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Show 13pi4MwHlie Christmas K FcrrceCass Mtr URN Tom left tho farm to Xfltl go to tho city to mako his iJ&EJU. fortuno ho did It contrary sHbC t0 'no om'noU8 head-m) head-m) shaking nnd nhopheclcs il of disaster of nil tho I neighbors. Even his fa- X I tlicr nnd mother, with past ycara of toll rapidly beginning be-ginning to tell upon them, wero pessimistic pes-simistic of his chances of success, nor could thoy resist-exprcssing their forebodings. fore-bodings. Tho old folks loved their boy too well to reproach him for his desertion now In tho first flush of his young manhood, but their hearts did ncho at thought of tho separation, "1'ou'll soon got tired of nil that hurly-burly tlicro in tho city, Tom," his old father told him. "And when you do, I wont you nlwnys to remember remem-ber that wo've still got a place for yim nnck hero nt the old homestead. It mayn't bo ns tino und showy ns lots you'll seo thero In tho city, but It's more tho sort that tho good Lord Intended In-tended you for. Mn nnd I nro hoping tho best for you, son, but when you do find out Hint your fortune's not uwny off there Just pocket your pride nnd como back hero to us who love you." ." young Tom left tho farm with sluii.iig ejos nnd n high henrt nnd adventured ad-ventured Into the great, fnr-nwny city in quest of fume nnd fortune. How ho fared thero nnd nil the sorry sor-ry disappointments that repeatedly overtook him during that year of absence ab-sence would be n long nnd harrowing story to tell. He chased his rainbow to it end. yet found tne tabled pot "or : gnld not there ns he had so confidently and blntnntly expected. Tom made applications for all sorts of office positions only to Ond himself quickly rejected because of bis lack of experience In those specific lin "Well, unywny, I'm young end husky hus-ky and used to hard manual labor" Tom consoled himself. "I can at least get n Jo!) with a contracting gang, as n pointer, or plumber's assistant, or teaniHtcr. That will sufflce to keep roc piling for a while until tho sort of position po-sition I want turns up." Hut even In those lines of work tho greon country boy found himself suddenly sud-denly brought up short against a blank wnll. He hnd no references as to pnst dry employment and nobody would hire him after once finding out that he tirid no union card. Huddled lu his shabby overcoat on n street corner In tho squalid section of the city tho Icy wind wtiistllng nrnund him nnd biting through his threadbare garments poor Tom stood on the evening before Christmas, wondering won-dering where he might find a shelter In which to sleep Hint night without freezing. Just how long ho had stood there, shivering In tho chill wind on the street corner bitterness against the great, unfeeling city rankling In his henrt Tom did not know. He was startled from his moody reverie by hearing a hoarse, wheedling volco at his very elbow, saying what was Intended In-tended ns a confidential tono: "llmrM v'llkn n nice hot food and soma coin to Jingle In ycr pants, bo? Ain't hungry, nro ynl" Whirling about Tom saw that his accoster was an under-sized, burly fet-igw fet-igw with n tough, truculent visage and hii mix shoved deep Into tho sldo pockets pock-ets of his coat. Ho wore a battered cop wltli tho visor pulled low down over bis eyes and spat mnlevolcntly upon the sidewalk each time before he itpoke. "How'd y'llko tho idea, buhl" ho reiterated re-iterated In bis raucous, grating volco, sidling closer as he spoke ond casting a wary cyo up and down tho nearly deserted, gloomy, wind-swept street Tom regarded htm with dlstasto and uudlngulscd mistrust. He" looked llko a typical thug. Uut misery cannot bo too fnstldlous about tbo company It keeps. Finally Tom scowled blackly and answered: "What's" that to you, anyway F "Well, you're outta luck, ain't cha. pal? Ycr on ycr uppers, stony broke and innybe with un empty belly, too. huh, boT Well, I guessed that much. I ain't blind yet, I ain't I Well. I need a pnl for a little Job tonight and we both can mako a lotto Jack out of It, seer "You you mean burglary!" Tom muttered hesitantly, with an Involuntary Involun-tary contraction of his heart "Humph I Not nnythlng llko safecracking safe-cracking or breaking Into house. I don't. Too many peoplo staying up with tho kids over Christmas trees tonight. to-night. I ain't keen on takln' foot chances like that. I'm tellln' ynl Naw, this I wnutcha for Is something soft; snfu nnd easy as falling off o log. Yon know the big prices people ore willing to pay for real booze since tho country coun-try went