The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1859-02-03

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Angelo for Claudio's life, and consoling him,
even in his debasement with suggested ex.
cpse:
g. thoughts no subjects
~ 'il tn'ents but merely ih1 lights"
Beatrice, tanning her wild heart to Benedict's
loving hand;" gay Rosalind though "out of
suits with fortune" having vet word of en-
treaty for Orlando, and going with Celia to
thank him and encourage him. lest the
trough and envious disposition of the Duke
should have wounded him; Perdita, whose ten
der soul is best displayed in pity, as "one Of
the prettiest touches of all, and that which an
gled for mine eyes, Caught the water though,
not the hsh, was, when at the relation of the
Queens DEATH with the manner how she came
to 1t, (bravely confessed, and lamented by the
King how attentiveness wounded his daugh-
ter till, from sigh of dolour to another, she
did, with an alas would fam say, bleed tears;
for I am sure my heart wept blood Who was
mot marble there changed color; some swoon-
u, N sorfowed: If ALI the world could have
seen it, the woe had been universal"
But setting aside such characters as Juliet
and Ophela, and Desdemona, and Virgila
and Cordelia, and Imogen, in whom we natu
rally look for such soft traits, it is especially
remarkable that the most significant quality
in Lady Macbeths character after her amb-
ton and her selfcontrol, is just this womanly
attribute Of which we have been speaking.
As that fine critic Mrs. Jameson, has well
remarked, the strength of her affections adds
strength to her ambition" But it does much
more than this. After the murder of Dun
can, we see Lady Macbeth, during the rest of
the play, occupied in supporting the nervous
weakness and sustaining the fortitude of her
husband )" Macbeth leans upon her strength,
trt1af IN ha., Ill. Al
her tenderness "She sustains him, Gains
him, soothes him And it is this one re-
deeming feature that gives the character such
q supernatural interest in our minds we see
that it is no lay figure, but real flesh and
blood woman, who, stern and fendish in the
moment OF action, yet loves her husband, is
loved by him, and, when he has need of it,
comes forward as the comforter, the proper
administering angel" Why all this preface !?
Because, reader, we do not sufficiently rec
ognise this, the proper womanly part of woman.
1t Is not of man it is her own office, pecu-
liarly, this of comfort and ministry. Christ was
"more than man." because in his character
was contained just this additional element.
All we come to our senses respecting it, when
the crushing hand of sorrow weighs us down /;
when misfortunes assail us in troops; when
loss, and peril, and broken hopes, tear our
hearts when sickness puts its leaden weight
upon our limbs. 1 tell you, there have been
moments to us all, when, having kissed the
mothery or wifely hand that SO soothingly
pressed our brow, we have turned our faces
quickly TO the wall, not caring that the out
starting tears should be seen. Thank God for
woman! Wherever she is, in the cloister or in
the brothel, by the sick couch or in the ball.
room, Victoria or Aunt Chloe, Miss Nighting-
gale or Polly Bodine, there is ever something
womanly about her, and therefore something
loveable Thank God for woman!
But Ruth, though she could soothe, had no
specific against despair. Not even your omniv.
orous Burton could find nostrum for such
and Mrs. Fleming kept waning, while her little
nurse daily lost hope, without ceasing her eff
forts. Oh how her heart then yearned for Jas
come ho,dfad out to him " Oh Jasper, JASPER.
For, be it Known, the IrtIe maIuen uEu u
wondrous faith in that craven anchor, aud be-
heved that its magnetic virtue wonld ever guide
his wandering steps in safety, and eventually
bring him home to her, and to her mother
The thought Of losing Jasper never fully pre-
scented itself TO her mind had it done So it
would have killed her, Just as sudden frost
unsaps and withers spring flower. Then, as
Mrs. Fleming seemed just about to yield and
lie down and to die there came letter from
the faithful old Richard, written at Honolulu,
and giving them the precious news that Jasper
had been undoubtedly saved from the first perls
of wreck and murder, and that he was alive
and would certainly be found.
"Oh, mother cried Ruth, tremulous with
JOY, and practicing little tender deception,
thinking by making her fears out greater than
they had been, to enhance her hopes by
contrast, "until now / have been afraid,
but | fear no longer. He will come back, ]
know he will. God has preserved him out OF
these great perils for us, and to serve some OF
his high purposes. He will come back. The
augury Of the anchor shall not prove false
Now let us wait for him, and cling to the an.
Choir that God made him carve there. ! feel, |
knO,o, that it has sustained him also, no matter
how great his danger, or how deep his despair
He promised me, mother, and God heard the
promise"
1t is strangely touching, this faith of woman,
and this sublime belief Of theirs in special
their little arks, set them ahoat on the great
rushing Ganges of life, and go away, singing,
for they know that God sees them, and that
His hand steers the precious craft to the haven
proper for it. t
Mrs. Fleming knelt in silent prayer, and af
ter this seemed to mend much. She could
once more go about and once more repeat to
herself those last words of Gilbert Congreve
eTrust and Hope"
But, when the weary months ran on
and there still came no news of Jasper, nor nc
more letters from Richard, Ruth saw that she
was failing again, slowly but perceptibly, and
| it gave her sad Joy to see how patiently and
trustfully withal. The canker no longer gnaw
ed, but the wound had, it seemed, almost ex
| hausted the vital energy. She waited, hopeless
but resigned, murmuring, (" all is for the best :
| Yet, while waiting, Mrs. Fleming hopeessy
Ruth full Of confidence, they did not wait idly
by any means, but with trimmed lamps; stri
| wing by mutual intercourse, by study, and by
| charities, holy and unobstrusive charities, To
keep their spiritual muscles in train and well
developed, so that, however, the physical might
give way, and poor mortality yield to the in.
| siderable strain, they might still compass the
highest, the noblest humanity of all. Mrs
Fleming erst naughty Queen of society, became
now recognised as the kind soother of the al.
ficted, the friend, the guardian, the neighbor
| (not in the chronological sense of the word, nor
as the French understand their poisiR, but in
the broader and deeper significance of old at
tached to the word, as We see il in Shakespeare,
and in the old Bible translation, where the
good Samaritan is spoken of as "neighbor to
MIN tnat Ieli among thleVeS, Luxe \, oo,J oi
all who needed charity of purse, or charity OF
heart. Oh, it was glorious change, this, and
she recognised it as such, for now came to her
in full measure that holy peace and calm coz.
tent, which is eyer and only the attendant and
concursor of honest striving after the Best. 1t
is part of Gods Providence, this reactive
blessing of charity. We give, but fourfold OF
what we give is the measure of that which we
receive. If it be but a cup Of water to one
of these little ones loi it cometh back to us
in the wine Of grace, whose subtitle essence diff
fuses its healthful Yigor through our veins. II