The Sunday Oregonian. (Portland, Ore.) 1881-current, November 15, 1908, Section Six, Image 60

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    TITE SUXDAT OREGOXIAX. PORTLAND, XOTE3FBER 15, 190S.
HOW HANS WENT TO ITALY.
Story of a German boy who marched with an army
of children across the Alps and what they found on the
other side.
Robert H Tuller.
An
BT ROBERT A. 1TLLKR.
I ANS lived in the city of Cologne.
Germany, so long ago that
Lmerfrm. had not even been ois-
covered at the time, for Columbus had
not then been born. Yet Cologne was
a, large place then, as It is now, and
it was famous for Its Cathedral, Just aa
it is today. Hans, who waa the son of
a blacksmith and armorer, knew all
ahout this Cathedral, which was not
tran-e. stnee Father Godfrey, his best
friend, lived In it.
Many thousand of men and women
and children came to the Cathedral
every year to pray before the splendid
shrine In. which lay the bones of the
Wise Men. In a beautiful golden cas
ket. Therefore It was no unusual thing
to see crowds about the door. But one
day as Hans and Godfrey were return
ing from aome visits to the poor and
sick which the good monk had been
making, they were surprised to find
an especially great throng about the
door of the church.
"Some one seems to be preaching
there." Godfrey said, shading hi eyes
with his hand. I wonder who It
can bet"
"It's a boy." Hans exclaimed. "He
doesn't look any older than I am.
rfo it Is." the monk replied. "Let us
go nearer."
They pressed on and found a strange
sight. A young boy with fair long
hair and blue eyes was preaching to a
crowd of pilgrims Just outside the door
of the church, and so many had gath
ered to listen to him that Godfrey was
unable to force his way through them.
So he was compelled to stand with the
rest and wait until the young preacher
should finish.
They soon found that he was preach
ing about the Holy Land, which was
then in the hands of the Infidels. He
waa telling hjs hearers that the time
had come to rescue the sacred city of
Jerusalem. There was nothing surpris
ing in this, for the same thing had
been preached for many years by
priests, and armies of men had marched
to the Holy Land to attempt what they
asked. But what was strange was the
fact that the boy who was now preach
ing did not ask for an army or armed
men. but Insisted that children should
be the rescuers of the territory that
waa to be conquered.
Hans listened to the boy. and It
seemed to him that he had never heard
anything more beautiful In his life
than the things that the boy was say
ing. The brave words and the prom
ises of victory made the blood tingle
in his veins und he forgot all about
his companion until the sermon. If it
could be called a sermon, was ended
and the crowd began to move away.
"Wasn't it splendid?" he said, taking
Godfrey by the hand.
"It waa remarkable." Godfrey said
with a smile. "I wonder who the lad
can be?"
They asked some of the bystanders,
who said:
"We do not know who he is. He
says that his name -Is Nicholas, and
that hel Ives in a village not far from
the city."
"He la very silly to think that
children could capture the Holy Land
when so many brave men have failed."
Godfrey said.
Now Hans waa sorry to hear hla
friend talk In that way. for he already
felt aure In his own mind that all he
had beard Nicholas say was true and
that the Holy Land was to be regained
by children. He thought It best not to
reply, however, for he did not wish to
give Godfrey pain. But he came the
next day and the next to hear the
young preacher, and a great many oth
er boys and even a few girls came, too.
The result of this was that the children
became convinced that they would win
success where the armies of their el
ders had failed, and before long they
began to talk about setting out for
the Holy Land.
Good Father Godfrey was much vexed
when he found that Hans had made up
his mind to Join the expedition.
"You will be very sorry for It. my
boy." he said with a sigh. "The place
you wish to seek is many, many miles
away, over sea and land, and you can
not hope to reach It alive. You would
do better to be guided by those who
know more than you, and remain at
home with us."