dry, don't chnT Well, right near here I know a certain warchouso that's got SO cases of whisky stored In tho barement Real bonded stuff I Tho watchman Is nn old pal o mine nnd Is willing to let u snipe It If we'll split on the coin wo get afterwards. after-wards. I'vo got another guy with a flivver that's ready to meet us about 3 o'clock this morning to haul away the stuff ns fast as we pass It up to htm through tbo alley windows. Wo've got It nil framed for a fako capture and tying up of our other pal, tht night wntchmnn, so that tho bulls cant get wlso to him. We're willing to split four ways on the swag If y' wants go In on It with ns. Vhatcha say now, bo, huh? Safe and easy as falling off a logl" Tho sinister appearance of the ruffian ruf-fian repelled Tom, and tho very, thought of the crime they contemplated contemplat-ed struck him with fright. It meant Jail, disgrace, If they wero caught, "Hut I I never have done anything any-thing like thnt In my life," ha stammered stam-mered weakly, teeth chattering in the biting wind. "It wonld bo criminal. Tho whisky doesn't belong to ns. It would bo Illegal for us oven to try to soil It afterwards." "Pah I" pot tho ugly-vlsoged man sneorlngly. "You look pretty, a bird llko youse, talking thnt way about what's lawful nnd all that I Lots that these rich guys have cored how you got along slnco you enmo to town, from tho looks of you I They've got fine, warm homes and coin and everything. every-thing. Wottn they care whether poor bums llko us have to go hungry or freeze In tho gutter on Christmas eve? Why should you caro nbout them when they don't glvo a rap about you? You've got to go on living, ain't cba. huh?" Tom hunched his shuddering shoulders shoul-ders against tho wind, trembling as much becauso of his own moral Irreso-lutlon Irreso-lutlon as from the terrible cold. "Well, bo, how about It? Are y on or are y' still so almighty particular ' about how y' handle the stuff belonging belong-ing to all them rich guys?" "Oodl" groaned poor Tom In the abyss of bis wretchedness. "Yes, I'll do It I I Willi I Willi" The other clapped him roughly on tbo shoulder with n suturnlno leer nnd attempt at Jocular fellowship. -Well, I thought cha would," he rasped hoarsely. "Wo'll meet cfca nt the corner by the lumber yard at 1 :SO. Don't you fall to be there now I" . "I won't I I'll bo there all right I" Tom muttered brokenly. Already In bis cringing soul he felt llko tho thief be had pledged himself to become Oh heaven, If only To kill tlmo until the appointed hour, ho dug his numb hands deeper down Into his pockets ond wondered aimlessly on. Ho hnd no particular objectlvo In mind eavo only the need to keep moving lest ho freeze or go road with the strain of waiting. He shrank from letting himself think of the deed to which ho was about to be party. Involuntarily his dragging footsteps took him back Into the moro brilliantly brilliant-ly lighted retail shopping district, where tho crowds already had thinned, hurrying homo to their families nnd happy, expectant kiddles with the holiday holi-day celebration In mind. The hours dragged slowly by. It como near tho hoar for tho stores to clow. Rut still thero was time, If poor Tom bad only had money, to bavo rushed In, bought the presents he wanted for tho old folks and children, chil-dren, and caught tho midnight train back to tho country. He easily could reach there by morning and appear as o Joyous Rurnrlse to them ' ' - -1 ' nuf uhl Why dflve hlmeir to distraction dis-traction by thinking of that when there was no chance that And right then, suddenly, be esp ed It lying there, almost nt his very fect-n fect-n big. fat wallet, with not o person nearer than n hundred yards of him. Plainly someone had lost It In their mad ha-te to get home. Tom Mopped and scooped It up like iUrI.. Around the corner he nurrcp-?t nurrcp-?t Dimly examined It Bills both creiu and yellow, of large denomlnn-tlons-they fairly stuffed III There nere seven hundred dollnrs or morel -o small fortune to tbo mlscrnblo boy who hnd not even eaten for fourteen hnurfl. Money I Money I Money I Far more than ho possibly could .need even in his most extravagant dream. With n gurgling cry, Tom stuffed the xvsd of bills Into his trousers pocket, threw nwov the fine leather puree nnd lindo a "Hind daio'"foMh?55SB partmenr store. 'M.1i(tv No need now to kceD m --" rrlmlnal appointment- BM?" slty for 6riBM Hut the most BladoBe , 'jjV young Turn's homccomtn ,v BjVjW d..y who hlH blushing hb! JJj BJWV the old folks that h ffiSBlB of the big city- that ho I horn to stay, ns the, htS 1 would. Ba IMS ""i-N.,,,,,, B- |