Show I PRIEST AND THE I A Little Story of Manhattan That ThatIs Is Stranger Than Fiction Three young men sat st drinking Scotch whisky and soda before a great geat roaring wood fire in the luxurious home of a fre fashionable club just off of Fifth avenue It I was the dusk of an unusually unusual cold evening and the wind was playing high highjinks jinks with wih the dark and narrow narow sereetA A uniformed attendant stole noise noiselessly noiselessly noiselessly lessly over the he thick silken rugs to turn on the electric lights He Ho was requested to let them remain as as they were for the present The young men ere sere enjoying the spectacle of the snow driving through the narrow street and it i was pleasurable to turn from it to the fire tre as it burned ever brighter in the gathering gloom Perhaps the th young men were rather maudlin At least the blond member of the group was and it was waa not strange for he had been drinking hard and steadily for a week week From the mu music music music sic room some distance away came the soft notes of a piano They probably accentuated the hard drinkers mood Gentlemen he said Im Im tired tred of leading leding a frivolous life Im Im going to turn tur over a new leaf It pay The others laughed but presently they were all al engaged in a discussion I Ia a Ia a as to whether there i iwas was such a thing as happiness The strikingly original conclusion reached i was vas that tat if there really realy was such a athing athing athing thing it lay in unselfishness More Scotch was ordered and drunk and with wih each additional libation the enthusiasm for unselfishness grew At length the young man mail ml who had so long been vainly seeking se happiness in the company of the e demon rum smote the table and exclaimed Gentlemen lm Im going right out now to do something for somebody His companions received the an announcement announcement announcement with wih acclaim Only one thing dampened their ardor where could they find somebody to do good to None of them knew a soul sul who was in need It I was wa annoying even even exasperating But the blond young man came to the rescue He had heard of Father a High Church Epla Epis Episcopal copal priest whose parish lay in a neighborhood away avay ever near the East Est river Surely the good father would know of somebody who ho could be helped Fine Pine Fine cried the others other and before setting out they all al had another drink drink On the stoop of or the clubhouse they debated debate as to whether they would call calla cal a a hansom but it i was eventually de decided decided that they would get a keener realization of what it meant to lead bead led the unselfish life Ufe if they breasted the storm torm and walked over They did Two of the young youns men had ha never be before before before fore been in the part of the world through which they wended their way and one was nearly neady frozen frozelL As they trudged on ankle deep in snow an an anamong among the squalid tenements tenement and ad low tw encountered the bitter biter blasts blast sweeping up from the river the entire entre enthusiasm for the unselfish life slowly oozed but fortunately enough remained to keep them tem going until they reached their destination Now it i is to be feared that their ex experience experience experience at the parish house will wi read rea suspiciously like Uke the fiction one en encounters encounter encounters counters counter in m the magazines at Christ Christmas Christma Christmas mas ma nevertheless every ever incident here herere recorded re actually happened The room rom that tat the party of three was ushered into was as cold and bare as a a cell cel After a brief interval the priest en entered entered entered By this time all al three young men were ere feeling somewhat foolish Their long Jong walk in the cold had made things thing appear appear in a different light Bat Bt it was too late to retreat retreat So the blond young yun man cleared his throat and awkwardly stammered that they had some money to spare about 50 59 and they thought it barely bardy possible that the priest prest might know of ot some worthy family that needed help The priest looked the three young men over and then without saying a word pulled a abell abel abell bell bel cord A little serving girl re responded Ask Ak Sister Jf f she will wi please plese come here said the te priest t In a few moments moment the sister enterer entered entered She was vas a woman and she tore ore the garb of her order Sister said sid the priest you have been praying all al this afternoon that tat you Jou might receive some help for forthe forthe forthe the have you not Evidently wondering the te sister re replied replied plied Yes Father rUe Fater Well el said sid the the priest the help has arrived v |