But Hans would not listen, and
Father Godfrey at last told his father,
the smith, what was In his mind. The
result of this was that Hans received
By
tN- -Cr "X'V 'j
a good beating with a leather strap
that his father wore with his great
apnm when he was in the forge, but
the beating did not change his pur
rose. Hans was not a bad boy. but the
truth was he could not help want
ing to go, sorry as he was to
grieve his father and his rriena
Godfrey. He could not sleep for think
ing ot the wonderful things he was
to see on the Journey to the Holy Land,
and he never doubted that when the
army of children arrived there the In
fidels would at once lay aside their
arms, as Nicholas preoictea. ana iau
upon their knees. There would be no
fighting, he was certain of that.
There were a great many more cnn-
dren who felt as he did. In fact, there
were so many of them that when they
gathered outside the city of Cologne
the fields were covered with them far
and near. Thore were no less than
50.000 of them In all. and they made
an army Indeed. Most of them wore
long gray coats, with a red cross sewn
on the breast of the garment. It was
a great grief to Hans that he did not
have a cloak, but as he had been com
pelled to run away from his home early
that morning In order to Join the cru
sade, of course it was Impossible for
him to get one. Once In the crowd, he
had no fear that his father or Godfrey
would find lilm.
With waving banners and songs of
triumph the army set out, marching
southward toward Italy, whence they
would advance, as Nicholas told them,
to the Holy Land. Their hearts beat
high with hope.
"Shall we reach Italy tomorrow?"
asked a red-headed boy. who marched
beside Hans.
"No," Hans replied. "It Is many days'
Journey, and we must cross the Alps
before we reach It."
"Do you suppose there are bears In
the Alps?" ald another boy, who had
large freckles on his nose.
"I don:t know." Hans replied. "I
hope not."
"If there are any bears there." the
red-heeded boy said, "all that Nicholas
will have to do is to explain to them
where we are going, and they will not
harm us." x
It was a long day's march before the
children halted on the first day. Hans
found a renting place among some
sheaves In a Held of oats. Many of
tho boys had brought a supply of pro
visions with them, and the one with the
freckled nose, who was only years
old, shared his supper with Hans.
Strange as It may seem, by no means
all the parents had objected to the ex
pedition. Many of them were as ig
norant of the distance to be traveled
and of the dangers to be encountered on
the way as were the children them
selves, and so they had allowed them
to go.
Day after day the children marched on
from city to city and from town to town.
In most places the people were glad to
se them and willingly provided them
with food. Before long some of the
younger and smaller ones became tired
out and could go no farther. These
were left behind in the care of stran
gers, and some of them found their way
home after they had rested. Some oth
ers' grew homesick and turned back, but
the greater part of the army pressed on
until at last they could see the white
peaks of the Alps rising against the
blue sky before them.
Now began the most difficult part of
their travels. The road led them among
tho mountains, along clear, cold lakes
and between rocky cliffs toward Cenis,
over which they must climb. Gradually
the way became more steep and stony,
and the nights grew so cold that Hans
found It hard to sleep. The sharp
rocks cut their feet, for their shoes had
long ago been worn out and many of
the boys had . thrown them away, not
knowing how much they would need
them in the mountains. The streams
came dashing down the narrow valleys
from the melting banks of snow above.
Here many more of the children found
that they could go no farther and
turned back, saying farewell to their
companions, with tears "In their eyes.
Among them was the boy with the
freckled nose, whose name was Gott
lieb. "Take my cloak," he. said sadly to
Hans. "I shall not ned it on my way
home. But when you come back from
the Holy Land bring" me some relic,
since I cannot go with you."
"Yes, Indeed, I will.' Hans replied.
He was delighted to have the cloak not
only for the fine appearance it made but
still more for the warmth. But he was
sorry o have little Gottlieb leave, for
they had become great friends.
Gazing down from the mountain top
next morning, the children saw the
wide plains of Italy spread beneath them
in the warm sunlight. You may be sure
that the sight made them glad to take
up their Journey again, and with all
speed they descended the steep sides of
the mountain upon which they had . suf
fered so much.
