Show al T 14 1 4 T M az y deacon 4 NOW lie awk ow mevrel I 1 ford il 0 OST ST things deacon took as e they came and with mith great calmness of spirit tor for he w m as an even tempered old horse whose disposition a dozen years filled with the usual a of equine adversity had thoroughly seasoned yet now he was pawing and stamping as impatiently Impatient ii as any four i 3 ear old at in he bould would stretch its I 1 is neck thrust forward his old white nose R sj rd d in a bulge in a c r planning pla ining wh tiny there ww wpm idson cason for dea cons con s restless 4 more aban an hour ago he i quid ald have been on the move mone b bere rere ere he was nas still m wilting milting in tte ile post office shed and never a sign r word from his dreier deacon aou ou understand pulled uncle sams over kural rural free delivery route no 2 11 ii erton n P 0 ile had pulled it for three years and he was nas f fairly airly twell eased in the business at any rate he knew that it was past his starting time long before more had t e sway suay bick back sorrel on route no Is I 1 taken the road the pert little bay rare on no 3 had follo followed ned a few fen minutes I liter iter let here was deacon with mith the beani est and longest route of them all still standing idly in the shed inside in the ila Haier town post otice n were ere a number cf ef men whoso frame of ra nd NN was as worse than deacons s one A I 1 M 0 14 t aw A vei rol a t but deacon would not turn of them was nag the pst postmaster master li myself in tle first place tl tj e cons ar rl elul i I 1 of a three foot anan snowfall fall and the bulk of tte tle christmas mail was mas bad enough next came the disabling of one of his best drivers dri daiv vers ers and tip the dincov ery that two substitute carriers were nere out of ton town n well the postmaster abter said things dai da sweeney driver of no 2 route was disabled behold doubt there he be was nas sitting on a pile of nail mall n ail sacks h s bick against it steam radiator Us its face white and drawn drann out of sl ape by twinges of rheumatism he ile had dragged himself down to the office but tl ti at was all till I 1 e could do now non although he tie should have been sent back to bed he was sorting the r kail rail ail for his route 11 the christmas mail tool too I 1 groaned dan he had a conscience dan siad and his beart was as in his work it m was as a sight of the great pile of packages which mace mae danny dalny groin deepest they were more to hia him thai imply so i uch fourt class r nitter ritter these string tied boses boxes and bundles they were nere invested with nith so methin beliles the statute guarded sanctity of the united states nail mail w ich tell daa dan breeney bw beeney bad no light respect he ile anew tha eacel one of ft tl e n carried jot only ier chandise abut a subtly of the goodly holiday spirit the rient of Christ P jeand and to think just because of this pi t his any jany j of them might net be delivered until tl e 0 holiday t was over elti w it i wl en they the would noula cone corie lagging a nr n as stale is q fired firecrackers en cn theat of bulj I 1 bo so danny growled ica tw there 14 nu nay at Is last to OP tie office clerk n wid I 1 alu as to attempt the task noia oa stow the packages la in just tint thit u and do your best to find where they go old deacon 11 ll take you over the route all right if you give him hm his head he knows it like a book I 1 so 0 the ct cl ira I 1 was started out over der route no ino 2 deacon k turned g eye on the new neap man mal is 18 I if to ask what wak wa t abi 4 matter with di im inn aa if U 4 I 1 no SOOT et li hid id they reached joel A roid where the route began than deacon realized the inexperience ol 01 the new man why he was mas actually going to drive right past the powers place and the powers almost always alays I 1 ad mall mail of some kind even enen if it moie mole than a poultry magazine or a seed catalogue cita logue after one or t vo no such mistakes deacon took charge of things himsel from tom house ouse to house he went stopping wherever hf he had been in the habit of calling wait 12 i itil the new carrier found who li there and had looked through let and ind parcels to see if he ie had any thing for them all the forenoon and all the after this went ment on but m when hen the red sun went do n in the fi firsty osty wast w st