The Trinity journal., 1856-05-03
TIE M1sER's SrRArAGEM.-John Faro

way, the old miser of High street, Edn-
burgh, at last lay upon his death-bed. i
bequeath to you, my child said he to his
little daughter, while gasping hard for
.hsat6, the grave IN wnicnN1 nnINo nc 'odl-
led. am poor, very poor.
A ghastly smile spread over his features;
and the huttering red rags that had once
curtained his miserable couch gave, as the
sun poured through them, most Sardonlc
expression to the grim, death-struck face, en-
veoping it, as it were, in flames.
For half century Miser Farroway had
been gathering gold For nearly that time
his coffin, lined as wonder-mongers said,
with lead, had rested under his wretched
couch. OF all his children, but one was left
the Youngest And now she was gaunt
girl of thrteen-a poor, hungry, uncducated,
willing slave.
And the miser was dying. lie would
have no attendance-he was poor, he said
no one should pay doctors bill for him;
no one should put him in his coffin but fool
ish Bill, who had been his man-ofall-work;
no one should bury him but Tom Gall, the
undertaken, who, if he was drunk constant
ly, charged less for his jobs than any other
And the miser died-and foolish Bill laid
him in his coffin, and some good-hearted man
read his Will, bequeathing nothing but his
grave, and all it should contain, to the weep
ing miserable creature, his daughter, who
sincerely mourned for him. And the few
who saw it remarked upon the strange, Gend-
ish chuckle with which the old miser closed
his life, and which BODIED, they said, that he
had SO successfully hidden his money that
no mortal could find it, And old Tom Gall
the drunken undertaken, told, with plcnti-
ful sprinkling of oaths how the miser had
taken advantage of his inebriation and
bought the grave for II song, and that he
shouldn't wonder if it was filled with gold
SO crowds came to the funeral The
church-yard was filed the fences were lined,
and in the midst of all stood the poor
wretched orphan, shedding burning tears
and utterng wailing sobs The grave had
been dug, and dug deep, too-deeper by far
than any other in the old church-yard-an
no treasure had come to light, so that the
scandal-mongcrs were all disappointed, and
wondered that they had been such fools as
to believe the rumors ahoat As usual, old
Tom Gall was drunk-so drunk that he
staggered and the rope he had provided
was a rotten one, Che used it so very sci
dom,) and it broke at the mouth of the
grave, and the coffin fell away down, down
into the deep pit; and there was a rafting,
clinking sound, that caused the great body
of people to sway towards the grave, and a
murmur to go up that swelIed almost to Il
shout; and amidst it all the miscrs daugh-
ter never lifted her head but Wept and
wept.
'Gold!' cried one.
Gold! goldp cried others, moving to-
wards the spot; take the old fellow up
twas in his coflin-hal he tried to cheat the
devil but he couldn't cheat the gravel
And now every hand was extended to the
helress; whereas when she was the miser's
6eggar no one thought Of her. But to the
ptying eyes that had overhowed at her
grief when the young lawyer without much
practice read the pithy will, the girl turned
and leaned upon his arm. He did not ask
her to--he did not even congratulate her,
or press forward; but her heart had told
unerringly where the trueSt sympathy lay,
and it fled TO him. She was rich: the poor
toiling creature had now fortune that a
princess might envy. And not many years
passed before she was the bride of the single
hearted man who, in her dcstitution, had
given her one kindly word. This was the
lawyer.
And the stratugem of the old miser failed.
He had cheated the devil often but he could
not ch eat the grave.