The Minnesotian. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn. Territory) 1851-1852, 1851-12-06
NUMBER I2.

ed the milk Of the mother to gall and poi
son, and the little innocent drank in death
death, the fruit Of sin in all clines and
ages. Gently she laid the little one by the
margent of the water, amid the green rush.
es; and the breeze of night sweeping by
murmurcd plaintively to them, and caused
them to gh, and rock to and fro around
the infant. Then the poor mother with
drew space from the babe, and sat her
down upon white stone, and covered her
face with her long, thin, bloodlcss hands.
She said in her heart. as Hagar said, s'Let
me not see the death of the child" And
she wept sore, for the poor girl loved the
babe, as a mother, like her, only can love
her babe, with a Wild passionate, absorb
ing love, for it is her all, her pearl Of great
price, which she has bought with name
and fame, with home and friends, with
health and happiness, with earth, and, it
may be, with heaven. And she thought
bitterly over that happy home, where, a
few months since, in the cleaning of the
autumn's eve, she sat on the hcathery braes,
and tripped along the brink of the warb-
ling burn, or MIXED the kline in the byre,
or sang to her spinning wheel beside her
mother, near the ingle. Next came the
recollection Of one who sat beside her in
the braes, and strayed with her down the
burn; who won her heart with his false
words, and drew her from the holy shell
ter Of her fathers roof, TO leave her in her
desolation among the southern strangers.
And now, with the faithfulnC ss-though
not with the purity or trustfulness-of
the dove, she was returning over the waste
of the worlds dark waters to that ark
which had sheltered her early years--lrom
which no father had sent her forth. The
ark is in sight; but the poor bird is wea-
ry from her flight, and she would even
now willingly fold her wings and sink
down amid the waters, for she is full of
shame, and fear, and sorrow. All! will
her father '.put forth his hand and take
her in, and pull her in unto him into the
ark" with the glory Of her whiteness de-
filed, her piumage rufiicd and dropping?
All! will her mother draw her again 10
nestle within her bosom, when she sees
the dark stain upon her breast, once so
pure and spotless? The poor girl wept
/
and bitterly, but at length her sorrow be-
came gentler, and her soul more calm, for
her heavy heart was relieved by the tears
that seemed to have gushcd straight up
from it, as the dark clouds are lig gh,ened
when the rain pours from them. And so
she sobbed and mused in the cold, dreary
night, till her thoughts wandered and her
vision grew dim, and she sank down in
slumber-a slumber like that Of childhood,
sweet and deep. And she dreamed that
angels, pure and white, stood around: and,
oh! strange and charming, they looked
not on her as the uniallen ones of the world
the pure and the sinless in their own
sight-looked upon her through the weary
days Of her umiliation-scorniullv loath-
ingly, pitilessly but their sweet eyes were
bent upon her full of ruth, and gentleness,
and love; and tears like dew pearls fell
from those mid and lustrous orbs upon
her brow and bosom, as those beautiful
beings hung over her, and those tears
ca!mcd her poor wild brain, and each,
where it fell upon her bosom, washed
away stain. Then the angels took the
little one from her breast, and spread their
wings as if for flight; but she put forth
her arms TO regsin her child, and one of
the bright beings represscd her gently, and
said,
"It may not be-;he babe goes with
u.s."
Then said she to the angel, "Sufier me
also 10 60 with my child, that / may he
with it, and tend it ever.''
But the angel said, in voice of sweet
and solemn earnestness, "Not yet-not
yet. Thou mayost not come with us now,
but in little while shalt thou rejoin US,
and this our little sister,"
And the dreamer thought that they rose
slowly on the moonlit air, as the light
clouds float before a gentle breeze at even-
ing; then the child stretched forth its arms
toward her with plaintive cry, and she
awoke and sprang forward 10 where her
child Law. The waters of the lake rippled
over the feet of the mother, but the babe
beyond in the rushes at the point Of the
promontory where she had laid it. The
bewildered mother essayed to spring across
the stream that now flowed betwe cen her
and the island, but in vain; her strength
failed her, and as she sank to the earth
she behcld the island floating slowly away
upon the waveless bosom of the lake,
while eldritch laughter rang from out the
rushes, mingled with sweet tiny voices
soothing with fairy lullaby the cries of
the babe that came fainter and fainter on
the ears of the bereaved mother, as the
little hands of the eltin crew impelled the
floating island over the surface Of Loeb
Dochart.
Some herdsmen going forth in the ear
ly morning found girl apparently lifeless
lying on the edge Of the lake. She was
recognized and brought to her early home.
When she opened her eyes her parents
stood before her. No words of anger
passed from the lips of her father, though