| Show I 1 I 1 h ad A story wilh with a blessing arf by PHOEBE GRAY howl 1 aa copyright by sma maynard ft company compy SYNOPSIS 2 while trundling t the I 1 clan lean up clipper 1111 mary A alice brown to a let upon by tome lavo us boy boys who av h p the into th the s dirt bhe she Is t rescued and taken to her homo h ime in culvert calvert treet street b by 7 francis wallett Wll lett a galahad knight I 1 do you think that a wife and mother doe does wrong if she he gets a 2 divorce after eho the learnt learns t that hat 0 the father of her children Is a brute undeserving of any ort sort of consideration even though it means breaking the promise prom lae until death do you part it CHAPTER I 1 continued mary story alice paid no attention to 1 her father but went to mrs brown nud and eald said something in a low tone ats that the man demanded none of that secret talk now you better bring lem em up dear eald said UK mother ill do em tonight mary alice took a clothes basket and went out cheree ree the money asked lem she mrs travers pay herms her ms none of that now that aint so 0 o youre holding out on me lem its if the truth eald said mrs brown mary alice staggered up ali tha stairs with a load of clothes froia froal the v agon and mrs brown fell to sorting them wants bats them dirty once ones asked lem I 1 say heres that money you come through now or ill how show yon you at this moment the child in the crib it v oko and cried fretfully mrs ll own drew a cup of water at tho the eink sink and bent over the little thing soothing it and offering cool drink say roared lem how long yon gonter keep me waltin lie ile arose and strode to hia his blile side the sick child looked up and seeing its father began to cry I 1 git away lem lcm pushing mrs brown violently ill tell you what you gamme that money quick or ill wring the kids kid a neck it waa was an inspiration of 0 cruelty of undoubted effe it mrs jerown lod possessed a penny on earth eho she would mould have yielded it up with all haste but lacking the resources of ransom there was only on one thing bing I 1 to do and she did it 1 ith a cry the mother threw herself upon 11 her tormentor dont touch tench him liml eho she cried 1 I ament ila en t a cent I 1 tell you if I 1 bud had id I 1 d gh e it to 3 oil oh oil I 1 eni em lies so please ilease please tho the drunkard struck her heavily upon the mouth month so that she fell against the wall she returned to the encounter but ot at this moment mary alice ascending with the lust last of the rolled travers linen dropped her big load and attacked the man iio turned upon glicr wolfishly bis his heavy hand land closing upon her thin little der tier nutt butt in will you houi he said butt in eba ch 1111 11 teach you ile topped and picked cp up from trout the woodber wood bor near tho tb ranee range a stick not large enough tu tj be called a club but heavy enough to be extremely formidable la in the hands of lem lcm brown IN ith it he almed a blow at maty mary al ice throwing up her hande hands the she re to the stroke crushingly upon her fingers I 1 oil ob abl ehe she moaned drown brown and would hare have defended dLf ended endea mary alice but in doing so 0 o was her solf cruelly beaten again and again tle weapon fell each time crushing bruising In lacerating cerat ng only mary al at icee tees thick blace hair saved her full skull bhe she had never taken euch such a beating before when it as over 0 he cow cred ered in a corner bobbing sobbing with the horror and pain of it story mary alice would have tiara prayed but it looked like a hope leea less procedure prow proc lure elure for if god knew all about it and let it go on what w ae an the good of asking him to help bert her lie cither either meant these dreadful things to happen or he ile care lem convinced that it money exist ed in that house so much punishment would have brought it from its hidler place stumped off oft cursing and weep wc p ing with maudlin pity for a man whose home was thus barren of aran cial resource he ne might come coins back later be he be gone a week he might be arrested arrea ted before another hour land and sent away for a good long sentence en mary alice hoped the last event would occur and it did 40 though 1 aary ary allm and ho mother were averal daya days in inking it out 4 mr mrs brown locked 6 door leading into the hall come dear ebe she aid said undress and let ie me look at you I 1 alb I 1 bad had deot witch har poor little girl poop poor little mother Ito thees 0 so o orry sorry mary alice winced every time her finger toadied touched her flesh desh mr brown wept auca aleu