Grand River times. [volume] (Grand Haven, Mich.) 1851-18??, 1851-07-02

her own terror made her speechless when she
would have told him; all this was torrent Of
sorrow, before whose overbearing force her win
tered heart gave way, and she sunk down upon
the floor, with the dead babe in her arms, sense
less
Sleep came upon her like poppy spell, and
waited her silent soul to sweeter worlds, Far
away from her cold and solitary room, far away
from hunger, wretchedness, and tears; far away
from the keen tortures of maternal sorrow and
the despair of withered love, her spirit wander
ed in that peaceful dream. From earth, as from
wilderness of ashes, her willing spirit went up
on its upward flight, ascending and ascending.
1t neared the blue and shining arch above, and
clapped its wings for joy, and felt within it the
renovated bliss of innocent and unchangng
beauty. Itfelt the calming influence of soft mu-
sic swelling around it like sunbrigh: waves up
on summer sea; it saw sweet spots and green
peaceful valleys lying in the rosy light Of heav-
en-, as clouds at evening lie folded up in sleep.
On and on her spirit went in calm and holy mai
esty, amid the shadowy beauty of that pleasant
land. 1t seemed to bathe in bliss amid bright
galaxies of living and rejoicing worlds and to
embrace happiness as its long-sought BOOM
Through flowery pastures, and falling waters,
perfumed gardens, and star-lighted solitudes
where the soul of music dwelt and lived amid
the sweet echoes of her seraph songs, that moth
ers newborn soul wandered in its freedom, for
getting all the pangs and tears it had so lately
known. Now it passed floating islands of gilt
tering beauty where troops of cherubim were
worshiping their God and from the midst of Il
soft bed of twilight flowers arose an angel host
of babes, soaring in their wantonness of Joy to
higher regions of the azure air, and singing their
in oil
the cleaning lights afar came dulcet ilarpings
of angelic wings, and all things in that sweet
dreamland of beauty told of the JOY which falls
upon the virtuous soul. The spirit of the mo-
ther, dazzled and amazed till now, awoke from
its trance of WONDER and cried aloud " my child,
my child, and my husband, where, where are
they :" and she sank upon cleaning bed of pur-
pied blooms, and from the odorous signing of
the lute-toned air the voice of her child came
gladly in reply And now joyous troop of star
light seraphs sailed toward her, like n snowy
cloud and in The midst she sees her darling babe
clapping its little hands in laughing glee, and
overoyed once more TO meet her. Oh, what
bliss is like the feeling of n mother, when her
trusting heart is gladdened by the return~of q
child whom she deemed was lost and if such
Joy awake within the soul amid all the harsh re-
alities of earth, how much more in the spir-
! it's home, where nothing but the peaceful tho't
can live, and all earth's grief is banished? 1t
was her own babe, the bud of hope she had nurs-
ed and tended in the dark winter of her earthly
sorrow, now wearing the same smile which glad
dened her amid the gloom, but holier, fairer, and
freed from all the traces of want and suffering.
The spirits of the mother and the babe embrac-
ed each other in the wild JOY of this happy meet
ing, and the mothers spirit knelt before the
heaven-built temple of light which arched
above, and offered the incense of its prayers for
him whose wickedness of heart had stepped her
earthly days in bitterness; but who was yet to
her the token of youthful hope, and the living
memory of trusting love. Her earnest spirit,
in the gush Of its awakened affection for the
child of her bosom, called upon its God to have
mercy upon him, and to snatch his soul from the
blackness of its guilt and the impending terrors
of destruction. And the prayer went upward,
and the angels sung.
The drunkard staggered to the wretched home,
and reeling into the silent room gazed upon the
wife and child They spoke not, moved not !;
he stopped to touch, but recoied in horror, for
both Of them were dead. The mother in her
sweet dream, had glided into the blissful even
ing land, and he the destroyer of wife and
child, now felt in all the piercing agony of sin
/ ana Shame, lne ScoiplOi stlIlSS Vi CONSTRUCTIVE
He fell upon his knees and prayed for mercy !!
His whitening soul seemed struggling within
him, and he gasped for breath. He had wan
dered into wicked paths, he had bIighted gen.
tie heart by cruelty and neglect, he had wasted
his own child's meal in drunkenness and vii
lainy, while it lay on its mothers breast per-
ishing for want of food. He felt all the ter
rors of remorse, and hell seemed gaping beneath
him He arose and wept, and the first tear he
shed was carried by invisible hands upward to
that world of peace, as a sacrifice of penitence
to the kneeling spirit of a mother. He wander
ed away in silence, and where he went were the
falling tears which spoke, in accents eloquent
and true, the silent utterance of his repentant
heart.
BE Coon NATURED.-Peope are naturally good
natured, when they are brought up well, and
have no more right to be surly and sour than
they have to swear, lie, or steal. We do love
pleasant, happy face and whenever we meet
one, it gaddens us like CLEAN of bright sun
shine in April A cross, grabbed face is dread
full sight. We suppose Hades is filled with such
countenances 1t mars our happiness to meet
a man looking as if he thought the devil had
lien on him. and was about to foreclose the mort
gage We know business, cares, anxieties, per-
plexities, broken promises, debts and duns, are
rather unpleasant comforters sometimes, but