Pippin; A Wandering Flame

ome definite plan when his time was up. He wanted to give him letters

our conduct, Pippin, and they'll be glad to help you, and give you

folkses', even yours. Long as I've ben here, I've took all you gave, and thankful; but now it's up

u going to do?"

trade, and it was the devil's, wasn't it? Well! So I got a wrong start, you see. Now I've got to find the Lord's trade, the one He meant for me to find, and you can't f

he loved the kindly sound of the human voice, and when there was no other to hear he must listen to his own. He even called up the family that his fancy had fashioned, and pictured them walking the road with him, "Ma" in her blue dress, with her pink cheeks and bright eyes, "Pa"

aplain concerning the merits and demerits of Chi

ly, and Chiney sure has. He has pains something fierce; I hear him groanin' nights. I see a yarn in a book about a bird interferin' with some guy's liver: well, Chiney sounded

lently. He had been so absorbed in talk that he had not

s horse and surveyed him curiously.

A thickset, grizzled man with an honest face, now screwe

talkin' to?"

said Pippin. "I admi

lse were near: then again at Pippin. "You

se I ain't!"

you was, footin' it along, and talkin' ni

t it's more natural for a ma

shrewd, observant eyes. At l

nd in another minute they

" said the

keeps still-well, it may mean one thing and it may mean another. He may be gettin' religion: I never spoke for three days when the Lord was havin' it out with me: but then again it may mea

"What are you talkin' about?"

t's so. I found the grace of God, and there's no lyin' in mine fr

is kindly face grave. "What were yo

' and en

th a long, slow whistle. Again he studied Pippin'

o' foolin' I'd call that, wouldn

andscape, he took a careful survey of his horse, leaning forward to scrutinize every buckle of the harness; at last his eyes came back to Pippin with a very grave look. "I guess we

kin', sir? Why, if I'd run away, would I be tellin'? I guess nix! No parole, neithe

e you to be breakin' and enterin'? Weren't you sayin' something abou

"My trade, from a baby as you may say. I'v

you there? In p

ou, sir, but I count them three year

dly. "Git up, Nelson!" he clucked to the horse, which started obediently on a jog trot. Pippin drew a long breath, and threw his head back

r about it, sir," he said, "but pe

d like to

hadn't no parents, to know them, and I growed up anyhow, as you might say, kickin' round the streets. Come about ten years old, a man bought my

eak

he man recoiled involuntarily-"and I'd advise you to change it, for you see, sir, in a crowd, any one in that line that knew his business would slit your coat and pinch it just as easy-Well! So I learned that, and at the same time I was taken on breakin's.

do you

cked him in good shape and went over to Blankton, 'crost the river. Along about then I got in with some fellers of my own age, who thought breakin' was the only trade in the world. They were keen on it, and they meant to be gentleman burglars, and get rich, and own the earth, or as much of it as they could cover. They'd been readin' a book about a feller named Snaffles; I called him a mean skunk, but they thought he was all creation; well, they were good fellers, and we chummed up together, and pretty

ked his companion, half s

his head, like an elastic cushion. He ran hi

ons with wondering eyes. "But a jimmy, you see, sir," turning an animated face toward his companion, "is a crook's tool, and no one else's. Well! Where was I? Oh, yes, I had joined them fellers. Well, we made up a gang, and we got us a name; the Honey Boys we were. Crooks are real childish, or apt to be; I

"An' you lookin' like an ho

ad a hunch against me-I'd licked him one day when he robbed a kid. Brought home a little gal's bracelet he'd took off her at the movies; wouldn't that make your nose bleed? Well, I made his, I tell you, and he laid it up; kind of Dago he was, with an ugly streak in him. There was four of us on the job-country house job, and him and me was the two to go in while the others kep' watch. So we went through the rooms, did it in good shape too, got quite a lot of swag and didn't wake a soul till just as we was gettin' out the window. He got out first and I give him the bag; just then a door opened into the pantry where we was. He caught me

Shor

ow the place, sir?" Pippin'

t, but I've seen some that have been-and more

calls 'em. That's it, barbarisms! Him and the Old Man-that's the Warden, sir-are doin' of 'em away as fast as they can, but you can't clean a ward with one pail of water. And there's o

ord there; or the Lord f

to wash, and brush their hair, and that; mothers learned 'em. Green grass! and think o' their-Well, anyhow, I took to that like a cat to cream; I've never been dirty since, nor I can't abide dirty folks. I just grouched off by myself, and planned what I'd do when my time was up; nobody thought I was any good, and I wasn't. All I thought of was how to get out, and then get back at Chunky-he was the Dago guy I was tellin' about. I'd study over it all day lon

lushing scarlet. "Lord, fo

xpectantly at him. "Go on, young feller! You ca

he rest, like a sheep, and sat down, never lookin' up. I'd got a piece of string, and a feller had showed me a new knot, and I sat tyin' it, waitin' for the singin'. I never took no notice of anything else. Then a voice spoke, and I jumped, and looked up. It was a strange voice, and a strange man. Tall and well set up, he was, kind o' sandy hair and beard, and eyes that looked right through you and counted the buttons on the back of your shirt. Yes, and his voice went through you, too; it wasn't loud nor yet sharp, but you couldn't help but listen. 'The Lord is here!' he said. He let that sink in a minute; then, 'Right here,' he said, 'in this chapel. And what's more, you left Him behind you in your cell. And what's mor

he looked again, and that time he saw all there was to see. I felt it crinkle down to my toes, so to say. Bimeby, as we were goin' out, after service, he come down and shook hands with us all, every man Jack, and said somethin' pleasant. Come to me, he looks me right through again, and says he, 'Well, boy, what are you doin' here?' I choked up, and couldn't say a word. It wasn't so much what he said, mind you, as the way he said it. Why, yo

or anybody. I did what I had to, and then I sat down and just grouched, the way I told you. Crooks is childish, as I said; maybe other folks is too, I dono. Well! So Elder Hadley c

ter?' he says ag

I used language, them days; ne

s me over careful. 'Wh

was burnt all right. He listened quiet, his head kind o' bent down. At la

I says. 'There's

, and-I dono-somethin' in his look made me straighten up and hold up my head. 'None of that ta

' doin' in your line here, but you bet I like you. Yo

it, because they belong together. There's another bit in the Warden, and another in Tom Clapp there, though I'll own he doesn't look it (and he didn't); and there's a bit in everybody he

I got up kind o' staggerin', like, and he tucked his arm into mine, and he opened the door and we went out. Out! I'd been in there a year, sir. I don't believe you could guess what 'twas like. He marched me over to that field-we clum over the fence, and that done me a sight of good-and told me to set down. Then he giv

ous bandanna handkerchief and blew his nose loudly.

the Lord in him, and he said so, over and over, plain, and I heard him. And the sun shined on the buttercups, and they had a bit too, and appeared like they knowed it, and kind o' nodded and was pleased; and the leaves on the