He almost forgot the fact that he lay in hiding, that he
was surrounded by unfriendly neighbors, and that at any moment the
representatives of local justice might come in and rudely lead him
away. For this reason he dared not make a light, but he moved his
position so that the glare from an electric lamp on the street outside
might fall across the baby's face, as it lay alternately dozing and
awakening, to smile up at him in the bend of his arm. Once it reached
inside the collar of his shirt and pulled out the scapular that hung
around his neck, and looked at it so long, and with such apparent
seriousness, that Rags was confirmed in his fear that this kindly
visitor was something more or less of a superhuman agent, and his
efforts to make this supposition coincide with the fact that the
angel's parents were on Blackwell's Island, proved one of the severest
struggles his mind had ever experienced. He had forgotten to feel
hungry, and the knowledge that he was acutely so, first came to him
with the thought that the baby must obviously be in greatest need of
food herself. This pained him greatly, and he laid his burden down
upon the bedding, and after slipping off his shoes, tip-toed his way
across the room on a foraging expedition after something she could
eat.
Pages:
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82