slit lie alco tive livid imprints upon the meager body af bee child for every bruise ehe the sut uttered te red an agony of sympathy yi apathy which dwarfed her own pain itself no email small thing the lex sick baby slept quietly and mr mrs palled pulled bin his crib into the room she tried to make mary alice comfortable tn in ber her own bed and presently baring having turned out the gas crept in best to her daughter then ehe she slept for the eick sick child bad stolen many hours of her tier rest and ber her bands hands had not known an idle moment for many days little mary alice twelve yeara years old beaten aching in every fiber lay a long time in a i dumb agony fearful lest any in movement of hers bers should wake her mother after a while ehe she fell to bobbing but this soon ceased and she the gazed into the shadows with eyes that smarted A gnat longing for the open air came upon her the night was hot and no breeze blew in at the open window for away mary alice heard a church clock strike the hour was nine she slipped out of bed slowly and with exquisite pain vieb mary alice dress ing was not eo so complicated a procedure that it required a maid mald a assistance or a long time to accomplish IN ben elie mile turned the tho key in the door to let herself out she thought she be might be back in half an hour she nas slightly feverish and if she walked as far as the park and then as mary alice crept down the front steps something shining in the gutter caught liei let eye it was els Is willetts Wll letts half dollar CHAPTER II 11 A trolley ride mary alary alice hobbled down to the corner of calvert street stooping and limping liko like a very old weman she felt aa as it if ehe she were in a sort ef of envelope of pain which oppressed her from head I 1 id to foot hardly any part of her ached waro than win mother another the evening was still quite young and tho the crowds of unkempt children rioted in calven calvert street while their cid eld 0 w P squatted on front stoops and gati capped gapped ped awaiting a bentson of breeze and chatting meager futilities as they waited all along the walks lights shone and as mary alice threaded her way she was mas assailed by pungent volatile seeming odors from basement windows or swinging doors mary alice bad had been born in the country she remembered what trees r 1 4 r rt my goodne goodness thought mary alice dont 1 with wish I 1 had and fields and flowers looked like she sever never let go of that picture though it was groning ing more find and more b blurred in her mind As A the picture faded failed her longing to renew it increased lu III the center of sheffield lay a road broad l square or park a fine plaza overlooked by the municipal bull bullrings eings ai aid d primped with rova of subdued a trees this breathing pot spot was mas mary objective she wanted more than anything else eho she thought fresh air hut but as the chill emerged from the purl pur leua of calvert street into the more elegant thoroughfares of the town she came cime into the zone of brighter lights presently eho she came to a window with a chancier of lt IV own it waa was A very largo large window oft t in A arme of snowy enamel leond ond a glass 1 blazed the porcelain glo flea sies of a quick lunch mary alice mouth began to water lul but the chief attraction of that win dow the feature that suddenly glued mary allea shabby little feet to the bricks and fixed ber her large black eyes la in a stare of loosing loil gIng fascination was the riddle cake ako hot plate I 1 its shining black surface disked with yeasty moons of pure fid behind the hot plate stood a fat tat young man cased starch lly in a sheath of white duck aid crowned with a rak ish ib laundered pap ap tipped over one moody brow on a thin bladed turner he manipulated the delicacies and tossed tosse them he m with indifference in af fe re ace upon a plate which a Is Autt tui ful lady came and removed swiftly lir my rood neM sal thought mary abuce dont I 1 wish I 1 lia hat bhe she checked ind suddenly denly for the cool ness of that cola coin of francis N V 4 lett lette s ghaly atly held in a moist palm alm dawna upon by mary alice turned and sought the entrance to this para dise 1 I 1 want some of them ehe she eald said to the beautiful lady when ehe she had seat ed herself at a table with a top whiter than alabaster the lady was a pronounced blonde with a pug nose mic she borr abundant and anti crackly white skirts that stuck out daintily all around and at her belt carried a little punch euch such as railway conductors use 8 had bad brought mary mery wee alice 0 of leevater