The Trinity journal., 1856-06-21
A Romance in Real Life

having passed up the river with a small
fleet of vessels in tow, one of which had
been cast off and hauled in just west of the
bridge, leaving the draw" still open.-
While waiting, he witnessed the following
scene
"The vessel we have mentioned was
moored and made fast outside of several
canal boats and as we stood looking Mt
the men upon her, one of them approached
female, who had been crouched upon deck,
and addressing her, pointed to the shore,
then down toward the thronged and busy
streets of living, moving, headlong Chicago.
She rose, picked up small bundle, from
which she drew forth coin, which she ten
dered to the hardy sailor. He refused it,
whatever it was, and lending her hand,
helped her from the vessel to the dock, and
from the dock up to the bridge by this
time large crowd of persons thronged the
north end of where the bridge would be if
it were always bridge and in contempla-
ting the new faces, and the representatives
of the various classes there assembled we
had almost forgotten the incident we have
related. Our attention was called from the
vain endeavor to discover some cessation of
tugs going up and down, and brigs and
schooners pulling in and out, by hearing a
most audible sob from some one near me-
1t was not the sob of childhood, caused by
some sudden change from gayety to grief (;
it was the sob of some maturer breast, filled
with Il sense Of loneliness and despair. 1t
reached other ears than ours.
A lady dressed in manner which be-
spoke wealth that could CRAFTY taste and
elegance, and who, like ourselves, was de-
tanned at that place, stood near, accompa-
MED by three children, whose desire to get
at the extreme end of the platform she with
difficulty repressed With woman's tender
ness her heart recognized the stihed ebuli-
tion of sorrow, and approaching the person
from whom it came, who was no other than
the woman we had just seen land from the
vessel, she quietly and in that soft, sweet
voice of woman, which none can resist in
quired if she stood in need, or was she ill, or
was her sorrow such that she could not be
relieved. A portion of the railing near us
was vacant, and towards that, and almost
at our side these two women came to con
verse. The stranger was fair, handsome
girl of about seventeen years neatly but
coarsey dressed, with shoes not only well
worn but heavy, and unsuited as much for
her sex as for the season. The poor girl in
honest simplicity, and with an earnestness
which despair alone can impart, related her
history, uninterrupted by a single observa-
tion from her companion, but often accom-
panied by the tears Of both We have not
space for it at length, but we will give it,
changing its order just enough to enable us
to state it briefly
She SAID that she was born in Boston (:
she had no brother or sister now she re-
membcred that she had sister, the Oldest
whose name was Lizzie that sister, years
ago, against her fathers will had married,
and with her husband, having been banshed
from her fathers sight, had gone off and
had not been heard of since--no doubt was
dead. AT the time of her sisters marriage,
her parents were wealthy The pride which
drove away Lizzie had brought silent re-
grets, and after while came melancholy
complainngs by the mother signing for the
embrace Of her frst-born. These soon led
to anger and elimination at home, and dssi-
patton by the father abroad. Losses came
upon them, and at last, gathering the few
remaining goods they possessed, they left
the proud city of their birth, and settled
five years ago upon land purchased of the
Government in Wisconsin. Her brothers,
some Older and some younger than herself,
one by one dropped and died and soon the
mother, calling in agony her long exiled
daughter joined her boys in happier cline.
None were now left but the father and this
poor girl He too was humbled and stricken
by the slow but certain disease which lights
up the cheek and fires the eye with brilliancy
of health, even when its victim is on the
confines of eternity.
He would sit and tell to his surviving
child the acts of winning love and sacrificing
devotion which had made his Lizzie the
very object of his life He would talk OF
her sweet smiles and happy disposition, until
memory would lead him to the hour when he
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