Daily American telegraph., 1852-07-10

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1t was comfortable cosy place, that sitting
room of Squire Pepperelrs; and the'Squire
himself was comfortable-looking figure as he
sat there, busy over his papers, with the light
from the decaying fire bringing into strong re-
lief his marked profile and lighting up his
bald crown, as if it were a beacon to point
poor deluded mortals TO Heaven
The Squire was discreet man, a very dis
Greet man, never talking of his affairs, even to
himself but there was a kind of triumphant
gleam in his eye, deliberate satisfaction, so to
speak, in the way he smoothed out the tapes
upon his knee, and knotted them around the
papers, that proved the examination had at
least been satisfactory.
Once or twice, while he safe there, there had
reached him sound as of the opening of a
door, and he had, grumbling, wondered what
his housekeepsr, Hannah Meigs, could be
going out for at that time of night but he
thought no more of it, until, after burying the
fire, he took his papers and proceeded to his
bedroom. This was situated in the "new
part" as it was always called, though Col. Lee
had built it at the time of his marriage, forty
years before; and, in order to reach it. it was
necessary to pass through parlor and small
Gentry" from which door opened upon the
lawn. AS our excellent friend stepped into the
entry, he became aware that this door was
wide open, for furious gust Of wind put out
his light and left him in darkness
"Those little rascals must have left the door
on the latch, and the wind has forced it open,"
he said, referring to his somewhat mischievous
grandsons; and with muttered oath at the
carelessness Of women and children, he closed
| it, and passed into his bedroom, where, after
gropnp around for some moments, he found
the box of matches that stood upon the bureau.
Two or three matches failed to ignite, and
were flung to the floor with an oath, 1--WE are
sorry to say, that sometimes, especially when
he was at home, the Squire forgot himself
and the statute books but at last he was sue
cessful. AS he placed his lamp upon the bu-
reau he accidentally raised his eyes to the
mirror above. What did he see reflected there,
that caused his swarthy cheek, even his very lips,
to grow pale as death, and every limb to shake,
until, with loud cry, he sank to the floor
He did not tell-indeed, for weeks he was
too i'll to tell He knew nothing of the inquest
held in his house next day, over the lfeless
body of little Milly Gilbert nor how Hannah
Meigs and George Kipp, his man, deposed that,
on hearing his cry, they had run down to his
room, and found the child lying upon his pill
lows a corpse, with her old grandfather kneel-
ing speechless beside her, and their master in
sensible upon the floor. He did not know that
for two whole days the form of the little girl,
with her pale hands folded on her breast lay
shrouded in her white grave clothes, in his
best parlor, while the gray-haired old Colonel
sat by, gibbering, and moaning and sobbng,
in his grief He did not hear the heavy tramp
of the bearers as they carried the coffin out
nor the sobs of the mothers and little children
as they followed No; he was too i'll for this
but when he did get up, and found the good
people of the village busy with these topics, he
gave new direction to their thoughts, by or
dering two white marble slabs (for before this
time the frozen ground by the side of little
Milly had been broken for the grave of the
Colonel to be erected to their memory.
All, he was such a public-spirited man !!
Well might his admirers mourn and wonder
who would I" fill his place among u.s. when, q
few months later, it was known that he had
sold his house and farm to young Lewis Harri-