Carroll free press. [volume] (Carrollton [Ohio]) 1834-1861, 1846-09-25

knees you struck that knife into his heart. Oh,
VIII give you the quarter Of PaO!"
And his hand was raised for the blow, and his
teeth were clenched in deadly hate. He paused
for moment, and then pinioned the tory's arms
and with rapid strides dragged him to the verge Of
The rock, and held him quiyering over the abyss.
"Mcrcy!" gasped the tory, turning black and
ashy, by turns, as that awful gulf yawned below
"Mercy! have wife, a childl spare mel"
Thenthcc continental, with hismuscular
gathered for the effort, shook the murderer once
more over the abyss and then Kissed this bitter
sneer between his teeth
"My brother had wife and two Children
The morning after the night of the Paoli, thai
wife was a widow-those children orphans!-
Wouldn't you like to go and beg your life Of that
widow and her children"
The proposal made by the continental, in the
mere mockcry of hate, was taken in serious ear
nest by the horror stricken tory. He begged to
be taken to the widow and her children, to have
the painful privilege of begging his life. After
moment Of serious thought, the patriotic soldier
consented. lie bound the tory's arms yet light
er, placed him on the rock again, and then led
him up the woods. A quiet cottage, embosomed
among the trees, broke on their eyes.
They entered that cottage. There, beside the
dcsolate hearth-stone, sat the widow and her chill
dren. She sat there, amaUpnly woman Of about
thirty years, with face faded by care, a deep
dark eye, and long black hair hanging in dshey-
cllcd flakes about her shoulders.
On one side was dark haired boy of some
SIX years; on the other, little girl of one year
younger, with light hair and blue eyes. The BIZ.
ble-an old and yenerated yolume-ay open on
the mothers knee.
And the pale faced tory flung himself on his
knees, confessed that he had butchercd her hus-
band on the night of Paoi, but begged his life at
her hands! "Sparo me for the sake Of my wife
my child"
lie had expected that his pitilul moan would
reach the widows heart; but not one relenting
CLEAN sotened her pale face.
"The Lord shall Judge between us!" she said,
in cold, icy tone that irozc the murderers heart
"Look! the bible lays on my lap; will close
that volume, and then this boy shall open it, and
place his finger at random upon Il line, and BY
that line you shall live or die!'
This was strange proposal, made in full faith
OF wild and dark superstition of the oden time.
For moment the tory, pale as ashes, was wrapt
in thought. Then in taltcring voice he signi-
fled his consent.
Raising her dark eyes to heaven, the mother
prayed the Great Father to direct the finger Of
her son. She closed the book-she handed it to
the boy, whose young cheek Redeemed with oath-
ing as he gazed on his fathers murderer. He
took the bible, opened its holy pages at random,
and placed his finger upon a verse.
There was a silence. The continental soldier,
who had sworn to ayenge his brothers DEATH,
stood there with diIatng eyes and parted lips
The culprit was knecng on the floor, with face
like discolored clay, and felt his heart leap 10 his
throat.
Then, in a clear, bold voice, the widow read
this line from the Old Testament. 1t was short
yet terrible: "Ihat man shall dier
Look! the brother springs forward to plunge a
knife into the murderer's heart; but the tory PIN
ioned as he is, clings to the widows knees. He
begs that one more trial may be made by the lit
tie girl, that child of five years, with golden hair
and laughing eyes.
wdowconsents. There is an awfulpause.
With smile in her eye, without knowing what
she does, the little girl opens the bible as it lay
on her mothers knee, she turns her laughing face
away, and places her finger upon line.
The awful silence grows deeper. The deep
drawn breath of the brother, and the broken
gasps of the murderer, alone disturb the Stiffness
The widow and her dark eyed boy are breathess
The little girl, unconscious as she was, caught u
feeling of awe from the countenances around her,
and stood breathless, her face turned aside, and
hertiny fingers resting of life or DEATH
| AT last, gathering courage, the widow bent her
eyes TO the page and read. ltwas line from the
! New Testament: "LOre yOw enemies"
All, that moment was sublime. Oh, awful
book of Godl in whose dread pages we see Mo-
ses talking face to face with Jehovah, or Jesus
waiting by Samaria's well, or wandering by the
waves of dark Galilce. Oh awful book! shining
tonight as | speak, the light of that widows
home, the glory of the mechanics shop-shi-
ming where the world comes not, to look on the
last night of the convict in his cell, lighting the
way to God, even over that dread gibbet Oh
book of terrible majesty and child like lovc-ot
sublimity that crushed the soul into awe-o
beauty that melts the heart with rapture! you
never shone more strangely beautiful than there
in the lonely cot of the Wissahikon, when you
saved the murderer's life!
For need tell you that the murderer's life was
saved-that widow recognized the finger of God
and even the stern brother was awed into silence
The murderer went his way.
Now look ye, how wonderful are the ways o
Heaven! That very night, as the widow sat by
her lonely hearth, her orphans by her side-sa
there with crushed heart and hot eye balls
t thinking of her husband who now lay moulder
( ing on the blood drenched soil of Paoli-thcr
was a tap at the door-sho opened it--and tha
husband, living, though covered with wounds
was in her arms! lie had fallen in Paoli, but nc
r in death. He was alive, and his wife lay pant
: ing on his bosom.
e That night there was prayer in that wood
: embowered cot ofthe Wissahikon.
"Willy," said dotng parent at the breakfas
S table, to an abridged edition of himself, who ha
a just entered the grammarclass at the high schoo
:, "Wily my dear, will you pass the butter"
"Therainly, THRIFT takthes me to parthe an