ONE SMALL MAN'S PLAN

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XIX, Issue 33, 15 May 1891, Page 21

ONE SMALL MAN'S PLAN

The " blue-line" street cir stopped at the corner, and a rather anxiouslookiog young woman put a sma'l boy inside. " Now, Rob," she sail, as she hurried out to the platform again, " don'c lose that note I gave you ; don't take it out of your pocket at all. ' " No'm," said the little man, looking wistfully after his mother as the conductor pulled the stnp, tho diiver unscrewed his braka, and the horses, shaking their bels, trotted off with the car. "What's your name, Bub?" asked a mischievous-looking young man sitting beside him. " Robert Cu!!en Deems," he answered, politely. " Whore are you going ?" " To my grandma's." " Let me see tbat note in your pocket." The look of innocent surprise in the round face ought to have shamed the baby's tormentor, but ho only said again, " Let me see it." '• I tan't," sail Robert Cullen Deems. " See here, if you dou't, I'll scare the horses and nv.ke them run away." The little boy cast an apprehensive look at tL oelled horses, but shook his beid. " Here, Bub, I'll givo you this p^ach if you pu 1 that note halfway out of your pocket." The boy did not reply, but soma of the older people looked angiy. " I say, chum, I'll give you tbis whole bag of peaches if you just ■bow me the corner of your note," said thettmpter. The child turned away, as if hs did not wish to hear any m >ie, but the young man opened the ba^, and held it out jubt where ne could see and smell tbe luscious fruit. A lojk of distress came in o the sweet little face ; I believe Rob was afiai 1 to trust himsi If, anl when a nun "left his scat on t' c other side, to g.-t oil tho car, the litt'i j boy s ip.i d quickly djwu, left the ttmpia'ioa >>■ hm<l. and ch.ube i into the vaca ii p'aoe. A pair of prettily gloved haoels began almost unconsciously to clap, and then everybody clapped and applauded until it might have

alarmed Bob if a young lady sitting by had not slipped her arm around him, and said with a sweet glow on her face :—: — " Tell your mamma that we all congratulate her upon having a little man strong enough to resist temptation and wise enough to run away from it." I doubt if that long, hard message ever reached Bob's mother but no matter, the note got to his grandmother without ever coming out of bis pocket. — American paper.