there still repaired rem aired hilf h a hundred letters and more thin a peck of VAck packages ages to be delivered the new mau mafa was hun gry and tired but he was nas no quitter so he begged some hay and oats toi foi deacon bor borrow romed ed a lantern and to gether they started to finish the route I 1 As tor for deacon his old knees were stiffer than ever his shoulder mi ides ached h s flanks heaved like a p tir of blacksmith blacksmiths s bellow s but be plunged on neer ne nev er skipping a single house never hesitate ng at a round about half mile ratio doing his wole viole duty quite as its thoroughly as if had been some one be lind to aige him on instead of a cold numbed clerk who had no longer en even ell the i leins eins at I 1 list only one letter was as left a thick bulky offe on in a blu blua waterproof envelope i bearing bear ng a foren fore n po postmark smirk job jos oh all braisted Br alsted esq was nas the address braisted Br alsted eh ell muttered the clerk vi N onam if the old horse know s where he lives evidently deacon dil 4 1 r ta he eriq aloi gloving through a dig mg drift healing straight 0 it n the boston roid into the d dp arness far par on the top of i I 1 long feng hil hit fie the clerk could see the lights of a big hoise ho ise there n were ere no other ii it it its een miles allies behind he lie co ild sake rake s ake oat the g glow I 1 ow of the city r e corb clerk wished he could be back there where one could be warm again ir it d get something hot to eat with numb he pulled out his watch match half past nine why it would take them a good two hours to drive bad bael bowl now braisted be liin hinged gedl I 1 he could get his letter after christmas so he grabbed the reins and in cited to deacon a desire to turn aroulia but deain would not turn I 1 lull ull on the rein as he mig might lit deacon w n uld only swing his head about lc 1 aping ping his legs diming straight head by much shouting and sawing on the reins deacon was nna stopple stopp ld fien then the new driver n wadel ade I 1 out to I 1 11 iz head heid took him by the bits and tried to point the hoise the ott otter er I v ay dt DL a i con refused to budge thos bigl ts on tl e top of the long hill marker the end of the route and deacon nv it and to those lights they went josi jost 11 Br braisted alsted ed the drive drivel curtly of the y ung woman oman who an his ring oh it s come it s come I 1 she shouted to someone sora eone within as sl e held ou out her hand eagerly for the letter never before had he seen hi nuch much excitement caused by the deli delivery Nery of a I 1 letter in a moment there were ahr three ela or four persons in the front fron t I 1 hallalf hal 1 I I 1 lall a I 1 talking villing at once S t do you think it will nill save him doc doe tor asked the anxious f ce cc I 1 ol 01 I 1 lady who had follo followed ned the gill 0 lo 10 o the dj da r it will nill if anything wll will I 1 guis gu 9 anan ered a stout bearded rc in an 1 he lie mou mounted ted the stairs t to 0 see I 1 the h e pa tient la in the room then they insisted tl ti at the I 1 alf ficken clerk coie inside ani ant I 1 iva g to eat deacon ol 01 they would take care of deacon they did all tl it Is and baor it seeded seemed fi th it this letter had bem long expected and was n as sadly nelden for it came fro n I 1 a prod inal fal son to a very nery sick father it had bad its effect too ot of coune tie t ie clerk told thorn them of deacons heroic stub inn inniss ss of how the old I 1 loise oi se hd insi tid on going to tl e i ery end of tl ti e i oute aute w u ie ien i I 1 e had hid tiled to turn hla hl a back ios jos ai all I 1 braisted esq heard the story during I 1 lis IS COM alesci nce I 1 must tell my son about alit tl at w u hen he ames home he would rel eat as they told hia him of afe 0 part dencer in the story e ought tu to do something for that old loise he lie said they did too the office clerk w m h will arst chov sho v you QU a handsome goll mitch w atch tells the stor story best always en ell I 1 in ing with nith and old deacon why rhy he lives out there on the braisted Br alsted place life e a it thoroughbred gez he s in clover he Is vell nell dan sweeney will add its ts no more korea arx he deserves desern es old deacon was a ft mighty good toise I oise in his day nd lid mighty know hron in ila bt A louis blot e D macrat t sac WA W A |