Iw lee water the blonde hesitated ey eying ing ma alice speculatively you got any money abe baked mary story alice displayed her half dollar all 11 right dearie said the be tut ful lady and then in a it much loude loudel tone ahe she commanded the griddles A mild torin form of physical RI ex bertlon actuated the hot plate prince mary alice in to it stiff backed chair that was too high for her ached and waited walte here you go eald said the beautiful lady cheerfully hungry you like I 1 brought you an extra pitcher and two pats pat of butter want a glass of milk 1 I have to pay tor for it dont I 1 asked alary story alice looking up well you don dont t think we e began the waitress then she made a quick shift wita an eye to deceit never mind it 11 be all 01 right mary story adee busy with her cakes and did not see that the beautiful indy lady fumbled in her apron pocket as she approached the service counter it was very gratifying to mary story alice brown to find when ehe she had eiten as much as she could hold bold and this was wits a very respectable quantity con si dering her years and growth that she bad had nothing at all to pay when she left the palace of tile and smiled a wry good night at the plump batter baron in the window she thought ehe she would go home and she was a little cheered by the continued possession of hor bar half balt dIlar dc liar and by the kindness which utter strangers had leaped upon her her bruises still ached but a full stomach was not dot without soothing effects the air in city park seemed very sweet and cool the little girl wanted anted more of it 11 aw board fr rr Gleason dAli roxford peppers mill canterbury Manter bury and hillside falls aw board A gong clanged mary alice looked up at the trolley about to begin its suburban journey as audibly catalogued by the conductor that car would slide along through an endless supply of air air even cooler and fresher and sweeter than this of city park and mary alice wee had money ste could pay her fare out and back bhe opined that the round trip would occupy half an n hour and cost her not over ten or twenty cents so she climbed inboard the conductor repeated his list of suburban town yanked briskly at the bell cord and the car slid bumping and teetering out of the zone of pale lights and took its twisting way may into ru raldon mary alice smelled the dors of meadow and grove as the car sped she closed her eyes opened them closed them again the car passed a tiny station where it stopped and let off a dozen tired looking country folk evidently glad to be at the end of a day in the city mary alice was infinitely soothed she kept closing hii ht eyes opening them blissfully and closing them again the car rocked and hummed the breezes blow the child childs a tangled black hair she was no longer ID iv pain she forgot to open her eyes fhe rho calm sweet stars in a velvet summer sky saw a little girl get off a suburban street ar at tha the end of tho line no sail sal 1 the conductor we dont make no trip till tilt mornin we leave her 8 here all night lie reached up and turned a switch immediately the car was in darkness where you coln kid asked the man did you think wed be golno back 1 I I 1 thought so I 1 do she asked plaintively her bruised body ached the ride out from the city had been refreshing but now a fear of the great silence clutched her you can t toy stay in this open car all night bald said the conductor bieyl jim mail here heres s a little girl that thought wea wes back tonight blat we better do with herl 1 I cant take her to mv house doubted the motorman the beds Is nil till full yon you try sam thomas look theys a light in his hi home house come along elter anter said the conductor he lie spoke very kindly at boms hie his own little girl waa was now snug ly tucked into bed and be would teal steal into the room and kisi kiss her before he tie tamed turned in himself it was wits always the lt thing to do a night no matter how be felt come along sis ln ter sam thomas Th oroa in hie his stocking toc king fet feet and carrying tarrying a kerosene lamp in his b d opened the door he lie grunted all a little atle when he lear learned tied the grature of the petition nat but you know sam me and jim alms both full up we got small houses and alic faelten if twant for that id take her home in a minute may do it anyhow w it you dont want her what sort ort of future do you think await awaits mary alice at the how hento ef of oam sam thomas will the fanner farmer help hep her camj fam or la Is he athe the kind who will w wap war ar out tho th child childs life in grinding TO UM |
