Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1854-06-28

cutting them away or tying up single ten
drill Grandfather Markham and his daugh-
ter Alice, with John Drewit, her husband
and master of the house, used to live there,
and they had three little children, Jane,
Henry, and Joe.
A little room over the porch was especi-
ally neat 1t was the best room IN the cot
tage, and therein was lodged old Markham.
He was not very old man, but looked ten
wears older than he was, and his hand shook
through infrmity more grievous than age.
He was gin-drinker. John Drewit had to
work very hard to keep not only his own
house hold in food and clothing, but also his
poor old tather-in-law in drink.
John was hale young man when first !
knew him, but he soon began to alter. As
soon as it was light he was away to the
sand.cif by a pleasant winding path
through the beech wood and up the step
which his own spade had cut. One or two
of them he had made broader than the rest,
at intervals, where one might willingly sit
down to survey the glory spread beneath
the low, white, strawthatched farms geam-
ing like light amongst the pa>ture-lands, the
little towns each with its shining river, and
the great old city in the hazy distance; the
high beacon hills, the woods, and far as the
eve could see the mist that hung over the
immense Atlantic. This resting on the up
ward path, at first pleasure, became soon
a matter of necessity, and that, tAo. long
before the cough had settled down upon
him; few men in Whiteknights have their
lungs so whole that they can climb up to
their pits without halt or two.
The old man helped his sonin-law some
times he was good sort Of man by ma
ture, and not a bit more selfish than a
drunkard always must be. He ground the
rough stores into shape at home; minded
the children in his daughters absence and
even used the pick himself when he was
sober. John, too, was for his wife's sake
tolerant Of the old mans n6rmIty, though
half his little earnings went to crafty the
old mans appetite. At laetnece$slty com
pelled him to be, as he thought undutful.
Print after print vanished from the cottage
walls, every little ornament not actually
necessary and furniture was sold ; absolute
want threatened the household, when John
a, last, stated firmly that grandfather must
slve up the gin bottle or find some other
dwelling. Alice was overcome with tears.
but when appealed to by the old man, point
TO her husband and bowed her head to his
wise words
For two months after this time there were
no more drunken words nor angry tongues
to be heard within Johns pleasant cottage,
Nothing was SAID by daughter or by son-ln-
.aw of the long score at the public house
that was being paid off by instalments; the
daughter looked no longer at her father with
reproachful eyes, and the children did not
have to be taken to bed before their time
hurried away from The sight of their grand
fathers shame. At last, however, on one
Sunday evening in July, the ruling passion
mad again the mastery; Markham came in
worse state than ever; and in addition to
the usual deiasement, it was evident that
he was possessed also by some maudlln ter
ror. that he had no power to express.
Leaving him on his bed in legarthIc
sleep, John sailed forth as usual at dawn :;
his boys Harry and Joe. carrying up tor him
his miners spade and basket. Heavy
hearted as he was, he could not hel being
sladdened by the wonderful beauty OF the
landscape. His daughter told me that she
never saw him stand 80 long looking al the
country-he seemed unwilling 10 leave the
unlisht for his dark, far-winding burrow.
His burrow he had no reason to dread
Poverty had never pressed so hard upon
John Drewit a. TO induce HIM 10 sell away
the fir props that assured the safety OF hi
life. Often and often had his voice been
loud against those men, who, knowing Il e
mortal danger to which they exposed then
nelghbors, gave drink or money in ex-
change for them TO the ioolhardy and vi
cious. Great, therefore, was his horror
when he went into his cave and found that
his own props had been removed. They
had not been taken from the entrance,
where a passer by might have observed
their absence all was right for the first
twenty vards-beyond every pole was
stripped away. Surely no enemy had done
this; he knew at once that the wretched
old man who lay stupehed at home, had
stolen and sold his life defence for drink
All hat the poor fellow said TO bis boys was
that they should keep within the safe part
OF the digging, while he should work on a.
usual. Three or four times he brought ou'
heap of stones in his basket, and then he
was seen no more.
Harry, the eldest son, was nearest to the
unpropped passage when the sand-clltfiell.
When he heard his father call out sud-
denly, he ran at once towards the candle
by which the miner worked, but suddenly
it was dark, before and behind was utter
blindness and there was a noise like thun-
der in his ears. The whole hill seemed to
have fallen, and many tons OF earth parted
the father from his child. The sand around
the boy did not press him closey;a heavy
piece Of cliff that held together was suppor-
ted by tn narrow walls Of the passage and
his fate was undetermined. He attended
only to The mufiled sounds within the rock
from which he knew that his father, though
they might be the sounds of his death strug-
gle, still lved.
To the people outside the alarm was in
stantly given by the other child, and in an
incredible short space all the laborers came
to the rescue. Two only could dis togeth-
er, two more propped the way behind them
foot by foot relays eagerly waited at the
entrance; and not an instant was lost Ev-
erything was done as quickly and judicious-
ly as possible-a surgeon was sent for,
brandy and other Stimulants prepared-for
these disasters were so common that ev-
ery man knew at once what should be done.
How could this have happened was the
wonder. John was known to be too pru-
dent to have been working without prol 9,
and yet fresh ones had to be supplied by
the rescuers, Tor they found none as they
4 4.