Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1915-07-23
A Strange
Conversion
By F. A. Mitchell

She was a woman to interest herself
In building up those who needed build
ing up and ordered a maid to bring a
substantial meal out on to the veranda
n place 1t on a table. Then she In
vited the tramp to help himself. While
he ate she questioned him as to the
cause of his living a life Of beggarly
Incidence. His replies we're not very
satisfactory and indicated that he fol-
lowed the life of a tramp because he
preferred 1t TO work.
The lady, having fed him, gave him
some money, and he departed. When
her husband came home that evening
she mentioned to him what she had
done. He chided her for wasting her
sympathy on one who was evidently
undeserving, w%hereupon she declared
that all persons were In a sense unde-
serving; that the mere fact of a per-
sons being in bad condition, even
though through his own fault, was a
legitimate object for sympathy, and in
any event 1t was an advantage to the
giver to lend a helping hand.
A year passed. The tramp was pass
ing owe the same route as before and
bethought himself of the aid and com
fort he had derived at the place he vas
approaching. He was no more worthy
of help than before, felt 10 gratitude;
he only wished to get another meal
and some more money. On reaching
the house he saw evidences of a fu-
neral taking place in it. The ~obsequies
were for the lady who had b~efriended
him, and since she had rendered her.
self much beloved on account Of her
charities a large number of poor people
were in attendance.
The tramp joined those who were
passing to have a last look at their
benefactress. He noticed on the finger
of the dead a diamond ring. He fur
ther noticed that when the lid of the
coffin was put on the ring was not
removed. When the funeral procession
went to the cemetery he Joined the
throng and saw the body lowered into
the grave. Then the mOurners dis
persed, and the tramp, after carefully
noting the position of the lot, went
away.
z 0l6AL NoAC LIZ NNAb W nv
house from which his benefactress had
been carried, stole a spade and a SHOW
ell from among the garden tools and,
going to the cemetery, began to re-
move the earth that had been thrown
into the grave of his benefactress.
Having uncovered the coffin, he took a
screwdriyer- from his pocket and re-
moved the lid. Taking the hand, he
was surprised that there was in it a
little warmth. The diamond ring
was there, and he attempted to re-
move it. Failing to do SO, he took out
his knife to cut off the finger. Feeling
something warm on his hand, he struck
a match and saw that it was blood.
Leaping from the grave, he ran away
as fast as his legs would carry him.
Then he stopped and began to think.
The most likely solution of what he
had stumbled on was that it was one
of those very rare cases of a rance
having been mistaken for death. His
benefactress was lying uncovered in a
grave. What should he do? If he
rescued her he would be obliged to
confess that he had gone there to steal
the ring on her finger.
There are natures so bereft of what
is good that they can only be affected
by some momentous event. The tramp
was one of these. A sudden reyulsion
came over him. Returning to the
grave, he found the body as he had
left it. Removing it from its cold bed,
he wrapped it in his coat and carried it
the nearest house aud restoratives
were applied.
For a long while the invalid hung
between life and death. AS soon as
there was any hope for her recovery
, her husband was notified of what had
occurred, but not till this was assured
was the matter broken to any other
member of the family. Then they
knew of it by the lady being brought
to her home.
As soon as the tramp had done all in
his power to save his benefactress,
from whose dead body he had intended
to steal a jewel, taking advantage Of
the excitement attending the efforts to
restore her, he disappeared. When the
lady became convalescent she asked
what had happened, but it was not
thought advisable to tell her. Seeing
that her finger had been badly cut, she
inquired into the cause. A story was
invented to satisfy her.
One thing puzzled her. He hus-
band, who had formerly been unsym-
pathetic with her charitable work,
which was not a part of organized aid
to the poor, but, rather, spontaneous,
had suddenly become an unreasoning
giver.
The tramp again visited the house
where he had received aid and comfort,
but not as a tramp. The lady, as at the
time of his first visit, was seated on
the veranda when she saw a well
dressed man coming up the walk. She
did not recognize him till he made HIM