"Hurry!" said Hans to the boy with
the red hair. "We shall find plenty to
eat down there and no longer shall we
be In danger of freezing In the snow."
There was no need for Hans to give
this advice, for the red-haired boy made
his long legs go so fast that Hans found
It hard work to keep up with him. And
so they reached the plain and found
themselves among people whose lan
guage they could not understand and
were not so kind to them as fhetr own
people had been along the Rhine, on the
other side of the mountains. But they
were warm, at any rate, and they found
food enough to keep them from starv
ing. By dusty roads between green
fields they went until they reached the
splendid city of Genoa, where a thousand
ships lay at anchor in the harbor.
"From Jhis place," Nicholas an
nounced, "we shall set out for the Holy
Land. A way will be found to cross
the sea."
Hans was invited by a merchant and
his wife, who happened to know the Ger
man tongue, to pass the night with
them, and he was glad enough to ac
cept. For the first time since he left
his own home In Cologne he slept in a
bed. But he was not allowed to enjoy
It until he had told the story of his ad
ventures, and great was the wonder and
pity of Pletro and Maria, for so the
merchant and his wife were named, at
what he had to tell. They had no chil
dren of their own, and It was evident
that Maria was greatly pleased with
their visitor.
'Suppose we adopt him," she said to
her husband when Hans had gone to
his chamber. "He is a fine, strong
boy, and he can help you with your
business. If he will stay with us, we
shall have some one to lean upon as we
grow old."
"I think it is a good Idea." Pietro re- I
plied. "I will speak to the boy about
it tomorrow."
So-in the morning he asked Hans to re
main with them. At first the boy would
not think of it. but he soon found that
the promises made to them by Nicho
las of finding a way across the sea to
the Holy Land were not fulfilled and
that it would be necessary for the army
to march on, no one knew exactly
whither. He also found that some of
his companions had made up their minds
to remain in Genoa, and so he finally
decided to accept the offer that had bean
made to him. He remained and never
had reason to regret it. for In the
course of time he rose to be one of the
leading merchants in the city, owning
a fleet of ships which brought him
wealth from all parts of the world.
As for the rest of the army. It marched
on through Italy, going as far as Rome.
But It never found a way to get to the
Holy Land. Its numbers were much re
duced by sickness and only a few of
those who had set out so proudly from
Cologne at last found their way bark
(",-ain.
STORY OF THE STOLEN GOLD
CHAPTER X.
THK runaway boy worked among the
rags In the Junk-shop until noon,
and then went to dinner. It was so
had that he turned his face away. When
the old woman observed his action and
was about to speak to him he said:
"I have worked three days and a half
now, and I wish to go. Won't you please
give me ja for what I have done?"
"What! What!" she shouted. "Why,
hear him talk! The boy offers to work
for his board and lodgings, and says he
would Be so glad to do it, and thenwants
$1 when half a week la up!"
"You were to pay me SS a week and
give me board and lodgings, ma'am."
"I was, eh? Then I'm a liar, am I!
We'll see about that. My son Is sleep
ing upstairs, and I'll call him down and
tell him that his inribcent old mother has
been called a liar by a cub of a boy.
Then we'll see what happens we'll see
what !"
She started for the stair door and
Frank grabbed for his hat and ran into
the street. The old woman had no son.
She had got all the work out of the run
away boy she could, and she wanted to
scare him off. He didn't understand her
game and he went.
Then, for the next four weeks Frank
lived on the streets of New York. In all
that time he did not earn a nickel. There
was no chance for him to do so. Had he
been well dressed and furnished with
references he might have found a place,
but he had neither good clothes nor any
thing to speak in his favor. On the con
trary, he looked disreputable.
One day wnen ne nad accosted a pe
destrian the man beckotied him into a
doorway and said:
"See here," my boy, I can put you on to
something a great deal better than this."
