The news scimitar. (Memphis, Tenn.) 1907-1926, 1919-08-02
,verty in Loft of Cabin.

vas born in a snow heap n reared
A barn. They picked my mother UP
carried her In a rickety old cart
the mountains. Jack and Zeb, the
+, oldest, had sent their panicky
amo through the waste, 4 woods
n answered,
The loft Of an old log cabin in the
5lle Ridge mountains was our home IN
/ ose hungry years OF the Civil var
e had nothing but poverty. There
y 5 never enough to eat, We heard no
I'D from my father. Suddenly In 1865
} returned and We moved to Marion
I wn, III
remember our home there. | re-
amber our habitual starvation. We
ed in an empty tobacco barn. There
IS hardly a stick Of furniture In the
. ice. Frank and | used to run wild
out the bare rooms. | know that
as always longing and dreaming OF
od things 10 eat.
Before the war my father was a ply
slan. A little sign on our barn tempt.
a few patients to try his skill an
Adually he built up n meager practice.
III at once, II seemed, his reputation
rev and he became quite a figure IN
ne town, He had never studied law,
hut he was elected district attorney. 4,
II was as though a fairy charm had
haen cast over uR, And then my moth.
tr died Ii broke the spell.
Too Strong to Complain.
ThSre was something grim and fight
Ing and stubborn about her. In all tn
Misery Of our pinched days ] neva
card her complain. She was perhap
90 strong. When she died 1t was Nix
saring up a prop. The home went 4
lleces.
Frank and / were the youngest. !
air OF stray dogs we were, RrubbinI
bout In the alleys. bunking In the tot
loor Of antold storehouse, earning gu
lring by gathering coal off the sand
liars OF the Ohio river. We sold II 10
. cents q hushel. Sometimes we mad,
IS much as Is cents In two days, Thei
We would stuff ourselves with pies ant
iioughnuts. Usually our dinner was a
uncertain and movable feast, Nobod.
trouhled about us. Nobody told u
What to do on what TO avoid. We wer
our own law.
We were little savages fighting 4
survive, Nothing In our lives made Il
ware Of any obligations 10 others. |
vas hardly an ideal environment where
a to raise l~aw-respecting citizens.
Paw, He's Asleep Out There.
My father tried TO keep some sort G
home for us, but he was often w
- NNhhH ~ " hlAlit4 Nllt iIAII fHAn
met me at the river, His eyas stuc
cut like a cats In the dark. He grabbe
lne by the coat n made me run alon
With him, He stopped suddenly mn
hointed to a great, black lump Ind
s,ea against the door Of s%hriebsr'
That's paw" he said, "i4e's aslee
shame like a hot wave swept owe
ne. ] wanted TO get him away. | wn
ond OF him and l didn't want the nee
ne IN the town to know. ran up an
aught him by the shoulder. "Pnv
et up, get up whispered.
He sat up, his face stupid with slee,
phen ne saw me and struck ont "
1rious blow that sent me Keeling
he curb White hot with anger an
nrt affection, ! got up and ran 1ke
ktle maniac TO the river.
] threw myself on the sandbar ar
beat the ground In a fury OF resent
tnent. ! was crushed and enraged.
wanted TO get away, to strike out alon
knew the boats like a river RI
They were loading freight. crawl,
in among the boYes OF the old Flee
wood and ! got to Cincinnati as forloI
ind wretched as any runaway kid,
Worked Like Slave.
But ] was n little cranky, / made ,
" mind to .be a musician, cou
lay the trombone, The Volks theat,
cheap beer garden, took me. on.
Worked like a slave for four DAYS. Sa
'rday night | went around to the ma
ger and asked for my pay. | w
tarved. ! had only eaten what | cou
lick up, For four days | had haunt
he saloon lunch counters. used
neak in, grab a sandwich, duck, gr,
mother and get kicked out.
You NANCY little ragamuffin,'' [
manager swore, with more oaths tn
had ever herad before. Get out
Uerel"
He knocked me against the wall.
had an old bulldog pistol. l fired
lin and ran,
The shot went wild. | saw that,
saw, too, that ! had to run. | did
stop until ! had climbed INTO a hli
baggage a bound for ST, Louis. Th
crept into a hog car, pulled the h
yer me and slept until | was dunn
~ at the ~stocklards in Kansas City
Fight Wins Home.
II vas the first time | was on I
lodge. II Is an ugly thing for a /
II il to attempt murder, but self
lection was the only law | knew. s
;iety might shelter other ~youngste
had to fight for almost every err
had ever eaten, ] was forced to Ia
" Jaw In my own hands or be heat
down by the gaunt poverty that war;
my early life,
IL was a fight that won me a HI
home at the stockyards. l had a sci
with the kid terror of the shamb.
We fought to n finish, Grown II
TODD about and shouted with Taught
Hood streamed from my nose 4
mouth. The fight was a draw.
The terror's father came over ,
hook my hand. / went home "
nem and stayed for a month. The
nd ! would have died for each OF
a week. We cleaned out every OF
oungster In the YARD. The x
iother, slovenly and incorporate
he was, had the sunny kindness
ieople that have hungered and $
cred. She was like a mother to m,
Over Plains in Schooner.
On an old schooner wagon we star
across the plains together. Near
title town OF Lajunta, Col, came
catastrophe that wrecked my existe,
Al Brown got hold of some whis
.fe STOPPED for the night in the m