Spirit of the age. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1849-1865, 1855-10-24

THE DRUNKARD AND HIS SToRY.-From the
New York Five Points Monthly Review we
select the ensuing scene from real life:
A few Sabbaths since, at morning service,
one of the most degraded specimens of hu-
mainly that ever greeted my vision, came
staggering into the chapel of the House of
Industry. His wild ndfrightful looks, ragged
and dirty beyond description, his face bruised
, and swollen, rendered him an object of dis
, gust and terror. He seemed to look at the
, children with wonderful interest, occasional
~ muttering to himself: Beautiful o, that
mine were hereP He sat an hour or two
: more, and then with a long earnest look at
. the Children staggered out of the chapel, and
t went up to the dark valley of the shadow of
. death'-Cow Bay.
As the bell rang for service in the AFTER
= noon, and while the children were clustering
s together, the same Withholding man stagger-
ed in once more. He surveyed the faces 90
o the children with the closest ~strutiny, and
at length his eyes rested on two brighteyed
little girls, who were singing one Of their
little hymns. He sat immovable as a statue
during the whole service, gazing intently on
,e the faces of those two children.
. The service closed the congregation disper-
= sed, yet he fingered, and the tears came
coursing down his face thick and fast.
DIR. S|-askedh him whatwas the matterf'
L AN d uIunkdEu! n WEetcn-dn OUT
"A cast, homeless, and without a penny. Once
l had a home and friends-father, mother,
wife, children, and hosts of friends, who
loved and respected me. Time passed on,
and l became u drunkard! One friend after
another left me; still / drank on, and down,
down | fell. Father and mother both went
down to their graves with broken hearts
My poor wife chung to me when all others
deserted me. | still drank on, pawned one
- AI
ain when my wife refused to give me her wedding
hit ring which she had chung to with a tenaclty
cod of a death grasp, l felled her to tho earth,
seized her finger, tore off the ring, and paw
lie ned it for rum. That fatal blow maddened
he her, and, in despair, she too drank, and to
rri- gether we swallowed into the gutter.
'Penniless We begged our way from Yer
mont to this great city. Here we hired
to small cellar, in a dark, dismal street, ant
still sent our children out to beg. Many a wear,
yity day we spent in that dreary cellar, while oul
children were wandering in the streets, begg
up ing for their drunken parents. About fort.
that days since my little girls went out to beg
pen- and from that hoNr to this / have not seeI
lust them. Without food or FIRE chung to m.
~; dismal abode, till hanger forced me out t
~ search for my children. My degraded vii
ana had been sent to Blackwells Island, as
lany vagrant, andalone Iweptto the Islands, to tn
him house of refuge, to the Tomhs, and in de'
pair | wandered to the Five Points. and fo
Il as the last few days / had lived in Cow Bal
aper among beggars and thieves. To-day | sa'
e he two children, who if they had not looked S
hole clean, and sung SO sweetly, / would hay
evils called them mine. o. would to God the
werep
press Tell me the namc,' said DR.. ., AN
eats | will see.' In a few moments two interes
,ned. ing little children were led toward him. 1
too the sight of this fearfullooking man the
force feet excla;m;ng sTbev : In :
My children, don't you know your poor 0
father? Come to me my children. Faith
D.. loves you, he won't hurt you.' He reacht
out his arms the little ones were timid
ent OF first, bnt they soon climbed up their father
this knee, while the tears were streaming dow
Or of his face.
Kiss your poor drunken father, my chi
rem But the face of the man was sobla
ISL Ia and filthy: not a place could be found. So
Yards they forgot the dirty face, and remember
facili- their poor degraded father ;and each entwi
~ ing their little arms around his neck, a
fondly kissing him, the elder one said. "
es- a voice that touched every heart Faith
ut the we are so happy here that we want to st
Won't you come and live here too, papa
What makes you drink so? Dear papa,
nta;ns sign the pledge, and not drink any me
- Mr.. Pease found US in the street, beggi
'unah and now We are happy. Do, papa, come :
mar live here, and be good to us as you used
zear- be-
Ose of ~ ia'sers hea5t was o'elM LINZ !.
twelve an hour thew sat together. till at last the
d are man arose, still clinging to his children,
inging exclaimed: The pledge; Will never or
70 the againp
1 give him the pledge, and from that h
rs ana he has faithfully kept it. He is now a n
tuition again engaged in business, earning ten
lars per week, and none could recognize
the well dressed man-who still boards
ablish- Tue nouse-tne degraded 9rlganal, vi
wson's Sns.rv 5aara -. &c seea = - st.;I;no Je
M. nifty and seualor.