"What is It?" asked Frank.
"I'm running the dime museum up the
street. I want a new freak."
"But I I ain't a freak, am IT' stam
mered Frank.
"Well. no. You are simply an idiot of
a boy who has probably runaway from a
good home, but I can make a freak of
you. Did you ever hear of a Guyasticu
tus?" "No, sir."
"It's an animal that is half-colt, and
half-calf. I had the only one ever shown
In this country, but he died. I can dress
you up In a calfskin, put hoofs on your
feet and tie ears'on your head, and you
will pass for the real thing. You'll be in
a pen, and I shall expect you to eat
grass. The pay will be WO a week and
board. What do you say?"
Frank thought of the man who had
told him on the first day of his arrival
that he ought to hire out to eat grass,
and he'was so indignant that the tears
came to his eyes.
"You'll make a fine Guyastlcutus,"
continued the man. "You will bawl
like a calf and whinny like a colt, and
you shall have all the green grass
you can get away with. When tho
show Is over for the day you will eat
the same as I do. Can you begin to b
a nice little Guyastlcutus tomorrow?"
"No, sir!" almost shouted the runa
way boy. "I'll never be one!"
"Qh, you are a bit sensitive, are you?
All right. If you had rather be a beg
gar than a nice little Guy, that's for
you to say. Better think it over and
come around. Grass is pretty good
eating."
It was only an hour later when some
one touched Frank on the shoulder. He
thought It was a policeman and gave a
Jump, but when he looked up It was
Into the face of the farmer who had
brought him Into New York
"Well, sonny, how does the runaway
business get along?" asked the man in
a good-natured way.
"I I want to go back home." re
plied Frank, as his chin began to
quiver. (
"Haven't you got to be a banker
yet? Don't you own any one of these
sky-scrapers around here?"
Frank couldn't sav another word.
He felt that he should break down if ,
he tried to. The man led him to a
restaurant and gave him the best, and
almost the only meal he had eaten
since coming to New York, and thence ',
to a clothing store and bought him a '
new suit. Then they took a streetcar I
to the depot and a train for a village
up the country. . i
"You see." said the farmer, when j
they had got fairly started. I know :
your uncle Joe and aunt Mary known ;
'em a long time. When I heard that
their boy had run away I remembered
of your riding to the city with me. I
came down to see "a lawyer today, and
thought I'd look around a little for'
you. Glad I've found you."
"But I stole money from them!'" .
waiied Frank. "I stole their money
and how can I ever go back?" '
But he did go back. About mid
forenoon of the next day, after staying'
all night with the farmer and walking1
seven miles the next morning, he en- :
tered the house to be cried over by
aunt Mary and to do a little cryilng
himself. Then uncle Joe came in and '
what do you suppose he did? (
.-"Frank, if you've had enough of the'
runnin' away business you can go over!
to Johnson's and get that hoe I sent
you for so long ago.".
And Frank Is on the old farm today,
industrious and satisfied; and when the;
old folks are finally called away he :
will be the owner of all the broad j
acres.
Winter Quarters in the Back Yard. By Uncle Dick.
7 "WW v T1
PATTEfcM
OF TOP"
S-HOOLpER,
FOR.5T0VE
PIPE. .
TEKT FI&E FLASH.
&RKK.-H EARTH.
ux..tnt"i v
r t, ; .4-:
W W
f OVER. MAtE if
r
COVEK. MAtE
FROM 0L& TIN ROOF
MtEETOFTIN
WCEpTORjOOF
OF TENT
cT,f grate. aj,
OlPTCLEaAPH
VJIREOR IR.0H
K.0P5
rm afraid those bey ever & tho wood tlcep wry
warm these eaghea"
OMMY, I'm going to show you
how to make something that
won't be of any particular use
to you, as you have such comfortable
quarters here, but I know that a whole
lot of your friends will be Interested
In it."
