The Hattiesburg news. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 1908-1917, 1915-08-17
Bedtime Stories
For Little Folks
BERT'S BURGLAR.

school on the last day of the session
he found his father busy unlocking
something in the front hall. The thing
was finally put together and there it
stood, fine set of old Japanese ar.
NOR.
The set was that of some soldier
who had lived many hundred years
ago. 1t was made of brass and red
silk, with heavy leather trimmings,
and the headpiece or helmet was a
gorgeous affair with a waving plume
on top.
Gee, but that's a peach!" laughed
Bert. ut just about fits me. Here's
battle sword that goes with it," and
he fished up a quaint old kind of a
Ratchet from the bottom of the box.
In few moments Mr.. Harlan had the
figure all mounted and standing at
the foot OF the front hall stairs. The
a wire, and in the hand was the shin
ing sword. After tea Mr.. Harlan and
his wife went to the theater Il will
not be home before H." said he, on
seeing Bert reading by the library
lamp, $50 take good care of the house."
Don't worry" laughed Bert, with
that old Japanese warrior standing up
so fiercely in the hall | should think it
would take a pretty brave man to
come in alone. Don't worry will
read here till you come back"
Bert sat in the quiet room deep in
his book till about 10. Then he turned
off the light and lay down on a lounge.
But he could not sleep, for outside he
heard footsteps on the gravel walk.
Nearer and nearer the sound came,
then the sound of steps softly tipping
on the porch till they reached the
door. Then Bert remembered that he
had forgotten to lock the door. Quick
" the steps entered, and he heard a
mans heavy breathing. So Bert made
dive and crawled under the sofa,
thinking il hest TO sAtch how things
were going on. The man came into
the room and switched on the cleo
trio light; then he walked back into
the dining-room and began to gather
up the silver This he did by placing
the table cloth on the floor and tumbling
the knives, forks and spoons into it.
Then the robber went to the cabsrffeu
in the sitting room and took oHt some
valuable bits of antique ieEelry, got
a pair of silver candlestdcks from the
mantel and put a ti9g gold statue in
with the otheE<6luhder. Bert saw all
this, but kept quiet. Yet when the
man Went on another trip to the sit
! tt:Ing room the boy darted out from
beneath the lounge into the dark hall.
He knew that the next move of the
man would be to go for anything of
value in the bedrooms, and he formed
plan to trap the burglar nicely. So
he opened the sides of the Japanese
armor and crept in it. 1t hid him COM
pletely, but through the eyeholes of
the helmet he could see everything
the burglar did.
Just as Bert expected, the man pres
lently went upstairs and in few min
utes began to descend. AS the burg
lar set his foot on the step the big
clock in the hall chimed IL.
Father will be home soon," thought
Bert. who was almost smothered in
the hot armor.
Bump, bump, bump came slowly
down the steps the burglar with his
; hands full of toilet things and a fine
. watch. Outside Bert heard the gate
click and his fathers voice. But the
robber heard it, too, and stopped JUS
in front of the Japanese armor. Thi:
was the chance for which Bert ha(
been waiting. With a quick jerk ht
tore the sword free from the wire anC
threw himself with all his weight OF
the man, at the same time giving
loud scream. The weight of the DO,
and the armor threw the man to tn
floor, and when he tried to rise Der
gave him a tap on the head with tn
sword. BY this time Mr. Harlan wa
in the hall and had settled the maj
:, while Mrs. Harlan 'phoned for tn
= police.
: The burglar was too much aston
y ished at the armor jumping on him t
defend himself, but he could not he'll
: laughing when the boy stepped out.
well, l wonder what the old fello,
\ who owned this armor hundreds @
! years ago would think of it's catchin
a burglar now" remarked Bert, a
! they watched the man being take
away by the officer.