Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1860-02-24
Home Wi,hou, a Mother.

was dark and cold in the low dismal attic
but elo.s pressed TO tho frosty window lay
the face OF Sammy llanir. Ill, .oft hair
hung over his fearful face. and his thin
hand. cl.'ped tho rough window sill. and
his whols frame shook as the keen blast
found il. way through the eIevies, around
ths stone chimney. II was a sound you
never would foFget-tho'. half'obbed. half
moaned words" Mother. mother. moth
or" You would have felt that that little
heart va. ready to burst with i.s unu,tsra-
bic weight Of sorrow, and tha, grief might
he th. companion Of childhood as well IS Of
old age.
Below stairs ,h, Gre leap, and ,parslsd,
and creP, sAiIy over III. logs in the Gre
place, for you may find Or. places in Insl0-
nook even now.
Everything wa, in order, and Mrs. Iian'r.
the ',cp.moih,r OF sammy, was sitting pla.
ciily before the Gro. smoothing the fold, Of
be-, clean apron. and IN a .slf satisfied man.
ner .,roEinS iabby cat which lay in her
lap.
Her three little children were sitting CO.
rily in liIlo chairs by the Gre'ido, and Mr.
IIaniI wa, talking with brother who had
jus, arrived to spend thanksgiving wish
them.
The wind blew fsresly without, and
once, when an unusual tempest ,eomei TO
.llks II, foundation OF tie house, the "a.
the; turned suddenly to bis vile, and aid
Where !, sammy"
Gone TO bed, SAID she iarily.
What made him 20 50 early ?" asked
Mr IlanH Aud IN a tone that prscluied
further inquiry. his wife an,Nered
Because he was too lazy to s.s up, l
suppose
For n few moment, Mr.. Hintr looked W.
cantly into a corner Of the room, and then
oasrisga pipe to Li, brother. seemed TO
forget that l',l' sammy bal been mention.
ell.
Ei:b, year, before, Mr Ilauit had hsen
sitting BY the sane fre.ide. with his fr,;
vile. gentle Sarah IL. sammy was opon
. h, father, lap. and Sarah with her lead
upon her husband. shoulder, wa. n' 'iins
VI what they would do when sammy w,lli
b. Old enough to have thanksgiving Of hi,
own. Ptrhap. Mr llanI'. memlry vi.
bringing ont tho.o cid pictures 10 'r..l
light; and he may hay, plusei u voaisr
d, he bad changed since that wife ol Li. Gr,
choice and paro,i love "a, before hln.
However !, was. ~ onS knew. Men are
often ashamed Of ,Ls,r best thoughts. ani
hide them fOr fear they may b called ua-
manly.
Whether the old adasc may bc ,ruo or
not. that "a mother /. the sane all the
iay. Of her lie. but father change, when
ho get. new WIFE" We do not pretend to
ny but il va. fact that th. s,coad Mrs.
Ilanu md her children were apparently
first ia the thoughts and affection. VI Mr..
IIhtI.
The morrow wa. Thanksgiving, and from
early morn had Mrs. llan,l bcsn busy pro-
rarin: for the srea, dinasr Of tho coming
day.
/ More than two month, before, .ho had
partly promised samny, "thai il be wa'A
good boy and trhav,d hi,nselG," he mi.hs
90 to hi, grandfather Les. to spend ,hark'.
giving And the mo,hcrIcs, chi,t .ai
hor'l aal planned. and been happy upon
thc events VI that day. lie bad many time.
gouo TO bed ,uprerle'.. and never cried At
all, because he fell asleep thinking Of the
dinner he should have at his grandh,hg',.
Although bat two mlle. away. hi. step.
mother seldom allowed him 10 60 there, be-
cause. a. she a,eyrsI. They ct him up
against her, and made HIM look uslisr than
ever" But onco in = while she was ohi:.
ed to ls, bin ~. for lear that " people
would talk about IT. She va, first elias.
member VI the church in InslenOok, and
I her praise for charitable decds and klndne-.
10 the poor, wa. in all the ucighhorhOod.
She wa, one of those ChrI,tiin.. whose
right hand knowoth what the lelt hand
dosth," and whose religion wa. for the
praise Of man, rather than the approval OF
God and whose judgment ! leave for a
jos. Judge TO pronounce a; coming day.
Many time poor sammy had a boxed
ear while the minister looked out Of the
window. and been cent 'uppsrlo's 10 bed,
while she told visitors tha, he was sick. and
while he slept shi'erins under few old
blankets in the garrrt. she displayed snug
warm bedroom below. as =" Samny's
room" Through all lnglsnook .he wAs
proyerbial as step mother, and none but
be who watches over motherie.s children
knew OF all that poor Sammy suffered. No
human friends knew Of the wrong. done to
hi, childish nature Of the harsh repres-
sing Of all eIuborance and Joy and Of the
bitterness which grew up in bis heart tow.
ards all but his grandfather. lie was like
his mother, and sitting on her iather'' knee
he bad been tod by the old man how gentle
aud lovely she was. and that she was with
the angel. in heaven now, aud hs q mother
lees boy.
So the young child. heart slung to the
old man who was kind 70 him. and tue
great holiday OF the year was that upon
which be could get away from the sound
Of h. .lep.moihsr'' voice, and the fear Of
I her hand-wben he could leave tho chill