e his helpless family." While the ladies were
presenting his case to me, the Frenchman manifested great anxiety, and
made the most touching appeals in the piteous expression of his face
and manner. Presently, my husband, who had been indulging in his usual
siesta, awoke and came down stairs. "Now, the poor fellow can tell his
own story," and "Mr. Charless" was pathetically appealed to, to listen
to his tale of woe. Unfortunately for the man he was immediately
recognized by your grandfather, who had but a short time before given
him a cup of coffee, etc., from the kitchen, and had also procured work
for him as a day laborer in a factory, which mode of subsistence not
suiting the Frenchman's taste, he had slipped out of, and ran off,
before commencing work. It was soon evident, from the juxtaposition of
the two, one as accusant, the other defendant, which was not to be
mistaken, even by a person ignorant of the language in which they
spoke, that all was not right. His friends, the ladies, stared, when,
upon each renewed attempt to convict him, he would assure, in the most
self-possessed and polite manner, "Your are mistaken, Monsieur, I have
no doubt but that the man to whom you refer, was very like me, but not
myself, I assure you, sir." Whereupon your grandfather proposed to
accompany him to the boat for the purpose of seeing his family,
promising to procure him a wagon and every thing necessary for their
comfort and removal. But they had not gone far before the Frenchman
began to sidle off, as it to turn a corner, but finding that it was no
easy matter to get away from the persevering gentleman, who insisted
upon being "introduced to the Madame," he made a clean breast of the
whole thing, "Monsieur, I have no wife and little children, but you
know when a poor man want he get nothing from the ladies unless he have
one sick wife, and some poor little children. Excuse me, Monsieur, I
mean no disrespect to you." No one liked a joke better than your
grandfather, and being something of a tease too, he more than once
slily referred to the pitiable condition of the poor Frenchman, which,
although enjoyed by others, was not quite so keenly relished by the
ladies, who had manifested so much interest in the welfare of the
honest man, and his distressed family.

You are not old enough, my dear little children, to remember how
devotedly fond "Grandpa" was of children, and how they all loved him,
notwithstanding he was alwa