The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1859-06-09

| IL you knew Was MurueTeTs he Caught
his breath, and hid hi face in his hands.
81 have known tina I, my poor friend, almost
as long as have kno m 7ou."
"And been so kind" exclaimed Kane, look
ing up, with aasbSs Il sstonished gratitude
But you'll say the q 10 help for me-" He
burst into tears.
a shall not. If aan aimself, the father of
murders, stood befor me grieving for his hor-
rible past and desiring to 10 right for the future
should not tell him that there was no help for
him. should see thst all The angel in him had
not been quite dashed Out by his fall. i should
tell him that Gods good 'ess was greater than
even his wckedness, ant sthat, since he could
repent, believed thai es IN he need not des-
pair.
"But / can't rep. 4 = said Kane; that's
just it." p5
A message came fl n,tle hospital to hasten
Herman. He rose, as ieIr Kane thought, to
abandon him.
"Going away to leave me? There! / told
you so.'
81 must 90, am afrsid, !. but will not leave
you, if you would like - t6me with me, Kane
Come with me, in Chr rt'5 name, and help to
tend the sick and do hh work. Those who are
called into the vineyard et the eleventh hour,
you know, are offered the same wages as the
earlier workers; but, in ;osamOn gratitude, they
should work the harder. les us forget ourselves,
and serve our neighbour aGw, while God is call
ing upon us to do so, tn slgh the cries of their
suffering; and we will Il further together, by
and by"
Herman did not wish t9.lose Sight Of Kane,
and rightly guessed that rs was one of those
cases of religious melancholy, which need for
their relief outward quits as much as inward
Christian working. He hid work hard and
heartily, night and day, s1d grew less moody
and more cheerful, as hes:hought more about
doing, and less exclusssely about feeling,
right; but he was evideftly still anxious for
further confession; anaSas soon as he could,
Herman found an oppg tunity for him to
make it. :.
1t was midnight The~rickest men lay half
stupefed with laudanup Z Herman and Kane
went from bed to bed, as Fey were wanted, and
whispered together in the tgtervals of their at
| tendance: -,
"You see, sir" whispered Kane, 81 this was
why shot George Bowie. George and me was
| both sparkling after Sue M>sigorownd; and first
| she'd be sweet Oh him sr' tart on me; and
then, if commenced tss-nn after somebody
else. she'd lust take st of q twirl, and be
sweet on me and tart on ! %, as the young Ia
dies will, just because tb' &c rather, of course,
have two beour than one rs long as they can.
It's the nature of 'em, al !! we hadn't ought to
mind it. didn't care pfasreen for knowed
all the while she purposes settle down on me,
when she'd had her swing @sut George, when he
commenced to see how tn 5 lyind sot, he got as
mad as any dog. He swo he'd shoot me, and
so have it out of both on z, seein there wasn't
no other way gentleman onld chastise lady.
Sue, she heard on it, am commenced to feel
almighty bad. She sent sr him to come and
CALL and writ him, and stop ed and spoke to him
when she met him a-walSs,; but he wouldn't
hear to a word YOU; remarked, l des
say, sir pretty young n 20 that description
among young men is Juss. like poker she
| can stir up powerful gr - fire, but she amt
no great account for putt, out George was
mighty ugly Teller always We en- he was in liquor
and arter he found Sue paz posed to tilt him, he
| was t,ghtlsh or so most-e the while Well,
up to that time, you see, Nc hadn't been what
you'd call every day wicke7Ss but only Sabbath
day wicked. Dye see?
"No; do you mean thas lou did not spend
your Sundays we'll ?"
WELL no; only mea that | was under
the wrath O. God / had.J done nOthin but
| was impenitent, you KNOB
"You mean that you s'e not religious
mann" -.
"Well, yes. l always .sent to to meetin
regular, and read my Biblt land KEEP the COM
mandments, said my prayer mornn an evenin,
an all that, and went to ressals, too, time after
time: but somehow or otis couldn't seem
to get converted and SO Few that if George
did shoot me, he'd shoot :. light into hell fire
for he was plaguey goo Saarksman, drunk or
sober; and couldn't ab.tsth the thoughts on it,
and it ha'nted me day nght. | couldn't eat,
nor l couldn't sleep; and u got as lean as a
rail and as yeler as / be ,-w; and i thought
even if did repent, under sh circumstances,
l couldn't be sure twas ge4line, nor anythin
h,,t ~ sof frap SOrpq
SO i Just got behind the bash, on the road to
the tavern, with my shotgun, an shot him. to
give myself time"
But surely You are sorry for 1t now?
DWELL, don't know, sir that's what ] never
could settle rightly to the satisfaction o my
own mind. have it over and over sixty times
in an hour, this way and that way, sometimes
for days and days; and just as soon as think
I've got it put down, up it jumps again, like the
stick that was so crooked it couldn't lay still +;
and can't get it out of my head till it seems
as if my very skull would split. Pm sorry and
| amt Pm sorry for George. l don't owe
him no grudge nor didn't at the time. If
could pull him up out of the fire and birthstone,
without gettin in myself, I'd do it in less nor
no time but if one of us has got to be in there
forever, I'd sooner 'twould be him than me, and
; | can't help it. His was the fault. He didn't
ought to act so. I'd ha' let him be, and glad
to, if he hadn't threatened me. If twas to do
over again, I'm fearful would do just so and
that amt repentance and them that don't re-
pent can't hope to be saved
sAssolver 81 puo, chi non 81 pente;
Ne pentere voere inseme puossi,'"
thought Herman. Kane, and IL nero cheru
biao.' have arrived at the same conclusion in
their separate interni, and no doubt it is true
one"
"When l want to repent, it's because that
want to keep out of hell-fre; and / can't want
to keep out, and wish at the same time I'd let
E him pop me in, can /? And it's just like a
snarly skein of silk in my brains and the more
try to get it untangled, the more it snarls up. y
The poor halfdistracted creature actually
squinted, in the intensity of his introspection
Herman laid his hand upon his shoulder
"Let it alone, Kane; don't try any longer just
now. Let me see if can't disentangle it for
you. You must have been very young when
all this happened?"
"Nineteen."
"You think, then, that if you had died at
that time, well-meaning and inoffensive,
though very likely very imperfect and thought
less boy, God would have punished you with an
eternity of torment; and that if you should die
now, after committing a murder-since you,
and the Judge and jury who convicted and
; sentenced you, it seems, are agreed in calling
it one-you would have just the same punish
ment to fear, neither more nor less?"
"Well, yes, sir; just So"
Kane had argued prettys correctly upon his
premises but Herman did not see how such
premises could possibly be correct. al don't"
said he.
aULr cir don't tho C,r;rknras co % ua m not