The Torch and Other Tales | Page 6

who shall say? But one fine morning
Pegram was back again, and he welcomed the child same as he'd
already welcomed his dog, and Joey went back full of great joy to say
as his friend was home once more and terrible pleased to see him.
Which interested Joseph and Minnie Ford a good bit, for they guessed
that they'd made a bitter and dangerous enemy in that quarter and little
thought to see the man again. Yet he'd come back and, more wonderful
still, afore he'd been home a week, he made bold to step in one night
and shake their hands and say 'twas a very nice thing to be home in his
own den a free man! They felt mazed to see him among 'em, so
cheerful and full of talk as if he'd been away for a holiday. And Joseph
wondered a lot and felt it on the tip of his tongue to name the past and
express friendly hopes for the future. But he didn't, and it weren't till he
saw 'Santa Claus' down to the gate on his way home, that the little chap
spoke.
"Say nought and try to forget," he said. "You done your duty and that's
all the best and worst of us can do. Be my friend, for I've got but few."

Then he was gone, and Joseph woke to a surer trust in humanity and
felt our common nature crying to him to believe it; while his own
policeman's nature warned him to do no such thing. He talked far into
the night with his wife; but she was all for believing.
"Us be Christians," said Minnie, "and well we know how the Lord
works. He's come to right thinking by chastisement, and his heart's
softened and never will I believe a man as loves the little ones like him
be so very bad. He's paid for what he done and, if he wants to forget
and forgive, 'tis everybody's place to do the same."
"That sounds all right," granted Joseph. "And who be I to say he's not a
repentant man? But--you didn't see his face, with ten devils staring out
of his eyes, when I took him."
"Us'll watch and pray for him," answered Minnie. "My heart tells me
the poor man won't fall again."
And they left it at that and Minnie prayed and Joseph watched; and the
woman triumphed over her husband a good bit as time went on, for
Teddy Pegram never looked back so far as could be seen, until, little by
little, even Joseph felt that his spell in the jug had changed Teddy to a
member of society a good bit out of the common.
His friends reckoned that, when another autumn came, the strain would
be too much and the old poacher might be found to fall; but, as Ned
Chown pointed out, it weren't very likely as Pegram would fall again in
the same place.
"If he was minded to fall, he'd sling his hook and go and fall
somewhere else, where he weren't known," he said, and indeed Teddy
had made the same remark himself. He stuck to lawful sport and went
his quiet way, until that happened which looked as though he might
soon be minded to flit.
In the fall he sold his cottage to Ned Chown, who owned a few little
dwellings already and was a great believer in the virtue of house
property; but Pegram only let the inn-keeper have it on one condition

and that was that he should be allowed to go on living in it while he
chose to do so. He explained to Joseph Ford that he never meant to
leave Little Silver; but that he was very poor and a thought pressed for
money, and glad to have the value of the house in his pocket again.
So another year passed over 'em all, and the end of the strange business
of 'Santa Claus' came on another Christmas Eve, when he dropped in to
see the Fords and express his friendship and good wishes. They'd quite
slipped back into the old, kindly understanding, and Joseph felt long
since convinced that his stern dealing had been the salvation of the
man--a fact Teddy himself often declared, without shame. They cared
for him a lot by now, and Minnie never tired of singing his praises, and
the child never felt a day well spent if his friend didn't come into it.
Joey was in bed and asleep before Pegram called in his character of
'Santa Claus'; but he'd not forgot his gift and produced a fine box of
sweets, to be put on top of the child's stocking along with a Christmas
card. He looked in on sleeping Joey also and smiled to