Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1863-05-07

Il went to ny heart to bave done those
things. Ali that l could say Was utterly
in vain. She evidently felt nothing of it
to be true. She had received deep and
cruel hurt and the poor, wild. halt civil
lied, shy, silent soul had not wherewith to
reason on it. She only endured, and held
her peace, and let the fire burn; and her
sensitive nerves bad SLOWED pain of mind
to become severe physical disease. My
words she scarcely heard my tescs were
TO her only sympathy. She knew what
she had seen. Besides, her disease in
creased upon her. Almost from minute
to minute she grew more restless, and her
increasing insttention to what I said
frightened as we'll as hurt me. The med
icines of DR.. Nash were useless. Before
noon sent for DR.. Bagford. who said it
was decidedly brain tever,-that she must
be leeched, and have ice at her head, and
so forth.
All, it was useless. She grew worse
and worse; passed through one or two
long terrible days of frantic misery, crying
and protesting against false accusations
with a lamentiDg voice that made Us all
cry, toe then lay long ia stupid state,
until the doctor said that now it would be
better for her to die, because, after such
an attack, brain SO sensitive would be
disorganized-she would be an idiot.
Her poor mother came and helped US
wait on her. But neither care or medi-
cine availed. Bridget died and the iu-
neral was from our house. [ was surpris.
ed by the lofty demeanor of Father Nc
Mullen, the Irish priest, the first had
ever met: tall, gaunt, bony, black hair
ed, hollow eyed man, of iDscrutable and
guarded demeanor, who received with ab
solute haughtiness the courtesies OF my
husband and the reverences Of his own
flock. A few of his expressions might in
dictate a consciousness that we have en-
deavored to deal kindly with poor little
Bridget. But be did not think so; or at
least we know that be has 80 handled the
matter that We meet i'll feeling on account
oft.
The griefs for any such misfortune were,
however, obscure and shallow in COMPARE
son with my sorrow for the untimely
qneDching of Bridget's young life, and my
sympathy with her poor old mother
When | reasoned about the affair, / could
see that | had done nothing which would
not be commended by careful housekeep-
ers. [ could see it, but, in spite of me,
could not feel it. l was tormented by
vain wishes that had done otherwise. I
could not help feeling as if her people
charged me with her blood-as if l had
been ia some sense aiding in her death.
!! Nor do | even now escape obscure returns
of the same inexpressibly sad pain.
| The garnishIng of sepulchres is an en-
ploynent which by no means went out
with the Scribes and Pharisees. Under
the circumstances, the death of my pretty
young maid, although she was only an
Irish girl, produced deep impression in
the village. Very soon, now that it could
do 10 good, it was generally agreed that
the imputations against her were wholly
unfounded. 1t was pretty distinctly
whispered that they had arisen out of
things said by Mrs. Deacon Adams, in
her wrath, because Bridget had left her
service to enter mine; and | now ascer-
bitter tongue, and enduring, hot, and I'M
scrupulous in anger and in revengefulness.
have inquired sufficiently; know it is
true. The vulgar malice of hard woman
has murdered fair and good maiden
with the invisible arrows of her wicked
words.
But she begins already to be punished,
coarse cast-iron as she is. People do not
exactly like to talk to her She is grow
ing thin. She has been lila thing, am
told, never dreamed of before. OF course
she has reported to her husband the re-
proaches with which l had surprised her
on the very Gay of Bridget's death. She
had called in by chance, and had not even
heard of her illness had herself began to
retail to me the kind of talk with which
she had poisoned the village, not knowing
that her evil work was finished; and ii
was the scornful carelessness Of her reply
to my first reproof that stung me to ans
wer her so bitterly. 1t was two weeks
before good, white-haired, old Deacon
Adams came to the house Of his PASTOR
His face looked careworn enough. BE
stayed long in the study with my hus
band, aud went away sadly. I happened
to pass through our little hall just as the
Deacon opened the study door to depart
and l caught bis last words, very sorrow
full in tone
"She might get well, eff she could stoI
dreamin' ont, and get the weight off N
her mind. But words that's once Spoken
can't be called back as you call the cow
home at night"