Spirit of the age. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1849-1865, 1852-10-13

ANAO wv NASA ~ l.
beauty which man could not close his VS. til
against ? There is the sublime work Or
.anship p~ervading the natural world - WI
Quivering in the leaf, glowing in the bios th
som, glittering in the rain-drop, trilGng IN Ia
the birds song, beaming in the stars, sing I'll
in the waters-and all these correspon- a
I LIZ so wa hR'm mSsterioGs soul, aiding it to lay at
aside all sensual and earthly clogs, when lc
contemplating the grand Architect of al, n
and the blissful home. in those wide empy- Il
real courts prepared for the pure in heart Il
There is enough in the beauty of nature c.
alone, in the brightness of her skies, the t
verdure of her forests, the anthem of her f
seas, the majesty of her mountains, the I
melody of her choir, to vile the heart away I
and lap it in elysian dreams of that better '
land, where blight never %sullies,. storms '
never devastate and convulsions never come. l
But these are not all. There is the light
emanating from Gods Holy Word. Its
pages are studied in every domicile its
threats and promises, urgent entreaties and
terrible anathemas, repeated over and over
again from the sacred desk. There is death
with its attendant horrors to the guilty ;
Of corruption and worms to the body and
an eternity of wrath to the soul, stalking
in uninterrupted majesty every where
There are bright examples continuing to
exist of strict moral integrity and pure re-
i4,earvrn un- tire frsU m unWaverIng mag
n%ifcence towards the meridian, and encour-
aging others of feebler lustre to emulate
the steadiness and splendor of their pro-
gress. And if all these are neglected, does
; she suppose that she, mightier than all, can
; mould the heart which hearkens not to
| their teachings, to her will? Mistaken
7 confidence Misplaced reliance!
Ere a sixmonths had passed away, Leora
9 Howard awoke to a full consciousness of
! the fact. AS early as appearances had ad-
9 mitted, her husband had begun framing ex-
> cuses for absenting himself from those pla-
g ces which she loved best to frequent, and
which she as an ardent devotee at the shrine
Z of fashion, felt it to be almost a s%acrilege
to desert. The dining party and the s%oiree,
"a the ballroom and the opera, lost all charms
p for him ; and instead, she was forced to ad-
E nit the fact to herself, that low club rooms
6 and grog shops we're growing daily more
familiar with his tread. But it was not
- until many months after, when for the first
u time he was borne to her sight unconscious
- as a brute, that she realized in all its ago
? nlzlng force the fact, that she was indeed g
- ~drunkard's wife. In the first moments OF
. narrowing grief, she attached all blame tC
: him. But when the calmer hours ofthoucht
~ and cool delberation came, conscience rails
- ed It's murmuring tones and spoke with thai
still small voice which refuse to be silenced
Bitter self accusation and reproach followed
She was not Ignorant of these propensitief
before marriage, and knowing them, why
- had she linked her fate with him, or what
right had she, since she regarded them moi
~ then, to murmur at their growth now p
Then the kaleidoscope of her mind shifted
rejecting the query whether she had deep
IA y and firmly labored for their suppression
=, : Had she in the highest and purest sense 0
fd ton Of her character, and by the LONELINESS
nc Of her assiduity for his comfort rendered
home as attractive as possible to him? All
sad, crushingly sad must ever fall sucI
ne queries upon woman's heart, if with an I'm
nu blanched cheek and a steady eye she Cal
p not answer-"All this have [ endeayore,
to do"
n A burst of tears were Mrs. Towards an
NJ swer, and she buried her face in her hands
~ while the tempest Of grief ragged unrestrair
90 ed through her soul. Suddenly she dasE
II ed the burning tear from her check, an
lon as she raised her head to the pure light {
VI heaven, the impress of resolve, beautifr
: and strong, was written on her brow. AyC
In- through the storm-cloud a ray had come.
ms soft sunny ray, which brightly fickered j
sn- that hearts inner chambers, where darl
ness before had dropped it's pail.
Eternal Hope when yonder spheres sublime
IGs- Pealed their first notes to sound the march of tim
he Thy joyous youth began-but not to fade
the Where all the sister planets have decay'd;
When rapt in fire the realms Of ether GLOW.
ieo- And Heavens last thunder shakes the world below
Tor Thou undismayed shalt DER the ruins smile,
the And light thy torch at Natures funeral pile"
re- lie was her husband still, and every u
eed tried effort should be used to save him.
ally What If it were late thousands far mo
he debased than he had been reclaimed. 81
he could, she would do it Better, far bette
had she with ameek and lowly heart bow,
who to the God who died to redeem her. az
the invoked that reward upon her efforts whic
ar could only successfully com through Il
mellowing influences Of his Holy Spirit
she Better had she in humility acknowledge
All my strength, Oh! God, must cor
the from thee" Resolution with her was n
but, all. The scales had fallen from her eye
cred and the better, the purcr pathway of t
sat wife and woman stood suddenly fort
pol where that of the fashionable lady befc
lay had existed. Every latent talent was ca
ne cd into rcquisition to %enliven his hours
the home. Each inventive faculty which t
e. deepest love, the most absorbing inter,
: Of could command, were daily in full exerc
with to present his downward course. All We
shes unavailing. Was fate's decree irrevo
pre- BILE? Had the heart become too deer
ked, welded to evil to be restrained, or the D
lib sionate cravings too intense for strong dri
her to be refused +? Needed she the bitter !
mu- son to teach her the utter instability of
and earthly hope? We know not for
ehec- mysteries of Heavens court NAV not