MY TRAMP. 371 



her rejoicings at my discomfiture had, togetlier with the con- 

 clusion to stay of her hand-maiden, outweighed her regret at 

 the losses from the depredations of our lodger. A merry peal 

 of laughter from the front room showed that our children had 

 also experienced a change of heart. On hearing John, my 

 oldest boy, exclaim, " Goodey, that's the hardest lick it's got 

 yet," and my youngest, that " he'd bet his toe-nail'd come off," 

 I went in to see what caused this merry-making, and was 

 greeted by a violent pounding at the front door. Opening it 

 I found Jo Sipes, one of my best customers, standing on one 

 foot and holding the other in his hand, and swearing at such 

 a rate that I really felt hurt. On asking an explanation, he 

 told me that if I was going to allow my young ones to play 

 such tricks on innocent people I might, but he'd bought 

 his last cent's worth of me ; and turning around he limped off. 

 It appeared that after my departure little John had been 

 seized with a bright idea, which had dried up his sorrow at 

 the loss of his pennies, on seeing the tramp's hat reposing on 

 its perch. This he had placed on the pavement in front of 

 the store and ballasted with a brick. Several guileless people 

 had bestowed kicks upon it, much to their regret and the 

 enjoyment of my children, who, in witnessing the sport, had 

 forgotten their recent trouble. Informing the latter that I 

 would " make them laugh on the other side of their mouths," I 

 administered the needed correctives, and, amid their wailings, 

 I sat down to rather a late breakfast. The hat I had ordered 

 removed promptly from its tempting position; but not until it 

 had caused me much loss in custom, as several of those who had 

 attempted to propel it were my patrons, who thought I was in 

 some way connected with its being placed there. I at last 

 got to the store, and barring the fact that several customers 

 had been there for goods and had gone away empty-handed, 

 and that my tramp had been the indirect means of losing me 

 some custom, things were soon going on smoothly again. The 



