The Ashland union. [volume] (Ashland, Ashland County, Ohio) 1854-1868, 1858-03-24
IHE CHILD ANGEL.

| SS-T
place, famous in the annals of the veal
thy. It stood not far from the brink of
the sounding sea, and commanded pros
pect of surprising beauty.
Among the very select few who came
here for the purpose of invigorating and
improving health, ,wero young couple by
the name of Hayden. Harriet, the wife
was an interesting woman, not yet thir
ty, with quiet, gentle manner, and a
voice whose every tone was music She
was New England woman, of Puritan
extraction, and sweet, practical Chris
tian. But the sweetest creature in this
/ beautiful group was Antoinette Hayden,
child of three years. She was not
robed in founces, or laces, or ribbons.
Her little limbs were unfettered by fash
ion, and had the freest play; her ways
were all natural, her walk and talk and
play were as a ehild's walk and talk
and play should be.
Loose Ben was an uncouth earricature
of human being, of sons sixteen years
of age, slouching in his dress, dirty,
and sometimes ragged, bearing all the
gibes put upon him with sullen mein and
stoical silence. Loose Ben shuf1ed,
looked suspiciously at everybody from
his eye brows-shrank from every hu-
man voice, never seemed to care wheth-
er they called him. fool or knave, and
only cared to gather his loose limbs to-
gether in some sunny place after his Scr
vices were over for the day, and think
what could the poor outcast think p
He was German, and possibly never
knew his parentage; he would not say
whether he had any father or mother,
1t was his duty to make fires in the
rooms Of those who were invalids, in the
early morning, and for this purpose the
father of little Antoinette employed him,
for though it was summer time, yet the
chill air of the sea made the early morn
ing raw and cold.
So, with an arm full of wood Loose
Ben wended his way to No. Sc, large
room on the second floor. As he entered
Mr.. Hayden glanced up from his Dress
ing table, and followed his lazy motions
with his eye fer moment Little An
toinette sat on the floor by the bedside,
half covered with the lace curtains that
fell like spray over her spiritual face and
figure. She, too, looked on earnestly,
suspendiug her play for moment, and
tken as his labor progressed, she stood
by his side. He gazed toward her, and
seemed paralyzed into greater stupidity
at her sweet smile. She did not mock
him, scream out or spring from him, as
other children did, ner call him unfeel-
ing names, but as she stood there with
sanity light on her brow, she laid one
white, dimpled hand on his ragged
sleeve, and with winning voice asked,
"dOes yOw love sGods"
| He was too much startled for the mo-
ment to speak, but the great shining
eyes beamed into his black lustre cribs,
and again that voice of surprising beau
ty asked, "does you love God Pr
/ He looked up, he looked down awk-
wardly, and in his broad Dutch dialect,
said, half sheepishly, '.ga-asn
"Does you pray TO God in the morn
ing ?" persisted the little one, still
keeping her hand upon him-and he in!
the same voice answered ''ya,as"
Then the little one seemed satisfied;
I she danced and capered about-chatted
with this coarse, boorish boy-watched
the curling fame as it ascended, and
built, all unconsciously, FIRE of love
and gratitude on the altar of that uncul-
tivated heart.
The season wenton, and Netie's moth
or improved in health. The thin figure
rounded ont, the pale cheeks grew fush'd,
and she took long walks and drives among
the quiet beach.
Every morning when Loose Ben came
up to build the 6re, that dear little voice
would say, "does you love God ?" and
when he had answered with his stereo-
| typed "ya-as," she would add in precise
ly the words as before, "does you pray
to God in the morning ?" and again with
that stupid wondering look, he would
say ssya-as" But there was change
in this semi barbarian. Gradually the
rough. heavy locks were trained to fail
back from his low but full brow; his
wood colored face grew clean, and his
great hands evinced some marks of at
tention. By some mysterious process
his clothes were mended, and little by
little Loose Ben seemed to emerge from
his loutish shell into region of more
thought and freer scope. Phe hotel
loungers still jeered him, still called him
all kinds OF strange and original names,
but he did not mind them, and had one
seen him going up to his daily duty to
room So, a smile might have been de-
tected lighting up his homely face, till
| it was almost handsome. And as he
entered day after day, came the same
questions about leye and prayer.
One Sabbath morning, never to be
forgotten day, for 1 am telling no stogy
Of fiction, dear reader, the rap came as