Democrat and sentinel. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1853-1866, 1855-02-22

by my ears as / ran up the snow covered
street of Brookville on that fatal evening.
Draw your chair closer; I wish to speak IN
whispers now. Within Meals house, when
we reached it. was this scene.
The old housekeeper stood with her chap
ped hands folded in her yellow apron, with
her face fattened against dirty pane of glass
door looking into the tavern. A few of the
village sots we're staggering around the room,
or half dozing on the pine benches at the FIRE
The old shoemaker seemed pledged with Neal, !,
| who was nearly drunk. to revoke some decree
of his and nay own Mamie was struggling II
1.-The arms Of one of the two strangers while
the other stood little way of, grinning with
grim satisfaction My blood boiled in every
knotted vein. When Ispraug into the arena,
old Neal stammered into drunken slang.
$50, ho! Mister Hod Carrier, I've sold
Nan to city gentleman p and he held up
roleau of gold coin A low laugh gurgled up
from the throat of the internal purchaser.
:. Mamie sold ?" sesH N.
I grew dizzy-the room with its tragedy
seemed to whirl around with me. I heard
the familiar voice of the old shoemaker cry
out:-Mr Neal, how can you barter your own
| pure child away to one whose heart is to-day
| as black as any purgatory, after promising
| your poor dead wife to be both father and
| mother to the dear child 7"
A drunken curse came from the hot lungs
of the father against the shoemaker and his
own child; 'sbetter that than the wife of an
Infamous hod carrier r.
| I saw the old woman's pitted face grinning
| against the glass; and then saw the mild
| blue eyes of my poor. half distracted Mamie
almost starting from their sockets, and her
right hand, that was free from the monsters
grasp, held out imploringly to me for help.
She screamed my name. rushed to the res
cue. Rob Lincoln was before me-
:. Draw your chair closer"
Old Neal was enraged that we should dare
| to rescue his child from the infamy to which
he had sold her, and grasping the old shoe
makers hammer from the bench, he hurled
il at u.s. The weapon few close by Rob's
ear and struck the head of my poor Mamie.
With a low murmur Of t" mother, mother p
she sank in my arms to the floor The two
strangers fed forever from Brook vile.
called again and again to Mamie to tell me
she had not fed from earth to heaven but she
kept her blue eyes fixed upon me. and a
changeless smile rested upon her damp face
Aud all this time, the old houseKeeper kept
her hideous face pressed against the glass,
grinning through the scene. And old Neal
stood with his arms folded, clutching in one
hand the roleau of gold called again and
again to Mamie; and, like achild whispered
in her ear that l loved her still; but the
changeless smile was the only answer. held
her head in my arms and wept. The old
shoemaker ran and brought the village sur
geon. He came and knelt down by her on
the tavern floor, and took her pale hand in his.
/ 1 loved him more than ever for holding it so
softly and tenderly, examining the livid spot
half hid by her auburn hair. where the ham,
| mer had struck. I could bear it no longer
I whispered, g Doctor. is Mamie gone 2" /
could not say dead, but worse!
And he laid his slender fingers Significantly
on his noble brow.
Rob Lincoln, the doctor and the old shoe
maker carried Mamie from the tavern to the
doctors house and followed.
And the blood of that victim fell, drop by
drop, on the pure white snow.
The next day old Neal went to eternity.
The Angels of Retribution had watched his
steps, and had marked his last going out.
The shaft of the Pale Archer had struck him
to vex, and then destroy. In the battle strife
with the demon of delirium tremens he was
overcome, and his spirit shrieking with fears,
went to be judged by Him who weighs I'M
mortality in the eternal balance of Truth.
He was buried beneath the snow-web tha,
lay on the yard behind the village church,
and no eye in Brookville wept
| Day after day / watched by the bedside OF
poor Mamie, and whispered to her, and wet
| her dry lips with water She mostly lay with
her languid eyes closed, but when she did open
them they started out after me with such ter
ror that shrank from them. And she would
/ point her finger at me, and call me monster,
and command me To carry her back Ia Brook