Show fleddie and fleddie by H 0 OA COSTA fk copyright 1802 by tally story pub co fab how cold it was in bleeker lane the wind deemed to have a spite against an old ramshackle three story frame that stood on the corner bumping into it and sweeping and growling about it until it heaved and groaned if crying out against its rough playfellow the falling show piled up against it and by the dim light one could see how tho boisterous wind lifted the snow and flung it against the old house enow balling it roaring with glee as now and then a window broke in tp on the third floor the snow poured in through one of the broken windows as if curious to see the inside then formed little piles which were whirled around the room by a stray gust from the bib wind outside then piling up against two huddled ip figures that lay in tao farther corner revealing a girl scantily dressed a rag of a cot ton shawl wound round her an eleven year old girl but with an expressive wisdom and experience in her face that made one shudder while pitying her her eyes were closed and she breathed softly the other was a dog the snow kept piling up against the two until the dog moved uneasily and licked his distress hand with a fervor that woke her instantly ane pat ted his head and slowly rose reveal ehg an immense pair of shoes in which her falt were lost cut and torn and one the snow losing its support flew around the room then settled down on the floor making a white covering of purity that bid its dirt everyone in bleeker lane knew the girl and her attendant the dog the dog hai been rescued by fleddie from an immense tin pall which he was regarding aggressively one sum mer s day crouching in the sun with despair written in his very tall bleeker lane first knew them as fleddie an the dawg then as fled die an pleadis putting the dog first he was a terrier of he ordinary size but his love for his mistress was so fervent that it was a constant source of wonder to the avenon as it was derisively called why some on it gasn wasn t leaking out n his skin fled die she said wait ere till I 1 comes back and he curled himself in a corner accordingly gathering up her wisp of a shawl she dragged the shoes down the worm eaten steps almost being run down by a halt drunken man as she stepped outside he raised his fist threateningly oh fleddie he hiccoughed coughed lurched on poor lit tie girl how pitiful she looked as she passed up the narrow alley As she tame to the wider street a shabby house b kightly lit up caught her attention it was a children s party going on but she peered through the windows with little caspi gaspi of admiration and envy until soma one the door and she scuttled away As she went up the beree she begged timidly and when she fi bally got a copper from a passing man t was accompanied with ahll dren like these begging shameful the mow was falling lightly but as ehe tramped on it got n her shoes and she could barely her feet were so cold it was getting dark and she stopped at a friendly baker s and got a roll for her cent the kind hearted woman putting some cakes in the bag as she saw how wistfully her custom er eyed them As she drew near the frame house she called home a light flared up in the sky bursting through a dense bank of smoke and revealing the alley crowded with a jostling throng fire lines drawn and streams of water spattering against the ram shackle buildings coating the street with ice and freezing on the fire fight ers below A sudden pang seized her fleddie Fl eddle the fire was already circling and colling around the rotten frame she had left and it was doomed the firemen saw this and trying to protect the other houses thought nothing of the dog the room was brightly lit and fleddie saw her pet colled in the corner it stirred and then jumped up as the light became brighter round and round it sniffed then ran to the stairs they were smoking but the dog went down a few steps then run ning back fearfully sprang to the window and hung there looking down pitifully compassionate ran gli the crowd and a net was held below but the dog would not jump A cry of sympathy went up from below and then oh his mis tress caught her breath as he gave a long howl of pain and terror looking at her the bowl rose above the deep undertone of sound and seemed to pierce her through and As he dropped there was a little rush about her and then from the tors arose a cry of horror as a little white figure struggled through them and plunged into the fire lines on she stopped at a friendly bakers she ran her bead filled with one idea she must save fleddie A burly fireman loomed up before her and stretched out a detaining hand but she dodged and passed him and slip ping on the ice covered street he lost his balance and fell another plunged at her and held her toot but she left the shoe in his hand and hobbled on ble bl e had reached the door and jumped through the flame A burst of flame sprang to meet her but she did not feel it A step broke through licked up by the fire but she scrambled to the I 1 one above groping her way up the smoke laden steps up up she went flaming and reached the top step she plunged into the burning room crying tor her pet and groping tor she felt him in the corner he licked hand feebly then holding him fast her way to the window her hair am fire her dress burning but she did not eel the pain up up to the win i dow gulfed in by fire and then roal after roar of horror went up from the crowd below as they saw her reach it holding the dead dog tightly to her the fire embraced the whole house now and it was shaking ominously whit a bright light that was she auld see a long lane of gold reaching far out in the sky and she was aken up to it holding her fleddie closely to her the alre hurt no more now how good she felt the house leaned then falling amidst a shower of sparks A long flame shot up in the she plunged into the burning room groping for her pet sky left its parent stem reluctantly and flew into the night fleddie and were dead |