The spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1840-1844, 1841-04-16

cure SOUleIUlng WHICH ne saw UOulnT near III
shore; others that he bad risen in his sleep ant
gone in, while others considered either of thes
suggestions to be highly improbable, since some
the young men now made known the fact that tn
deceased was an expert swimmer These ant
many other conjectures equally erroneous wer,
formed respecting the mysterious event, till, wca
ried with the iruiless discussion it was given VI
as case entirely hopeless of any further eucida
ton, and therefore permitted to rest
Seth had been peculiar fayore with theGamil,
generally, and his loss for many days cast deeI
gloom over the minds of the little community who
were thus Unexpectedly called TO mourn his pre-
mature decease. The impression, however, like
all others of the kind, wore gradually away from
the minds Of all except the bereaved Martha ana
the conscence-snlilten Elder, from whose bosoms
the memory Of the lost one for reasons peculiar to
each, was not, as may well be supposed, so easily
to be erased.
Although the circumstances in which Martha was
placed precluded her from communicating them 10
others and receiving in return those aeviating sym
pathies which it is the privilege of ordinary sorrow
TO receive, yet none the less heavy for that fell this
blow of alllicion, and none the less keeny was
felt the anguish that now in secret wrnng her guile
less and faithful bosom. Young Love was begin
ming to shed his sweet and happifying influences
over her pure and gentle heart, and his twin angel,
Hope, had Just showed his snowy pnion to her I'M
accustomed vision, pointing her to land of earth
" felicity which never before, even in her brightest
dreams, had been pictured 10 her mind; but all
these grateful feelings had been suddenly chilled
and frozen in the current that was so bSslully
waiting her away to the promised haven of huppi-
ness--a these bright visions had vanished, eav-
ing her future not only blank and cherries, but
dark and porenis of persecution and wo, from
which there was no hope Of escaping. These cir
cumsances combined to render the poor girls loss
no ordinary bereavement; and most persons of her
natural seusibiliiies would probably have sunk I'M
der the weight of the affection. But Martha was
Christian: and she mcekly bowed beneath the
christening rod, and turned for consolation 10 that
Ilie-spring on high which is never long sealed
fountain 10 The meek and devoted followers Of Him
who once himself knew earthly sorrows
But, while Martha was TINS comioried and sus-
tanned, no such consolation remained for the des-
pcube wretch who had been the cause of her
troubles; and the more he tried TO still his startled
conscience, the more did its accusing spirit rise up
to dsquet him, not only for the hand he had i'll the
young mans death, but for the part he had preyi
0usy acted toward him in his general msusagc,
ind more particularly in an affair TO which only
slight allusion has rs yet been made About
month previous to the time of which we are speak
ing, stranger from the neighborhood Of Selh's
early residence called at the establishment, bear
ing for him letter. which he expressed desire 10
deliver in person; but the young man being at work
in the woods some distance from home, and the
stranger being anxious to resume his journey, the
letter was ut length entrusted to Higgins, on his
promise Of delivering it to Seth MS soon he re-
turned, Having repeated his niunciions, the mes
senger departed, not, however, till the inquisive
Elder had fished from him, as cautious as he evil
DENLY intended to be, some clue to the contents of
the letter. No sooner was the strangers back
fairly turned than Higgins retired to private apart,
men and broke open the letter, which proved to be
from neighbor Of Sclh's uncle whom we have
before mentioned and which announced the sue
cessive deaths, within few days of each other of
that uncle and the nephew living with him. by
which event, it was stated, no will or wills had
been made, Seth became the legal heir 10 all the
estate thus left, consisting of good farm and
considerable personal property The writer closed
by advising the Young man TO leave his present
situation, come home and take possession of the
property. After reading the letter carefully over
several times, the perfidious Elder committed to
the flames, and spent the remainder of the day in
devsing and settling his plans, aud in drawing up
for Selhs signature an acqni,ance TO the family Of
all the property he had or of which he might be-
come the iuheliior. And the next day, after hay
ing smooihed the way for the attempt, MS he sup
posed, by m unusual display Of ai|abiy and pa
renf-kc kindness he cautiously preached the sub
jcct to the young man and tried TO induce him to
sign The paper, falsely affirming to he one of their
regulations to require such an act Of the young
members Of their society, whether they had any
properly or not, whea they arrived at the legal age
at which Seth, as ii happened, had few days be-
fore attained The latter, however, secretly medi-
tating upon leaving the family soon had no notion
Of cutting himself Off from any right Of property
which might some day accrue to him, though now
he certainly had no such expectations and he there
fore, firmly refused TO comply with the Elders re-
quest. AIlcr renewing the attempt several fines,
and resoring 10 every art and falschood which he
deemed likely to aid him in his purpose, Higgins
was compelled to renquish his fraudulent design,
with no other result than that of exciting The
picions Of Seth that there might havc indeed, some
thing occurred at his unce'sin his favor, and Of
fastening bis determination 10 leave and 90 and see
for himself
II was no wonder, then, when all these injuries
closed as the dark catalogue was BY the death Of
the victim, rose in review before the mind of the
guilty Elder, that his conscience troubled him. lie
had not, it was true, really intended quite 10 de-
stroy the young mans life; but he could not dis
guise from himself that his acts had as much pro-
duccd the fatal result ns if his own hand had dealt
the death. blow, and that, too, under feelings but
little less holy than he need TO have possessed TO
have rendered the deed the foues, in the list of hui
man crimes. In vain did he try to shut out these
disquieiing thoughts from his mind in vain did he
try By quibbng and sophstry TO still the voice Of
conscience, and he soon became the piey Of The