Daily Iowa State Democrat. [volume] (Davenport, Iowa) 1856-1859, 1857-08-24

~ CAAb8 O1MOCWAI
Daiiy. Trs-Wce kly ana weekly.
NEW roaH-s. y. rsssiasni o..
- -vischer Owen 4 CO.
CHIcAoo-Scrivcn 4 Gallagher.
=" Nv. D. Spencer.
st. LouIs-J. 3. Post.
Our Old GRANDMOTHER.
! hnd the marks Of my shortest sesr
beside those OF my beloved mother
which we're measured BY my own, coy
Alexander Dumas, and % oosjurss y
one OF the sweetest limoges 10 the world
ne Wss revisisi0g the hoas OF bic infsu
q; b vss retrseing the little pssh
around IL 10 which he had ooee walked
sod strange flowers could not s6ace, an,
: rank grsss could not conceal, and crue
3 ploughs could not obl,terste. bic "short
E cot footsteps" and his mothers bssid,
: them, measured by bis own.
And who needle to DO told whose foot
steps they were that thus kept time with
the feeble pstsering OF childhood's lit:lt
feet? 1t was no mother behind whom
Ascanius walked with equal steps" ia
NirRil's line, but strong, stern man,
who could have borne him and not been
burdened; folded him in his arms from
all danger and not been wesried: every
thing, indeed, no could have done for
him, but just what he needed most
could not sympathise with him he could
not DO child again. An, rare art is
thst-for, indeed, it is an srt-to set
back the old clock Of time and be boy
onoe more! Msn's imagination Gan
easily 500 the child man; but how hard
it 10 for It to see tho man Q child; and
be who has learned to glide back into
that rosy time when be did not know
that thorns were under the roses, or that
clouds would ever return after the rain;
when no thought tear could stain .
check no more than q drop OF rain flow.
er; when he fancied that life had no die.
gu'ss, and hope no blight ct sl.-hss
come % near 80 anybody can to dlscov
eriog the northwest passage to Paradise.
And it 10, perhaps, for this reason that
1t 10 90 much easier for mother to en-
ter the kinpdom of Heaven than it is for
the rest OF the worli. She fancies that
she is leading the children, when, after
all, the children are leading her, and
they keep her indeed where the river is
narrowost and the air 10 clearest; aud
the reckoning Of the radiant hand is SO
plainly seen from the other eide that it
10 no wonder she 90 often lets 90 her
clasp upon the little finger she 10 hold.
ing and 2 oes over to the neighbors, and
the children follow like lambs to the
fold, for We think it ought sometimes to
DO writtea I: "Where the mother is,
there will tho children be Also"
But it was not Of tho mother we be-
gan to think, but Of the dear, 0ld-fssh-
oned grandmother, whose thread OF love
"by hand" on life's little wheel was
longer and stronger than they mako it
now, wound around and about the chill.
dren she saw playing in the childrcn's
arms, in true love knot that nothing but
the shears Of Apropos could sever; for
VIC do not recognize the lambs sometimes,
when summer days are over and autumn |
winds are blowing, as they come beating
from the yellow fields, by tho crimson |
thread We wound about their nccks 10 |
April or NAV, and 90 undo tho gate and
let tho wanderers in.
Blessed be the children who have an |
oldfsshioned grandmother. As they
hope for length Of days, let them love
and honor her, for We con tell thorn they |
will never find another.
There is Q large old kitchen some-
whore 10 the past, and an old.fashioned
fireplace therein, with its smooth lambs |
OF stone-smOoth with many knives that
had been sharpened there-smooth with
many little fingers that have chung there.
There are andirons, too-the old and
irons, with rings in the top, wherein
many temples OF flame have been buili-
cd, with spires and turrets Of crimson.
There is broad worn hearth, by feet
that have been torn and bleeding by the
way, or been made "beautiful," and
walked upon floors Of tesselated gold
There are tongues in the corner, where
with We grasped coal, and blowing
for little lite," lighted our first can
die; there is . shovel, wherewith were
drawn forth the glowing embers in which
We saw our first fancies and dreamed
our first dreams-the shovel with which |
We stirred the sleepy logs till the sparks
rushed up the chimney as if forge were |
in blast below, and wished We had so |
many lambs, 80 many marbles, or so
many something's that We coveted and
so it was We wished our first wishes.
There is ohsir-s low, rush bottom
chair; there is little wheel in the cor
ner, big wheel in tho gsrret, loom in
the chamber. There are chests full OF |
linen and yarn, and quilts Of rare pat
terms, and samplers, in frames.
And everywhere and always the dear
old wrinkled face Of her whose firm,
elastic step mocks the feeble saunter Of
her children's children-the old.fashion. |
cd grandmother OF twenty years ago.
She, tho very Providence Of the old
homcstead-she who loved US eli, and
said she wished there was more OF us to
love, and took oil the school in the Hol-
low for grandchildren beside. A great
expansive heart was hers, beneath that
wooden gown, or that moro stately bonn
bazine, or that sole heirloom Of ei!ken
texture.
We can see her to-day, those mild
blue eyes, with moro Of beauty in them
than time could touch or death DO moro
than hide-thoee eyes that held both
smiles and tears within the fsintest cali
Of every one Of US, and soft reproof, that
seemed not passion but regret. A white
tress has escaped from beneath her
snowy cap; she has just restored wan
dering lamb to it's mother; she length
cd the tethcr Of vine that was strsying
over window, as che came in, aud
plucked four'leaved clover for Ellen.
She sits down by the little wheel-a tress
is running through her fingers from the
distaf's disheveled hssd, when . small
voice cries, "Grandma" from tho old
red cradle, ana Grandma !" Tommy
shouts from the top Of the stairs. Gen.
tly she let's 60 the thread, for her patience
s almost a. beautiful as her charity, and
she touches the little rcd bark in . mo-
ment. till the young voyager is in . |
dream again, and then directs Tommy's
unavsiling attempts to harness the oat.
The tick Of tho clock runs faint and low,
aud she opens the mysterious door, and
proceeds to wind is up. We are eli ON
tip.toe, and We beg in . breath to be
lifted up ono by one, and look 10 the
hundredth time upon the tin cases OF the
weights, and the poor lonely pendulum,