A little girl whose parents had died lived with her grandmother. One night there was a fire in the house and the grandmother while trying to rescue the child. The fire spread died quickly, and the first floor of the house was soon in flames.
Neighbors called the fire department, and then stood helplessly by, unable to enter the house because flames blocked all the entrances. The little girl stood at an upstairs window, crying for help, just as word spread among the crowd that the firefighters would be delayed a few minutes because they were all at another fire.
Suddenly, a man appeared with a ladder, put it up against the side of the house and disappeared inside. When he reappeared, he had the little girl in his arms. He delivered the child to the waiting arms below, then disappeared into at night.
Weeks later a meeting was held in the town hall to determine who would take the child, who had no living relatives, into their home and bring her up.
A teacher said she would like to raise the child. She pointed out that she could ensure a good education. A farmer said he could bring her up on his farm. Finally, the town’s richest man arose and said, “I can give this child all the advantages that you have mentioned here.”
Throughout all this, the child kept silent, her eyes on the floor.
“Does anyone else want to speak?” asked the meeting chairman. A man came forward from the back of the hall. He walked slowly and he seemed in pain. When he got to the front of the hall, he stood directly before the little girl and held out his arms. The crowd was scared. His hands and arms were terribly burned.
The child cried out, “This is the man who rescued me!” She threw her arms around the man’s neck, just as she had that lucky night. She buried her face in his shoulder and sobbed for a few moments. Then she looked up and smiled at him.
“The meeting is over,” said the chairman.