The Council Bluffs nonpareil. [volume] (Council Bluffs [Iowa]) 1857-1867, 1860-12-08


Passages are like stately sooms restioe
y massive pillars, and garnished and ad ,rn.
. With all fair and beautiful thines or the
E rise before % IKE gardens Alied with tres
whose branches are burdenea with rold an
: purple fruits, whose winds are full, Of ,h
breath Of swses flowers. and whose silenc
e is stirred BY the voice Of soft falling water.
b amid which the soul may walk and be -
! freshsd. o, reader, FOR yos, too, seone
} or later, must come THE time when I'll earth
ly help shall fail you, when no human word
can bs of avail or healing to you, and i
/ those silent and awful sorrows. when onl,
: the soics Of God can speak to the hear;
ysu. too, may 6od what il is 90 have RI,
windows Of the promises opened, and you,
soul shall sit do~a under their blessed shad
} ows and be healed.
Days passed Away. A young man walked
along the county road Glow and YEARLY
leaning upon stout OAK staff; his face
was CHASTITY white, and be wore the blue
uniform Of the ''Continentals." He had .
terrible wound in the right shoulder, and bad
been left on tie battle field for dead. He
opened the back gate softly, and ga1ed all
about bim-at the wood pile in the corner
o.
and the small ounce trees which grew on
one side of the old brown homestead o!
Deacon Palmer. Suddenly the kitchen
door opened, and Rebecca Palmer came ou,
Of the door. with tin basin u her hand,
and the mans heart leaped as he heard her.
say in her quick way 'Nsver mind sprink-
ling them clothes, mother, I'll attend TO i,
as soon as have hunted up few of them
winter pears to stew for supper" and he
saw the light rapid figure hasten round the
corner Of the heusc to the old pear tree
| just in the edge Of the pasture, which he
remembered climbing so many times in his
boyhood, and amid whose branshes be had
gathered the faded birds nests every Fall.
lie followed the quick figure stealthi,y,
and stood still! moment Just outside the
bars, and she had dropped down on the yell
low grass, and was searching amid it for
the fruit which the wind had shaken of.
"Becky, Becky, say -
She turned quickly, and as her eyes FELL
upon his face CHASTITY pallor oversl read
hers. She covered it with shrek, not loud,
for il seemed to lie, for very terror, IN her
throat.
''Why, Becky, do you look up here! Now
have you DO better welcome than this for
your brother, when he has come back from
the dead, lives"
Bot she covered closer down in the grass,
and moaned and shivered like the leaves in
tho old pear tree.
: ''See here, now, what on earth ails you?
If you take me for spirit, just look up,
and I'll be able to convince you Pm honest
flesh and blood yet"
He lifted her up with one arm, for she
was too weak betwixt fright and wonder to
resist but the old, familiar, hearty tones
half re-assured her. She lifted her face
from her hands and looked at her brother a
moment with a strained, wild glance, and
la ~ Jaa.v.>le. A.~t1 sne naz ei eyes sun
had their old roguish glance, though they
were set 10 pale, wasted face.
SO, Reuben, Reuben, l thought il was a
ghost" and she fell upon his neck with u
wild sob Of JOY. ..-....--.,...
1t was long before he could get her to
talk nationally. She would throw her arms
around his neck, and hugging him tightly,
murmer such tender words over him betwixt
sobs and laughter as Reuben Palmer had
not heard since he lay babe in his mothers
crib. "You precious, darlin' fellow, have
you really come back to US alive? Bless
your heart, how white and changed you are?
o, Reuben, darlin', is it really you or am !
dreaming" s
And at last the girl grew cnlmer, and was
able to tell her brother Of that terrible night
when the awful tidings came that he was
dead, and how they hadn't one Of them
smiled since, and how, though his mother
tried to bear up, every one who looked in
her face could see that her heart was brok-
en-. And then both the young man and
maiden sat down on the grass and wept as
though they were little children.
At last Rebecca rose up. 20, what will
mother say ? You must come right in the
house, Reuben, only, perhaps, Ia better
break IL to her slow like, for she's weakly
now, and the sudden joy might kill her. 0,
there's father -
And they saw the old deacon come slowly
into the yard and alight from h norse just
before the barn door, and remove the heavy
bags Of -four from the animals back, for the
old man had just returned from the mill.
.'We'll go and tell him first. You just
keep around the corner of the barn, and III
break the news" cried Rebecca. She came
painting up to her father just as he was
leading the horse into the barn.
SO, say, father, l want to tell you
something's happened" +"
The old man turned and looked into the
eager face Of his daughter, and his son
standing little way of, could see the
change which the last few weeks had
wrought in his face.
swell, what is it, my child"
s.You'll be so glad, father, and yet
cam. tell it. o, Reuben, do come here"
And he came out. "Father."
The vague superstitions which almost oil
country people held at that time, Of ghosts
who haunted their old homes, and visits
made BY the dead to the living, at once sug-
pested even to the we'll balanced mind OF
the deacon the possibility Of his sons spirit
returning to him. lie turned white as his
child had done, but did not speak, and Re.
becca cried out, ssdon't be afeared father.
/ Il is not q ghost, but Reubep's old sell, and
| be wasn't dead as We all thought"
One long, greedy glance, and the father
knew bis child.
so, Reuben, my son Reuben, the Lord be
praised %
And then the father and son fell upon
each Others neck, like Jacob and Joseph Of
old, and wept.
oWe must break il TO mother easy, or
it'il sartin kil. her for joy," said tho old
man, vigorously wiping his face with his
p.ck es- handk erchief.
i So it vas arranged that Deacon Palmer
should 20 in and break the joyful tidings to
4 his wife according TO bis best judgmens.-
The trio went up to the house; Deacon
Palmer entered the kitchen, and his children
4 -. - H.. all