Camden journal. [volume] (Camden, South-Carolina) 1852-1852, 1852-08-03

| hours, by the side OF his wife and infant chld
whose beautiful face CLEANED like a, rosebud
upon the white pillow in her little wicker basket
cradle, became tiresome to him. He wished his
Ellen had more vivacity, more brilliancy, forget
ting that these might accompany yariableness
of temperament that would truly have made his
home unhappy
Ellen was most excellent wife hers was that
inward purity which stamps upon the features
a lovelineSs far beyond mere beauty nobody
hesitated to call her handsome her ways were
winning, her form slightly and fragile; withal
she had so much prudence and was so good a
manager, that from the time of his marriage
Charles Crosby had been accumulating riches
But she needed affection and much care she
was delicate, and SO sensitive that word Of re-
proach from one she esteemed would cause al
most serious illness. The language of her full
blue eyes, as they were sometimes fixed upon
the noble face Of her husband was, love me oh!
how yearn for your full, unrestrained love then
they would fall to the floor while the conscious
ness that he was not towards her in manners as
| he had once been, and oh, she feared, not in
heart-wonld send an icy thrill through every
fibre of her frame. Of late, Charles Crosby had
often become an alien to his home, until the
midnight hour; he had found, as he thought,
choice and congenal spirits, and with them " the
spirit of wo," that is the spirit OF wine" But
alas ! his fine manners were disappearing; his
home was not an earthly paradise to him now
he had grown very cold and worldly indeed he
knew not the extent of the change in himself
He worshippcd his lovely child and called her
by the sweet names of fairy" and "pet," and
darling" she was in truth such an one as few,
very few parents are blessed with a child Of
neither ordinary beauty or intellect; and but
for her mothers judcious care and teaching,
her powerful mind might have too swiftly ex-
panded and npened quicker than the growth of
this world will allow, unless the rare exotic is to
be transplanted into heaven.
Charles Crosby sat with his check resting
upon little Elen's head the dear child once or
twice unconsciously sighed, and these sighs were
arrows to the wounded spirit Of the father
" Darling, you speak strangely" he said after
a long pause, during which conscience had been
busy: father has great deal Of hard work to
do, and comes home tired and perhaps little
fretful sometimes but then-he-he does-loye
your MOTHER" he said slowly and wondering
what become of the glowing delight he had once
felt at the mere mention of her name
Do You, do You really love her then p asked
the child, sitting upright on his knee, and fixing
her full, beautiful eyes upon him, how strange:
elrerssht by H~t ee;d, o'st cu l'eecd
her almost
"By what mamma said y exclaimed herfath
er hastily, while a feeling Of anger shot through
his heart the sudden sur!nisc that his wife had
been striving to alicnatc the child's affections
from him "what did mamma say Ellen 2 he
demanded sternly.
Don't look so hard at me, father she re-
piled, pressing her snowy hands over his eyes,
tmamma didn't tell me, but she told God"
More and more astonished, Charles gazed
upon the child without speaking, and after a
moments pause, she continued, l went into
mammals room this afternoon, before knew she
was sick, but heard her talking, so I went on
tptoc. She was knccling down by the bed and
praying to our Father in Heaven and she cried
and sobbcd as do sometimes when am naugh
ty, but KNEW she was never naughty, good, dear
mamma, was she ever naughty, papa 2" she ask
ed artlessly, and waiting for reply.
"She never was-to you or me-" answered
the father, choking down his emotion.
"Well, then heard her pray; knew she
wouldn't care if did, because she takes me
with her sometimes and she asked the dear
God if he would make her husband love her; and
said that he went away from his home and liked
other people better: and she said her heart was
breaking too; and oh ! she cried so bad, con
tinued the child, giving such mournlul empha-
sis to the last two words that the fathers lip
trembled and the tears came into his eyes
"And then she turned round and saw me; and
she called me to her and huggcd me tight, aad
said was precious child, and kept asking me
if | was sure loved her-vcry, very sure till the
wild light in her ayes almost frightened me. l
kept telling her she was my blessed mother, and
l loved her better than any body in the whole
world except my father; and then she told
me that l must love You dearly, for You were
a kind father to me and perhaps she would
not live long; and if they did put her into
the cold ground, | must make you forget it by
my goodness and affection; but never could
forget it, could you father, if they put my own
sweet mother into the cold ground!'
This was too much; Charles Crosby started
from his chair, and placing Ellen on a low scat
strobe rapidly through the room. The tears
were raining down his face, but he kept them
hidden from the little one, who sat timidly still
on her cricket, almost afraid TO move for fear
she had angered her father. Not so. A flood
of the old tenderness had rushed back upon his
heart instead OF the demurc and gentle Alice,