy. IF gets
morn can eat for my tea I'll try
and save won a bit. GEORGE. So long
He banged the ricketty door to be-
bind h'ro and numbered noisly down
the stairs.
The long. warm evening went
drowsilv on The skv f,wad crimson
above the chirnav-nofs. the tenement
house seemed frtl or noisy VOICES
ouarreisome or cheerful, according to
the nun'her Of the crns thAi" owners
had INDUCED in. AIRY, oblivious Of