American watchman and Delaware advertiser. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1822-1828, 1822-08-02

came to the place Oh MS ndtlN1y-duu ~" thS
angels were heard singing in the fields OF Bethie-
hem all the night long"
Alas every word that had thus been uttered,
sent pang into the poor creatures heart, and
without lifting her eyes from the floor and IN a
voice more faint and hollow than belonged to one SO
young, she said, ''Oh sir, come not as an inten-
ding communicate yet the Lord my God KNOWS
that am rather miserable than guilty, and he VIII
rot suffer my soul to PERISH though baby is now
within me, the child OF guilt, and sin, and horror.
This, my shame, come to tell you but Tor the
father of my babe unborn, cruel though he mas
been to me, Oh cruel, crue indeed-yet shall his
name 70 down with me in silence to the grave.
must not breathe his name in mortal ears; but !
have looked round ME in the wide moor, and when
nothing that could understand was by, nothing living
but birds. and bees and the sheep was herdlng,
often have | whispered his name in my prayers,
and beseeched God and Jesus, to forgive him all
his sins"
At these words Of which the passionate utter
ance seemed to relieve her heart, and before the
plying and bewdered old man could reply, Mary
Simpson raised her eyes from the floor, and tearing
to meet the face OF the minister which lad hereto
fore never shone upon her but with smiles, and OF
which the expected irown to her altogether in.
supportabe, she turned them wildly around the
room as if for dark resting place, and beheld
Norman Adams rooted to his seat leaning towards
her with his white ghasty counten4nce and his eyes
starting from their sockets, seemingly IN wrath.
agony fear and remorse.-That terrible face struck
poor Mary to the heart, and she sank against the
wall, and slipped down, shuddering, upon a chair
"Norman Adams, am old and weak, but do YOU
put your arm around that poor lost creature, and
keep her from falling down upon the hard floor |
! hear it is stormy night and she has walked some
miles hither; no wonder she is overcome. You
nave heard her confession But it not meant
Tor your ear SO, til see you again, say nothing OF
what you have now heard "
30 sir a cup Of water for my blood is either
leaving my heart altogether, or 1t is drowning it.
Your voice. sir, is going far away from me, and
am sinking down. Oh hold me-hold me up -
is it pit into which am falling! Saw not Nor
man Adams? Where is he now?"
| The poor maiden did not fall off the chair, al
though Norman idams supported her not but her
head lay back against the wall, and sigh long and
isma, burst from her bosom hat deeply affected
the old mans heart, but struck that OF the speech
less and moonless sinner, like the first toll Of the
prison bell that warns the eon to leave his cell and
come forth TO execution
The minister fixed stern eye upon Norman. for
from the poor girls unconscious words, it was plain
that he was the guilty wretch who had wrought all
this misery. You knew did you not that she had
neither father mo her, sister nor brother,
ly one relation on earth 10 care for oil watch over
her; and yet you have used her so IF her beauty
was temptation unto you did not The sweet child's
innocence touch your hard and selfish heart with
pity or her guilt and grief must surely now wiring
| it with remorse LooE on observation-disclosures
less still as corpse and yet, thou bold bad man
/ Thy footsteps would have approached the Table o
thy Lord"
/ The child now partly awoke from her swoon, ant
I her dim opening eyes met those OF Norman Adams
4 She shut them with shudder, and said, sicky ant
with quivering voice, 80 spare, spare me, Norman
are we again IN that dark fearful wood TTemhls
not for your life earth. Norman, for never, never
will tell to mortal ears that terrible secret; bu
1 spare me, spare me, else our Saviour, with all hi
i mercy, will never pardon your unreenting soul -
These are cruel looking eyes you will not surely
murder poor Mary Simpson, unhappy as she is, ant
must for ever be--yet life is sweet She beseeche
you on her knees to spare her lifew-and, in the
intense fear Of phantasy the poor creature struggled
= off the chair, and fell down indeed in heap at hi
: feet
II "Canst thou indeed be the son of old Norman
Adams the Industrious the temperate, the mild * h
r pious Who so often sal in this very room which
your presence has NV polluted and spake with mi
ION the mysteries life and Of death. Foul ravsher
what STAYED thy hand from the murder Of that child
when there were none near her shrie&s in the darl
I solitude of the great pine-wood :"
Norman Adams smote his heart and fell down tor
! on his knees beside the poor ruined orphan, H,
put his arm round her. and, raising her from thu
floor, said, No, no my sin is great, too great 70
heavens forgiveness; but o Sir, say not,-say no
that would have murdered her; for, savage as my
crime yet may God judge me less terribly thar
if had taken her life"
In little while they were both seated with som,
: composure, and silence was in the room No on,
/. spoke and the old gray haired man sat with eye
fixed without reading, on the open Bible At las
he broke silence with these words out Of Isaiah, tina
seemed to have forced themselves on his needless
' eyes. 2" Though your sins be scarlet, they shall
be white as snow though they be red like crimson
i they shall be as woo''
Mary Simpson wept aloud at these words an,