The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1851-09-13

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ln BY tho stress Of weather, and yaWned tiII
mey made the whole party weary, Raven
disappeared Tor couple Of hours in the az
teFnDon, and came out df the barn 10 supper
IA state far irom sober The other timb
was when he had giine to market IN October
70 sell oats AZ all other times lao worked
Welli was Kind % the old people, and very
fond of Janet, and justified FeIl's frequent
declaration that u was all right now. and
very PLEASANT ..t.
The winter was the trying aeAsoa. some
times tho dwellers IN the High House were
showed up, and many days we're too stormy
70 work The men grew tired of sit;iDg
round the hro all day, hearing The wind blow
aud the rain pelt; and dc women were yet
more tired Of having them there. There
were no books AID nobody seemed 90 think
ot reading. There were somo cArrieatures
Of the pope and Of BonapArto, aud portrait
OF k'ng George the Third, ON the walls; aud
these were all the intellectual entettainnent
IN the house, unless we except T0dF ftnuE or n
hymn which Janet had marked on her samb-
7 tcrIwhcn She wss - ehilti, Raset, went sass..
and more 10 the barn. something's on pretencs
OF workinN but hia hammer and his saw werr
less aud less heard; and instead Of comiuu in
chcgriully 10 supper lac was apt Ia loiter in
~ slouching way, 10 hide tho unsteadiness
Of hia gait, aud wIui qnarrellsomo with Fell,
nnd cross ca Janet. Ilo never conducted
himself better, before, however; never was
more active, a1ectionaic, helpful. and eonaid-
crate, than at the time when Old Fell sank and
died, during that month OF early sprinr
when Janet was confined. lie was like son
aud daughter At once; Mrs Fell deolAr6d-.-
AMI doctor and nurra, TOO, for that matter;
and his iathor-in-lAw died. blessing him, assl
desiring him 10 take care of the (arm, and
prosper on u, ~ IL had been in the llnil \ for
five hundred years. .lt
! When the old man was buried, and the
seed all IA tho ground,And Janet about again,
haven not only relaxed in his industry but
seemed 70 think some compensation due to
him for hls late good behavior. Certain re-
pairs having been len too long untouched, aud
Mrs Fell being rather urgent that they should
not be flirther neglected, ia came out that Ra-
ven had sold his toolG Sold his tools !--Yesl
how could he help il IL was necessary, ~
thdy had all agreed 10 change away the old
COW for spring calvcr; aud what could he
do but sell las tools 60 pay the difference y--A
Janet know, and so did hor mother, though
neither OF them said so. that more money had
gone down his throat. all alone In the harm
than would have paid for the exchange Of
cows. ..'
'fhc sirciine Of their ProPerty -beesa-psill.
this. When decline has bogiin with states.
mon' OF the Lake District, Il is seldom or Hav-
or known 10 stop, and there was nothing TO
stop IL IN this case. On a small farm whore
| the health and industry of tho ownor are
nagessry N uuubic hfrrt t,-o.,4.....l- ala
new fashions and improvements OF the low
country, and whore there IL no money capi-
tai behind to fall back upon, any decline OF
activity is fatal, and in two or three years Ra-
ven's health had evidently given way. His
Industry had relaxed before. lie lost his an
l ~ ,l L.. = n
homcIy fare w1iicii iiis rr,J17,ii..l
for dainties which could not be had, except
by purchase; lost his regular sleep, and was
either fcverish and restless, or slept for hf-
teen hours together, in n sort of stupor. Ills
limbs lost their strength, and he became sub
| jcct to rheumatism, Then he could not 40
out in all wcathers 90 look after his stock
One of his best sheep was missing after a
Hood; aud IL was found iammcd in between
two rocks IN the beck, feet uppcrmost, drown
cd OF course Another time four moro sheen
were lost In a1now dritt, from not being
looked alcr in time. Then came the bor-
rowing plow. IL was truo, many people
borrowed a plow nobody thought much OF
that-nobody but Mrs Fell. She thought
much of for her husband. anEhis father be-
fore him, had always used their own plows.--
Then came borrowing money upon the land,
10 buy seed and stock. IL was true, many
statesmen mortgaged their land; but then,
sooner or later, IL was always found too diff
cult 10 pay the interest and the land went IN
10 the hands Of strangers; and Mrs Fell sigh
cd when she said she hoped Raven would re
member that the farm had been in one iami-
~ for five hundred years. Raven answered
that he was not likely TO forget It for want of
being told; and from that moment the fact
was not mentioned again. Mrs Fell kept il
in her heart, and died in the hope that no
ncw-fangled farmer, with a south-country
name, would ever drive his plow through the
old fields. .
CHAPTER THr THIRD.
After her mothers death, Janet found her
hands over-full Of work, when her heart was
as she thought oyer-full of care. She did
not know how much more she could bear.--
There were two children now and another
coming. Fine children they were; and the
eldest were but her pride and comfort He
was beginning "a prattle, aud never was
speech so pretty as his. Ills father loved to
carry him about IN his arms, aud sometimes,
when he was far from sober, this child see,n-
ed to set his wits straight, and soften his tenn
per, in a sort Of magical way. There was
the drawback, TINT Raven wonld sometimes
insist on having the boy with him when he
was by no means ft TO have the charge of so
young child but the mother tiled to trust
that all would be well, and that God would
watch over an innocent littie creature who
was like an angel TO his SHINING parent She
had not considered (as too many do not con-
sider,) that "the promises" are given under
conditions, and that il is impious 70 blame !
Providence for disasters when the conditions
are not observed. The promises, as she had
heard them at the chapel, dwelt on her mind |
and gave her great comfort in dark seasons; !
endL;t would have beed aJreary world to her |
IL anv one had yunt,ttlt.tl her that thty MIGHT
fail through mans neglect and sin. She had
some -seYeFe-lessea=- -aa- this head. howeYer.-l
II was pleasant 10 hdar that day and night,
seed-tfme and harvest, should not cease; and
when difficulties pressed, she looked on the
dear old fields, and 'thodght of this; ; but
TO say nothing what day and night we're OF.
ten 20 her---the day is black to her spirits as
the night--scsol-time was nothing,if her hus-
band was too Ill or too lazy to SOW his laudi
and the harvest month was worse than moth
ipg ifthere was no uropi and there was no
raliuion in that hor hahes tgriii1 II