The weekly north Iowa times. [volume] (McGregor, Iowa) 1857-1867, 1859-05-04

must die" A faint sound came from the
bedside of the sick man, and the faithful
wife in q moment was at his side. "How
dark it is, Nellie darling, let in little light.
She sofly Enclosed the shutters, letting in
the gushing rays Of the noontide sun, but
it brought not light to him. Nellie, come
closer, darling, let me sec you once more"
and wild cry of pain burst from her white
lips as she saw the change that had passed
over his countenance. "Walter, Mother
and Alice are here; cant you sec them p
Cant you &c your own Nellie. Oh God
spare him, spare him. she gaspcd As she
sank on her knees beside him. The aged
mother sank on her knees ut the foot of the
couch and from her thin quivering lips went
up . prayer for her stricken children
Anscts naaast have gazed with interest on the
scene. ''They are coming-dcnt you SEQ
them darlingf" and the thin hand pointed
upward, but Nellie buried her face still deep
er in the bedclothes and sobbcd convulsively.
kiss me once more Nellie, darling, am
going" and the last seal of love was i'm
printed upon the lips of the dying man
the beating heart was stilled. Nellie was
borne fainting from the room, and laid upon
her own little couch. When she recovered
once again to the knowledge of her woe and
utter loneliness, it was heart-rending to hear
her anguished calls for her Walter, her
dear, dear Walter.
She sank at last into sleep of utter cx-
haustion. Her cheek, white as the pillow
it pressed, was wet with the scalding tears.
We left her slumbering, unconscious of her
woe; stole softly to the room where lay
Walter. They had put on the snowy habili-
ments of the grave, and as he lay with that
sweet, heavenly smile upon his placid fea-
lures, it seemed to us he only slept, and we
almost held our breath to catch faint sound
from the loved sleeper, but our own wild
beating hearts was all the sound that broke
the deathly silence. -..
Then came on the twilight hour-still
Nellie slept sweetly, peacefully, forgetting
her heart-crushing sorrow in that balmy
slumber. too, lay upon the couch beside
her, and Mrs. Graves also sought her apart
ment, that we might be better fitted for the
trying scene of the morrow. slept sound
ly until the clock striking two, aroused me,
nj 7 .11 / or
noiselessly to the adjoining room. There
was Nellie, pressing fond kisses upon the
brow and lips of Walter, baptizing him with
her tears and calling him by every endear,
ing epithet to ''look once more upon his
Nellie, call her once again his little darling
but he answered not.
The morning came. At the appointed
hour the long procession stood at the door
the black hearse with its waving plumes
the undertaken giving his orders in low
i.urrssa tone. The churcll,beH pealed its
mournful wall, and we were on our way to
| tfro r.rrrotue.y.- -Grn1ried ta- cultivation
were the long aislcs for he was loved by all
The aged pastor preached an eloquent sur.
mon, closed with touching tribute of sym.
pathy to the disconsolate wife and weeping
friends. Slowly wound the funeral train
over the hill, and the quiet churchyard was
reached-the oefiin lowered in the grave
Oh! how hollow sounded the clods as they
fell upon its lid, how hard to leave him there
alone in that dreamless sleep. Bravely did
Nellie bear up under all, poor child, until
arrived at the lonely home-then her forti-
tude gave way and she yielded to passion
ate flood of tears. We took Nellie back to
her quiet, childhood home. For weeks she
fingered between life and death in slow,
wasting fever, but her naturally strong con-
stitution rallied; the crisis was past; but
our Nellie was totally, irreU0cably Wind!-
Blind to the bright blue sky, the glorious
sun. Blind to the soft green fields where
brooklets run, but she bore all patiently
This was only light affection, completely
swallowed in the one absorbing source OF
I grief-"htr lost Waiter"
| A few months rolled on and the wall OF
an infant was heard now in our dwelling
Nellie presses her little Walter closer to her
heart as We sit in this little room where one
year ago she stood bride We dreamed
not that the sad, dark future would bring
such changes. singand play at twilight's 5
hour on the guitar for her, and think as
l gaze into her lovely face with that sad,
spiritual expression upon it, she looks more
lovely since she bowed meath the chasten-
ing rod "Only think, Alice" she sighs,
Tin one short year was bride, q mother,
a widow and blind"
All, sighed inyoluntarily, thus fades,
Nellie dear, the glory of earth.
SourH BEND, April 25th.
L