The Davenport gazette. [volume] (Davenport, Scott Co., Iowa) 1841-185?, 1852-11-25

married Well have her here, and the
wedding shall be where grandmother is
and now think Of it: Suppose we bav'
the baby baptized, as the minister will b.
here; and there is James child, jus, abou
Besse's age, and mother never has seer
il. Well have that christencd. too; ant
perhaps we could induce poor James tt
como. My heart yearns after that boy be
is just the age of our Eddy and who
knows bu, Eddy would have been as bad
ifhe bad been thrown on the world; if you
md bad died, as his parents did; yes, he
IS Susan's own and only brother. He
.hall be groom's-man, and our Martha
brides maid She is almost fifteen, you
known
"Oh stop! Hannah-stopm exclaimed
John. 'You will lrighten me 10 DEATH
Have you been making this plan for Que
or two Years, that you have got il cut and
dried so?"
Hannah bad indeed quite forgotten her
sell. II had been her design 10 unfold her
wishes one By one, to her husband, as she
thought him interested in her, aud prepar-
ed for them, but having once fairly com
menced the subject, her own interest and
enthusiasm carried her away--and she
now began TO be little alarmed, les, so
many things might destroy the charm With
which she had hoped to invest the plan n
her husbands eyes. She was, therefore,
glad as the clock struck eleven, to make
prep epsra,ious for Immediately retiring 10
bed. but there was little sleep that night
for her! She was walking through large
poultry yards singing out, now this fine
rooster. now that white turkey, and daring
even. with bold hand, to snatch from his
lignifed position The head gander OF the
15ck And then when her merry eyelids
dropped, she would lose this scene, and
anon be putting pie after pie, mince, apple.
md first and best of ali-deep golden
pumpkin, upon the whIte shelves OF an IN
terminable pantry, and when her ieet re
fused TO bear her there any longer, she was
in the ample kitchen, and sleigh bells were
ringing merrly up 10 lie door, and then.
such shaking Of hands and meeting Of
lips, that poor Hannah, fairly weared, at
las, fell soundly asleep. With the morn.
ing light came again the host OF ways and
means that we're to be compassed TO bring
about the desired end--neycr was a busy
mind more weighed down by cares than
hers, and never kinder heart more will
ing to supply in happy expedents what the
head had failed to suggest.
II wanted now but three weeks to
Thanksgiving, and what was to be done
must be done quickly. Hannah consider
cd the consent of her husband as having
been given, and the next thing was to con-
suit with the old mother, for aged people
sometimes fear the fatigue more than they
expect 10 enjoy pleasure from such scenes.
but grandmother had always possessed a
warm heart, and lively, sunny disposition,
aud often The last thing that is chilled BY
The touch of age, is the heart, and the hab-
it of looking at "the silver lining OF the
Clouds" will keep the souls eye bright
long after the natural vision has become
dimmed, and SO happy, and making happy,
though with a feeble frame, the Old lady
had sa, for years in her old arm chair By
her sons fireside, and the growing inlirm-
lies and decrepitude Of age became beautl-
iuI and holy lessons in reference to the
young grandchildren. They were early
laugh, to feel that a word Of reproof, or oi
from grandmother, was The high
est rewara or punishment that could be
given them. And TO attend to all her lit
tie wants, the greatest privilege they
could eujoy-and thus, in this farmer S
quiet family, met the two extremes of lie
and the rosy light Of the morning was
soilened and mellowed by the fading ra, $
IF the sinking sun, while its deepening twl-
light was made beautiful by the laughing
light of the small golden clouds, which lay
around it as il sank to its final rest. Oh!
the influence Of the pious aged upon the
hear, OF the Young, can never be too high,
iy valued, aud happy indeed is the famil,
beneath whose roof yet fingers one whose
gray hairs and falterng steps are spared a
little while longer ''lrom The home Of all
the living"
So thought Mrs. Norton, and it had al
ways been, from the first hour that her
husbands mother had chosen her home BY
their fireside, the object Of her endeavors
so make those last days of long and use
tut life, the happiest OF them all; and now,
TO change little for her the monoiony OF a
quiet indoor lie, to give her something TO
mink over, when those cold bitter winter
storms should shut out even the little varI
ely she now had, and to gather once more
the members of large family to receive
The blessing, which she SO much priced, Tor
herself aud children, such were Mrs. N. s
motives, ia the laborious task OF keeping
"a real New England Thanksgiving"
Martha was The eldest child, now nearly
fifteen years old, and as there were six
Younger, she had always been accustomed
from a child TO "iakiug care" The moth
er depended very much upon her, she con.
suited her in little arrangements, and
would have felt as if a great part OF the
household had been removed if any thing
had deprived her of Martha. From earl,
summer she had been her mothers conf,
dan, respecting Thanksgiving and had,
in her own quiet way, made thousand
plans for bringing it about. II is aston
ishng in how many ways children OF that
age, or even much younger, may be not
only comforts, but aids, to their parents
There were numberless little acts oi sell