Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1858-11-26

tiest, kneeling to the wttiest, and kssne
the one he loved BEST" declared all thes'
dues were to his cousin Sally. His cousr
Sally protested and resisted the girls a
Joined her. and after laughing scramble to-
gcthcr, Lyman's sister caught up n candle
called " cousin Sally to follow her, and they
made good their escape to the bedroom, and
bolted Lyman out. Lyman retreated the
evening wis iai advanced, and the Leakes
and their guests separated for the night, hut
not till after Lyman performed a duty that
had been postponed by his uncle's arrival.
While his mother, " on hospitable thoughts
INTENT was preparing her little affairs for
the mornings breakfast, Lyman went to the
wood-house to split kindlings for the morn
ing, fires and having finished, he could not
resist the temptation of showing his well pre-
served axe to his Uncle Ben % The boy is a
fool about that axe, said his father; - if it
was made of wedge of gold he could not he
more choice of it he even hides it away from
mo that gave it to him." Lyman looked at
his uncle with quiet smile "Comc, come,
Lyman said his father " there's reason in
the roasting of eggs; throw your axe in here
for tonight" lie opened the door of little
closet next the fire place. "Don't go clear
back to the wood-house this cold night. -
"A place for every thing, and every thing in
its place. replied Lyman, and the axe was
returned to the wood-housc. Now that :
what call supcrstitious,' said the father.
while he took from the open closet splinter
broom to sweep the wide spread Goals of the
fire he had just raked just as he was finish
ing, his wife called to him from the kitchen,
and, hashly hrowing the broom into the closet,
he went to her.
john" she said, L" there's no water in
the house"
Well, what of that"
Why, you know, | never like to go to
bed without pail of water at hand
IL know that is one Of your superstitions.
John Lcake, in spite of all his experience,
persisted in looking upon the provisions of
foresight as ''superstitions. "Let ii go, Just
for tins one night, wife; it's dark and biting
cold, and the way up to the well all snod
with glare ice. -
lis bad" said his wife, meekly, and
urged no more: but, as she looked wsttully
at the empty pail, she thought, if they
should chance to want water in the night, it
would not be any better getting it, and an
anxious sigh escaped her Coming events
do sometimes seem to least their shadows
before -
The family were soon all in bed and IN
their first sleep, the profoundest of the night
but there is no sleep from which mother
cannot be awakened by a restless child, and
about one o'clock Mrs. Leake was reused
from hers by the nesting of her baby, She
instantly wakened her husband with, "John
do get up and see where this smoke comes
from the room is full of it." Their bed
room was off the sitting room the door
was open into it, and the moment
Leake raised his head he saw bright
light shining through the crevices of the
closet-door into which he had thrown the
splintered broom.
Some small Goals had adhered to the broom
when John swept the hearth, but, shut in
the closet with very little air, they had been
slow in kindling; but now they had kindled
thoroughly, and when Leake sprang to
the closet-door and opened it, the broom was
in lighted blaze, and the heated partition
had taken fire. John seized the broom and
threw it in the e-place, and at that moment
the fire had made so little progress that a
single pail of water at hand would have cx
tinguished it,
Oh, The pail Of toater ~ shrieked Mrs.
Leake Leake thought with anguish of the
empty pail, rushed to the kitchen for it, and
rushed to the well. The ground was descend
ing to the house, and, as he said, " slippery
as glass, and Leake fell. Again he let the
bucket down into the deep well and filled his
pail, and reached the house with it, but the
air had rushed in through the open door and
blew up the fire like furnace bellows. lie
would not now have felt twenty pals of water.
The smoke filled the whole house, and the
cracking of the fire and the outcrles OF
John and h wife had awakened the whole
family, who now came out-all except
ing the two girls, who had boltcd themselves
Il n l,l. LII t,1l- l-,1 1nr
late into the night, and were now sleeping
on in spite of all the mischief, danger, and
misery about them. Lyman rushed through
an outer room filled to suffocation with
smoke, and shrieked, "Anne Sally fire
fire - There was no answer. In vain hC
banged against the door; 1t was too securely
boltcd. Quick as thought, he sprang to q
window communicating with the wood
house, passed through it, and in moment
returned with his axe. The smoke had be-
come fre--the room was blazing. But with
Heavens help and blessing Che said he
could not-he could not possibly have dont
it alone), in breath the door was battered
down, and in another breath the girls jump
ed from the window unframed, followed by
Lyman.
The rapid consumption of wooden-hous'
in the country, in cold, gusty night, car
scarcely be conceived of by those who hav
not witnessed it. There was but just TIM
to extricate the horses and cattle from tn
stable when that, as well as the house anc
woodhouse, was enveloped in flames All
as Leake's neighbor had forewarned him
went together, and in one mass of ashes la
the labor of many months-the dear old fur
niture of the Connecticut home, all tn
children's pretty things, fond memorials an
precious keepsakes that no toll, no art, n
e kindness could make good to them. "And a
this dreadful loss" as Mr.. Curtis would re
g peat to his listeners in the school. ''for th
l want Of a pail Of ,eater in the right plac
And life saved by the axe being in the 'righ
} place, instead Of having been thrown int
e the closet, as Lcake proposed beside IL
! broom, by the careless use of which all Il
d harm was done"