The daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1848-1851, 1851-03-08

Now she was to have fine time of it! Her
books were opened, and hard lesson summoned
to the conflict. Scarcely had she read a line,
when she heard the door. bell ring
" Somebody wishes to see you in the parlor'
Mrs. James,
"Te them am engaged, Bridget"
81 told them you were to home ma'am, and
they gave me their names, but did not exactly
understand
Mrs James was obliged to go. To smile when
she felt sober-to be social when her thoughts
were elsewhere. Her friends, however, seemed
to find her agreeable, for they made long call
and when they rose to go, others came 80, IN
the most unsatisfactory chit-chat, all this morning
went.
On the next day Mr.. James invited company to
tea and Mrs James was obliged to give up the
morning to preparing for 1t, and did not enter her
study On the day following she was obliged to
keep her bed with sick headache and on Saturday,
Amy having work to do, the charge of the baby
devolved upon her. Thus passed the first week.
True to her promise, Mrs James patiently per-
severed for month, in her efforts to secure to her
self this fragment of her broken time, with what
success the weeks history can tell. With its
close, closed the month of December Being par
ticularly occupied on the last day of the old year,
in getting ready for the morrows festival, It was
near the last hour Of the day when she made her
good nights call in the nursery. She went to the
crib to look baby there he lay fast asleep IN his
| innocence and beauty. She kissed his rosy cheek
gently, and stroked softly his golden hair, and
pressing his little dimpled hands within hers, she
| drew the covering more closely around him,
carefully tucking it in then stealing one more kiss
| left him to his slumbers, and sat down on her
daughters bed. She also sweetly asleep
with her dolly hugged close to her. Her mother
| smiled but soon it seemed if graver and sadder
| thoughts filed her mind, as indeed they did. She
was thinking of her disappointed plans. 10 her,
| not only the past month, but the past year. seemed
to be one of frutess effort it seemed to her bro
| and disio tod her hours OF religious
| meditation had been encroached upon and distracted
| She had accomplished nothing that she could see,
but keep her house and family; and to her sad
dened thoughts, even this seemed to have been but
| ndifferently done. Yearnngs tor somethlg better
| than this she was conscious OF.
w hat did she need, then? To see some Of the
resu Its of her life-work? To be conscious of some
un ty of pnrpose-some weaving together of these
| lif threads, now so broken and single?
She felt, she was quite sure no desire to shrink
fro IN duty, however humble but she sighed fol
some comforting assurance of what was duty
H er pursuits, conflicting they did with hel
tastes, seemed to her frivolous. She felt there was
some better way of living, which she had failed o
discovering AS she leaned over her child, he
tears now fell fast upon that young brow.
| How earnestly wished that mother that she coult
shield her child from the dsappointments, and self
| reproaches and Mistakes from which she was theI
suffering that the little one might take up f
where she could give it to her, mended by all he
| own experience. III would nave Deen great com
fort could she have felt that she could have Tough
the battle for both. Yet she knew that it cout
| not so be that we must all learn for ourseve
what are those things which make for our peace
With tears still in her eyes, she gave the goo
night to the child, and with soft step entered tn
adjoining room and there fairly kissed out the oil
year on another chubby cheek which nestle
among the pillows then she sought her own res
| Soon she found herself in singular place. Sh
was traversng vast plain; no trees were visible
, save those which skirted the distant hOrzon--o
| their tops rested wreath of golden clouds. Be
fore her, travelling towards that distant light, wa
| female. Little children were about her-somt
| times in her arms, and sometimes at her side a
| she journeyed on, she busted herself caring fo
tbem Now she soothed them when weary--no,
| she taught them how to tTavel-and again sh
warned Them of the pitfalls and stumbling block
| in the way She helped them over the one, an
| taught them to be wary of the other. She ta!ke
| to them OF that golden light which she kept cor
stanty in view, and towards which she seemed
. | be Fastening with her little flock. But what wa
: most remarkable was, that, all unknown to hel
two golden clouds hoated above her, on whic
reposad two angels. Before each was golde
book and pen of gold One angel, with mil
and loving eyes, peeped constantly over the rigl
! shoulder, and the other over the left. They fol
lowed her from the rising to the setting OF the SUI
! | They watched every word and look, and deed, n
matter how trivial. When it was good, the ange
| over the right shoulder, with glad smile, wrot
, | il down in his golden book: when evil, howeve
| trivial, the angel over the left shoulder wrote
down in his book. Then he kept his sorrowf!
eyes on her, until he found penitence for the evil
J | upon which he dropped tear upon the recor,
and blotted it out-and both angels rejoiced. 7
| the lookers-on, it seemed as if the traveller d
= little which was worthy such careful record.
Sometimes she did but bathe the weary feet
her children, and the angel over the right should
| wrote it down. Sometimes she did but wait p
y tisntly 10 lure back some little truant who ha
t taken step in a wrong direction, and the ang
over the right shoulder wrote 1t down.
Sometimes with her eyes fixed upon the golde
,. | horizon she became so intent upon her own pr
gress as to let the little pilgrims at her side la
. guish or stray then it was the angel over the lie
u shoulder who lifted tn. golden pen and made Il
!, entry, followed her with sorrowing eyes, seeking
y blot ii out. If wishing 10 hasten on her Journe
she left the little ones behind, it was the sorrOy
I | ing angel recorded her progress. Now the obse
u yer felt, as she looked on, that this was fathi
y record, and was to be kept 10 that journeys en-
- Those strong clasps of gold on those golden book
70 also impressed her with the belief that they we
. | to be sealed for future opening. Her sympathl
., were warmly excited for the traveller, and with
81 | beating heart she quickened her steps that g
u might overtake her, and tell her what she HI
~ seen, and entreat her to be watchful, and faithf
o. and patient to the end in her lites work, for s
:, | had herself seen that It's results would all
J" known when those golden books should be u
:. casped. That she must not think any duty whi
"a fell in her way to do trivial, for surely the
- was an angel over her right shoulder or one oV
, her left who would record it all.
Eager to warn her Of all this, she gently touch
- her. The traveller turned, and she recognized,
seemed to recognize, herself Startled and alarne
y, s' she awoke and found herself in tears. The gr
>, light of morning struggled through the half op
=, shutter, the door was ajar, and merry faces we
=, peeting IN.
et "Wish you happy New Year, mamma. Wi
. O. you happy New Year !"
u. She returned the merry greeting-hearti
ds She seemed to have entered new existence
p she had found her way through the mazes wht
~ she had been entangled and light was now abe
~ her path. The angel ouer her right should
~, III whom she had seen in her dream, had assured
eu that her le-work was bound up in that gold
IN book, and its final results would be Known
hs assured her what was duty; now she saw pla
IN, enough, what she had not seen before, that Will
se' was right and important for her to cultivate, as
&C. as she could, her own mind and heart, 1t
gre equally right and equally important, for her to
NE form faithfully all those little household duties
cares, on which the comfort virtue OF her lam
depended.
They had acquired new dignity from
~ | records of that golden pen-and they could not
au neglected without danger. i.
~ Sad thoughts and misgivngs, and ungrati
oo ongings, seemed all to have taken their hight
ore the Old Year, and it was with new resolut
the and cheerful hope and happy heart, that
welcomed the New Year.
rst TERRIFIC STORM AT CAMBRIDGE, Md
,- of the most terrific storms of wind and rain pa
tI,.