Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1855-07-11
Joan of Arc.

s'The pensive and retiring beauty of Joan while
il attracted the attention of men, repelled famil
iarily Several, nevertheless, pleased with her
grace and modesty, solicited her hand from her
parents. She persevered in remaining single and
free, possibly through some obscure presentiment
which warned her that she would one day have
10 give birth not to family. but Kingdom
One of the sutors more violent, had the boldness
to claim her love as of right, swearing before a
court of Justice that she was betrothed TO him.
The poor girl, abashed but indignant, appeared be-.
fore the Judges at Toul, and conlradiced by oath
this calumny of passion. The judges saw through
the plot, and sent her home free.
| 'While her beauty thus charmed the eye. the
compcsure of her face, the thoughtfuness of her
features the solitude and silence of her life, as
tonished her father, her mother, and her brothers.
| She possessed only the grace and attractions of
! her seX-she had none OF It's weakness. Her face
exhibited neither her feelings nor the emotions of
her heart. It's expression. concentrated in her
eyes, seemed rather that of meditation than of
feeling, yet she was compassionate and tender :;
but her pity and tenderness extended to something
greater and more distant than her immediate hor
izon. She prayed increasingly, spoke little, and
avoided the company of her equals in age. She
generally retired alone, and piled her needle in a
from which she could only see the blue sky, the
tower Of the church, and the distant crest of the
mountains. She seemed TO hear voices within
her which the noise of the world would have still
ed.
"She was scarcely eight years of age when
these signs of inspiration began to appear in her
In this she resembcd the Sibys of DID, marked
from their infancy with the fatal seed of sadness.
beauty and solitude, among the daughters of men
instruments of inspiration reserved for oracles.
and to whom every other employment of mind
was prohibited She loved everything that suffer
ed particularly animals-those intelligent beings
gifted with love for us, but deprived Of words 10
convey their feelings. Her companions say that
she was mild and mercilul to birds. She conSid-
cred them as creatures condemned by God, to live
near men, in state of transition between soul and
matter, and having in their nature nothing as yet
complete but the painful faculties of suffering and
love. All that was melancholy and Indefinite in
the sounds of nature attracted and absorbed her
SHE was so fond of the sound of bells.' says the
old Chroncler, that she promised the ringer
hanks of wool from the autumn gathering if he
would sound the Angelus longer in the morn
ings'
but her pity was most strongly excited for
the kingdom of France and for the young dauphin
-motherless without country, and without
throne. The tales she daily heard from monks,
soldiers. pilgrims, and beggars-the cottage news
men of The tme-filled her heart with compas-
sion for the young prince. His image was asso-
ciated in her mind with the calamties of her faith
erland. 1t was in him that she saw it perish; it
was through him that she prayed to God for its
deliveranee. Her spirit was ceaseIessly occupi-
ed with this anxiety and sadness"