Clarksville chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1857-1865, 1859-02-25

your sanction, she will more readily con-
sent the castle must capitulate to our
united forces"
A melancholy smile lighted the old
man S face, like sunshine cleaning through
showers, but his thoughts were all too sad
for repartee A gloomy foreboding cast
its sombre shadow over the usual bright
ness of his spirit, yet so intangible was the
cloud, he scarce knew what obscured the
light, and attributed the forewarning mist
to a selfish fear of losing the gentle girl to
whom he had been father, since the loss
of her own parent, and whose ardent affec-
tion repaid him for his care. Often thus,
so dimmed is mans spiritual vision,-
do the warnings of his guardian angel
pass unheeded, and when the Bethesda of
of his reason is troubled by presentment,
instead of passing through its healing wa
ters the manned plans which, to his imper-
feet vision, seem whole and clean, he blind
ly rushes to their. fulflment and seals his
ruin.
"Mother l have been offered the village
school at Elm's Dale, shall accept?" was
Lilly's query as soon as the threadbare,
yet never to be omitted common places
upon health and weather had been inter
changed between her mother and the
minister.
"May you accept, the widow raised
her wondering eyes,-those eyes SO much
admired once, and now dimmed by use and
tcars,-to the youthful almost childish face
before her. "Moy you accept" She re-
peated as though she doubted whether she
had heard Alright, "Accept school? Why
child, it would be more suitable, had the
mesns, to place you at one as pupil"
Father Hardy has been experimenting
m9sducation since left Mrs. Willard's s,
and he says l am fully capable of instruc-
ting all who may be placed under my
Icharge at Elms Dale. And only think
dwhat an assistance the salary, twenty dol
Wars a month, would bo to us at present.
1Do not say no mother. | have thought it
Hall over and combatted every argument
you could urge, already" and the young
\ girl looked still less like being capable of
assuming the responsibilities of the posi-
ton she coveted, as she cast herself at her
mothers feet aud rested tie pleading face
upon her lap
This pros and cons we're argued that
May morning, with the sun looking in
, upon the grOupc ofthem, smiling as though
it approved their plan the little birds
twittering gaily as they paced the mossy
carpet in their dwelling preparatory tc
housekeeping and the consent a0dS gtrea
Tabby wiped her whishcrs with her velvet
paws and purred upon the hearth. Ole
Tray, upon the threshold growled laZily
with half closed eyes at passers, or snapped
at the house fies,-hold intruders,--tha
sought the sunshine in which he basked
as his superior brother, man, rebukes thC
! wretch who ventures to creep from the con
fines of his own poverty into the monopo
, ly of trade, which is the rich mans prov
ince. Kitty, Lilly's pet chased the widow
ball about the floor, pulled the needles from
the unheeded netting, and tangled the un
d, finished tidy irrotrieyably. The widow
, folded her hands abstractedly upon hel
, lap, an unusual act with her, betokenin2
no ordinary preoccupation. The vener
able minister, gazed thoughtfully into the
] frc-p place filed with fresh pine boughs
$ that waited pleasinG.spring odor through
the room.-Lilly watched the kitten
u. gambols without comprohending thicr mis-
chef she was revolving the future in he
8 mind, and the foreshadowing wing o
destiny sweptpropbetically athwart its sky
u and obscurcd the halo which hope ha
G thrown about her scheme And Il aoaS sci
It ticd. Lilly whose sunny face had bright
d ened, with its beaming smile, her child
h hoods home, whose mesmeric hand ha
:, pressed the invalid's burning brow, an
soothed its suffering whose whispere
Il words of cheering consolation had reawak
t. encd hope in the despairing bosom Lii
o ly, the village favorite, the household trco
g sure - was going Aged men an
J. women shook their heads forebodingly
IF and tea-tablo gossips affirmed that wido,
l. Aylmer tempted Providence in thus send
g ing her young and lovely child, like a
d unHcdged bird, from the sheltering ROO
fc tree The village children rebelled opcr
h. ly against the loss Of their friend an
r sympathizer the biggest-boy declarin;
Sc "that he would plow his fingers ends ol
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