Uncle Dick had removed his topcoat on
entering the woodshed, and stood, with
his back to the stove, gazing out of the
window at the little flurry of snow the
first intimation that old Boreas was on
Alphabet Animals in Patchwork Picture Puzzles.
-
S. "r Vj Of all the canny animah in eartfroroCeaa hid ' Tt lv
3T 1 There's icarccJy one as aaie and sound as fcj tne Ernyxfid, , Yi7 tTP'
vv J J f la hii beiBod eoenrie their ge toay epd tp Ky 6-JfPSl
lj' J f He krtp)y ieer and winks at them bxxa vat his hoose cf shc.IL jt IpA Jfff J5"J'X.
2 Vw I C "0 No wonder O Flamjnpj blushes aTwaya red as flame """si f VP y
F7" JT J?-&r When minding- others' business has got him such a name, J , IV A I
JT7 -t1 v l yT Unless hb eurioeity had stretched It for a sign, A V-Iry
CVVNs' K P- Y6u nay be sere bis neck would be as abort as you or mine. KyJ
Jl'J j You doubtless thlnkT the Grampus, with bis slow and pleasant arnitea t"" '""rTS. y"
I fl 7- r1r WA l'&s& v Benevolent and generous but watch him for a while ! 1 fj ' .KK
V i37lr 1 1 Indeed be says that prey and steal he positively must, . 1 ffV f ' J
jpj,,, of being chief of the Sub-Oceanic Trust. j j
To find th animals which are hidden
In the patchwork picture puxxle proceed
along the same lln as In putting to
gether a mosaic puzsie or a Jig saw pus-
ile for all theee purxlee are of exactlv illuatrates. First cut out the entire mo- die the pieces, and It will also make the cut away. In cutting out the parts
the same kind. The verse at the side of sale and paste it on heavy wrapping pa- punle last longer. After you have thus which make up the picture be yery care-
the puxile tells the story which the pie- per before cutting out the separate piece, reinforced the mosaic cut out the sep- ful to cut Just within the black lines or
ture that U to be made from the piece This U merely to make It easier to han- arat pieces. The white parts are to be the pieces will not fit nicely.
the Job, practicing up a little for some of
the big stunts he had In view later on.
"I called over at the automobile factory
last week to see Mr. Smith, and we went
out for a spin in one of his machines.
"We were on a suburban road when some
thing went wrong and we had to stop.
As Mr. Smith was tinkering with the ma
chine I happened to notice a couple of
boys carrying a stove into a tent pitched
In their back yard. The incident re
minded me of a Winter camp the Boggs
boys established one Fall, and how Bill
Smith heated the tent. When Louie and
Jim were about fourteen and twelve, re
spectively, their mother died. About two
years later old Mr. Boggs married a seo
ond wife. Now, Louie and Jim Just wor
shiped their mother, and the Idea of a
stepmother taking hfr place waa unbear
able. They had never seen the lady, as
she lived up state, where Mr. Boggs
moved from when a young man. The
wedding took place at the lady's home,
Mr. Boggs making the trip alone. He
was obliged to leave Louie and Jim at
home to take care of the stock in his ab
sence. However, there was to be a big
time on the arrival of the new bride, and
all the people In the neighborhood were
Invited to the homecoming.
"We boys noticed a great change In
(Louie and Jim after Mr. Boggs went
away. They didn't care about playing
even when we would go over and help
them get their work done up. Indeed,
they seemed to be very busy with some
mysterious duties of their own. After a
bit I noticed that Bill Smith was mixed
up in the wbnderful secret, whatever it
was. Of course, I felt kind of miffed
then. Anyhow, I didn't want to Inter
fere with them, so I Just kept away from
them. Well, the date of the homecoming,
arrived at last. Bill Smith's mother took
charge of the house and got everything in
readiness. The bride and bridegroom ar
rived on time, the festivities were started
and then it dawned on everybody that
Louie and Jim were not there. Instead
there was a note addressed to Mr. Boggs
signed by the pair. It was a funny little
boyish note, saying that they weren't
coming home any more, and hoping that
their papa and his new wife would be
very happy. Boor Mr. jsoggs was aw
fully upset about It. but tried not to
show it. His new wife, however, was
all broken up. and the party came to an
end with everybody feeling blue.
