The Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1822-1829, 1822-09-10

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niles hiiher; no wonder sba ! ,',...,,,,,,.,,'
You have heard her confession r., !, ~.
not hlea1t Tor yoar ear; 50. TN see Won n
gain, say no hug Of what You have now
heard. . ''''e ~"
" On, sir a cup of water. for my blood
Is leaving NJ. heartaltoeether. rFifis drnun.
ing IT, Your voice, Sir. is going far av5v
ifdm me, aud | am sinking down. on
hold me-hnld me up lis il a nit into
which am slnug Saw | not Norman
Adams. Where il he now :"
1hepoor maiden did not fall of The chair.
although Norman Adams supported her
! not but her head lay bacl, against tbr
wall, aad asigh, loag aud dismal. burs, from
her bosom that deeply affected the old
nuns heart, but struck thai of the speech
less and motlonless sinner ike the first toll
al The prison bell, that warns the felon Ia
leave h,s cell and come forth to execution.
The munster tixed Il stern eye upon Nor
man, Tor from the poor girI's unconscious
words II was plain that he was the guilty
wretch Who had wrought all this misery
ou Knew, did Nnu not, that size had nei-
Their tatder nor mother, sister nor brother.
scarcely one relation On earth II care for or
watch over her; and yet you have used her
so' ir her beauty was a temptation unto
You, did not the sweet childs innocence
touch your hard aud selfish heart with pity :
or her guilt and grief must surely now wiring
Il with remOrsc. Look on her-white-
eold-breathless-stiI as corpse; and
Vet thou bold, bad man, thy footsteps would
have approached the Table of the Iordn
The child now partly awoke from her
swoon, and her dim opening eyes met those
OF Norman Adams. She shut them with
shudder, & said sickIy & with trembling
yo,ce, 90 spare, spare me, Norman, are we
again in that dark fearful wood ? Tremble
not lor your life on earth, Norman, never,
never, viii tell TO mortal ears, that terrible
secret but spare me, spare me, else our
Saviour, with all his mercy, will never par
don your unrelcnting soul. These are cru
81 looking eyes ; You will not surely muir
der poor Mary Simpson, unhappy az she is,
and must forever bc--yet life is sweet
She bcseeches you on her knees 10 spare
her life !''-and in the intense fear of phan-
tasy, the poor creature struggled oil the
char, and fell down indeed in heap at his
feet.
"Canst thou, indeed, be the son of old
Norman Adams, the industrious, the tenn
perate, the mid aud the pious ? Who so
often sat IN this very room which your
presence has now po,iatcd 4 spake with
me on the mysteries of lie aud of death.
Foul rayishcr, what stayed thy hand from
the marder Of that rhld, when there were
none to near hershrichs in the dark solitude
OF The great piaeWood :"
Norman Adams smote his heart and fell
down Too Oh his knees beside the poor rtl-
med orphan. He put his arm round her,
and, raising her from the floor, said, " No,
no, ny sin is great, too great for heavens
forgiveness; but . Sir, say not,--.ay not
that would ha' murdered her for as sa-
wage my crime was. yet may God Judge
me ies3 terribly an if had taken her
lie"
Ina little while they were both seated
with some composure, and silence VAS in
the room No one spoke, aud the old gray
haired man sat with eyes fixed without
reading, on the open Bible. Al last hr
broke silence with these words ont OF Isaiah
that seemed to have forced themselves ON
his needless eyes. Though your sins be
as scarlet, they shall be white as snow
though hey be red like crimson, they shall
be as wool"
Mary Simpson Wept aloud at these
words 8; and seemed 10 forget her own
wrong and grief IN conlnlsseration of the
AZ ,ujt5 of rcnlorse and fear that we're now
plainly prPying on the soul oil the man. 81
forgive you, Norman, aud will soon be out
81
sight Of me-" Then fixing her streaming
eyes on tie minister, she besought him not
To bc the means of bringing him 10 punish
ment, and a shameful death. for that he
might repent, aud live 10 be good man,
and respected in thr parish but that She
Was poor orphan, for whom few cared,
aad when dead, would nave but a small tu-
nefa'.
viii deliver myselfup into the hands
Of Justice SAID the offender g for | do not
deserve to live. Mine vas an mhuman
c me, and lci Il violent and shamctul death
be my DOOM"
TIN orphan girl now stood up as if her
strength had been restored, and stretching
ut her hands passionalely, with a flow Of
most affecting and beautiful! language, in
pred by meek, single, and smicss heart,
that could not bear the thought Of utter de
addition and wrelchrdncss Detailing any
onr ofthe rational clili.sa of God, implo.
red and besccchcd the odd man 10 comfort
the sinner before them, and promise that
the DIRK transaction OF guilt should never
leave the conceament of their own three
hearts. Did be not save the lives OF two
brot bars ancn u ho were draw ninu in that
black messy loch, when their own kindred
at work among the hay, feared the deep
sullen water, and all stood aloof, shudder-
ing and shrieking, till Norman Adams ieaPt
into their rescue, aud drew them by the
dripping hair 10 the shore, and then lay
down beside them on the heather, as like 70
death as themselves | myself SAW II
An.a | na-lnli 1. - RI thn nlnthnr naIl dow ]