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

| tIree HilOckS yOHuef, sue by SlQe.
there sleep three brides, whose history
l am about to relate. Look there sir,
on yonder hill, you observe a little
desolatc house, with stra ggling fence
in front, and few stunted apple trees
on the ascent behind it. It is sadly out
of repair now, and the garden is fairly
overgrown with weeds and brambles,
and the whole place has desolate ap-
pearance. It the winds were high now,
you might hear crazy shutters Tapping
against the sides, and the wind tearing
the gray shingles off the roof. Many
years ago, there lived in that house, an
old man and his son, who cultivated the
few acres Of ground that belonged to
it.
''The father was self taught man,
deeply versed in the mysteries Of SCI
ence, and as he could tell the name of
every flower that blossomed in the wood
or grew in the garden, and used to sit
up late at night at his books, or reading
the mystic story Of the starry heavens,
men thought he was crazied or bewitch-
ed, and avoided as the ignorant ever
shun the gifted and enlightened. A few
there were, and among others, the min
lister, the lawyer, and the physician, Of
the place, who showed a willingness to
afford him countenancc, but they soon
dropped his acquaintance, for they
found the old man somewhat reserved
and morose, end moreover, their van
ity was wounded on discovering the ex-
tent Of his knowledge.
To the ministers he would quote the
fathers and the scriptures in the orig
inal tongue, and showed himself we'll
armed with the weapons Of polemic con-
troversy. lie astonished the lawyer
with his profound acquaintance with ju-
risprudence-- and the physician was sur
prised at the extent OF his knowledge.
So all OF them deserted him, and the
minister from whom he diiferd in some
trihing point Of doctrine, spoke very
lightly Of him, and by and by looked
on the self-educated farmer with eyes
Of aversion.
s'He instructed his son in all his lore;
the languages, literature, history, phi
losophy, and science, were unfolded one
by one to the enthusiastic son Of the
solitary.
"Years rolled away, and the old man
died. He died when a sudden storm
convulsed the face Of nature; when the
wind howled around the sheltered dwell
Ing and the lightning played above the
roof, and though he went to heaven in
faith and purity, the vulgar thought
and said the Evil One had claimed his
own in the elements. cannot paint to
you the grief Of the son at this bereave-
ment. lie was for moment as one
distracted. The minister came and ut
tered a few hollow phrases in his ear,
| and a few neighbors, impelled by Gu
riosity to see the interior Of his dwell
ing, came to the funeral. With proud
and lofty look the son stood above the
dust and the dead, in the midst Of the
band Of hypocritical mourners, with a
pang at heart but serenity on his
brow, lie thanked his friends for their
kindness, acknowledged their courtesy,
and then strobe away from the grave,
to bury his grief in the privacy of the
deserted dwelling.
"He found, at last, the solitude of the
mansion almost insupportable, and he
paced the ebony floor from morning to
night in all the woe Of desolation, vain
ly importuning Heaven for relief. 1t
came to him in the poetic disguise of
inspiration. He wrote with wonderful
ease and power. Page after page came
from his prolific pen, almost without
an effort, and there was a time when
he dreamed (vain fool) Of immortal
ity! Some Of his productions came be-
fore the world. They were praised and
circulated, and inquiries set on foot
with the hope Of discovering the author.
He, wrapped in the vail Of impenetra-
bic obseurity, listened to the voice OF
applause, more delicious because it was
obtained by stealth. From the obscu-
rity ofyonder lone mansion, and from
this region, to send lays which aston
ished the world,was indeed triumph
in the visionary bard.
ellis thirst for fame had been graf
flied, and he now began to yearn fol-
the companionship Of some sweet being
of the other sex, to share with him the
laurels he had won, and to whisper con-
ISOLATION in his ear in moments OF de-
spondency and to supply the void which
the death of father had occasioned.
! He would picture to himself the felic-
ity of a refined intercourse with a highly
intellectual and beautiful women, and
as he had chosen for his motto sWhatey-