"Where the boys had. gone nobody
knew. That is, nobody but Bill Smith.
About a week later he let me Into the
secret. They were camping out In the
woods, over toward Frog Hollow. They
had taken their clothes and some cooking
utensils and were living in a tent. My.
what a bully time they were having!
Bill and I went over to the camp every
day or so, smuggling in all the food they
wanted. But a new problem soon pre
sented Itself. When they went away It .
was early In October and all the Are
they needed was for cooking purposeB.
Now It was along in November, the
nights were getting frosty, and although
they had piled branches around the tent
until It was like a cabin they needed heat
Inside.
"It didn't take Bill Smith long to fix;
thera up. We found an old tin roof to
make the cover; this, with three lengths
of stove pipe, and a few bricks for the
hearth, was all that was needed. We set
the bricks in clay, which is plenty good
enough. Of course, a little of the smoke
escapes Into the tent, but not enough to
hurt anything. With the new fireplace
they were as snug as a bug in a rug,
until a real cold spsll set in, when we all
realized that they hadn't taken their
Winter ciothes with them. Just then a
funny thing happened. Bill Smith was
passing the Bogs farm one day, when
Mr. Boggs hailed him.
" 'Say, Bill,' he Inquired, 'do you know
of any boys about the age of Louie and
Jim that I can give their Winter clothes
to? They went off without taking them,
and I'd Just like to give them to some
poor boys that need them."
"You can wager that Bill didn't hesitate
long. 'Why, yes, he said. 'There's a
poor woodchopper over In the woods with
a couple of boys Just their size. I know
they'd like to have them.'
"So Mr. Boggs went Into the house and
came back with a big bundle containing
Louie's and Jim's Winter clothes. Bill
said afterward there was a queer little
twinkle In his eye when be handed him
the bundle.
" 'You Just tell them they're welcome
to these, bacause my boys will probably
outgrow thera before they come back.'
"A few days later a big snow storm set
In, and Mr. Boggs called Bill again.
" 'Say, Bill,' he said, 'I'm afraid those
boys over in the woods don't sleep very
warm these nights. Here's a pair of
blankets off of my boys' beds that we've
got no use for. By the way, you might
take these boots along, too.'
"When Bill saw two brand-new pairs
of rubber boots he had to laugh, and
Mr. Boggs came to the door with 'two
big pumpkin pies and a lot of Jam and
things for Sill to pack on the sled, and
that settled It. Of course, Mr. Boggs
knew where they were all the time. He
acted aa If nothing had happened when
the boys came for their Thanksgiving
dinner, and they soon came to think their
new mamma was the next best woman
that ever lived.
"If any of your friends are going to
keep their tents up during the Winter
this drawing will show Just how to make
the fireplace. You can get the rivets In
any hardware store and can probably find
some iron rods for the grate bars, if
you can't, heavy telegraph wire will do U?
you put It close enough."
NOVEMBER.
Novenrber to the month when first
We're sure that Winter's here.
The flowers are gone, the trees are bare.
The park looks cold and drear.
And yet Inside the house it seems
Much nicer than before.
We sit beside the glowing fire.
Curled up upon the floor.
Our books we like so very much.
And on a rainy day
We're perfectly contented
Without active kinds of play.
On clear days It is fresh and brisk;
We Dlay out in the park.
And come home gay and hungry
Just aa it's getting dark. ,
The shadows fall across the road.
And from the house the light
Gleams out upon our pathway
With welcome warm and bright.
So, after all. November
Is not so very sad.
Although we love October, when
November comes we re glad.