Herald of the times. [volume] (Newport, R.I.) 1830-1846, 1844-01-04

alive. Yet with one wOrd, she who was
holy and courageous woman, changed
all my resolutions. Pierre said she "a
me, you must so--l wish il to he SO"
u knelt before her, and said, mother
| will go"
Pierre added she, 'you are a good
son, and thank God for il but the du.
ties Of son are not all those which q
man has TO discharge every citizen
owes himself to the country. She call,
you-obey! You are to be a soldier
from this moment your life is no longer
your own-it is your country's. If hel
interests claim that life, do not hesitate
lf God should will you to die before me
l should, indeed, weep away every tear
Of my heart but | should say, The
Lord gave, and the Lord iakelh away
blessed be the name of the Lord. 10,
men, and u you fope me, do your dniy.'
'Oh, the words OF that saint ! | hear
them YET sounding in my ears. Now the
duty of a soldier IL TO obey, every where
and always. Every where and al
ways have obeyed. It is, therefore,
10 go right head; through every peril,
without hesitation, without reflection
and right ahead have ! gone, through
every peril, without hesitation and with
out reflection. Those who saw me
marching steadily forward with balls fly
ing about me, exclaimed, There goes
one who is truly brave They ought
rather to have said, There goes one
that loves his mother"
'One day it happened that received
a letter, informing me that my mother
was sick. The poor dear woman ! /
desired 10 60 and see her asked leave
oi ABSENCE II was not granted. re-
called her.las, words, II you lore me, do
yow duty,' and | was resigned. Soon
after heard that she, my mother, was
dead Then my brain TUNED. AT any
price, at all hazards, determined TO
return to the country. Whence sprang
this ardent, this impeluous longing, TO
visi. the place where my mother had Just
died will confess 10 you the cause
Since YOU have a mother since you
love her since she loves you, yo,. can
comprehend me. We peasants Of the
Nofvan are simple and credulous men
We have neither the instruction nor the
science that rs found IN cities, but we
have our behels, which you of The city
call supcrsiItions, OF what consequence
is it whether they be called one or the
other! We have them, and sklllul in
deed, must he be who can tear them
from our soul Now one OF the be-
Iiefs which we mos, firmly hold, is that
which attributes to the first flower that
blows upon newly sodded grave, so
great q virtue, that he who gathers that
flower can never forget the dead, or be
fore often of them. Dear and charming
belief! With that thought, death has
nothing TO excite fear for death
without forgetiulness, is nothing more
than mild sIeep-it is only repose af
ter long faiigues.
And that flower desired earnestly
to see II spring up, wished to gather it,
and so left the camp. After ten days
steady painful walking, | reached my
mothers grave. The earth seemed to
be freshly heaped up. No flower had
appeared. | waited-sx weeks rolled
awav thea, ia the first dawn of beau
tifuI day, saw expanding a little flower
Of azure blue. Ii was one of those flow
ers which the people of the city call
Myosotes, but which we country folks
call 'Forget-me- not
In gathering it, | shed tears Of delight,
for it seemed to me as fthis little flower
was the soul Of my mother tina, she
had felt my presence, and under the
form of this flower, she had returned to
offer herself to me. Nothing retained
me in the country, for my father soon
followed my mother to the grave, and !
had gathered my precious flower, and
what more did | need
Il remembered my mothers counsels,
do yOw duty > so enquired for the
gend armcs, and said to them, Il am a.
desetter, arrest me-
Now ! am going TO die, and if, as
YOU have assured me, have a friend in
you, shall die without regret, for you
will perform for me the service that |
expect from you. The flower which
went to gather from the grave at the
peril Of my life is here here, in this lit
tie bundle, which is suspended over my
heart. Promise me that YOU will see
that no one separates it from me. 1t is
the link that unites me with my mother
and il though, that would he broken,
should die like IA coward. You do SOL
emnly promise TO perform what | ash Of
you ?
Il do promise it,
'Oh, your hand +; let me press it upon
my heart, Oh, how good you are to me
how, how love you and if God, by
his omnipotence, should restore me
again TO life, that lie would consecrate
10 you.'
The friends separated.
The next day, when the people had
at the place designated for
the execution, aud ust rs an officer had
read The fatal sentence, there was heard
a noise at distance, and then loud ctics
ran along The ranks Of the army, The .
Emperor is the Emperor-long 1--we
the Emperor
He rode up, and dsmounted from his
horse. Then, with his short rapid step,
he walked directly to the prisoner