The Portage County Democrat. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1854-1868, 1863-05-13
For the firesiile Ghair.
CALEB GRAYMARsH.

CALEB GRAYMARSH.
Old Caleb Graymarsh dweIt in the New
England village of Nj, hard by his own
stone walled, black-ehimBeyed factory, which
belched forth FIRE and smoke all day, and
shone. like some Ogre's palace half the night
with the fires and lights which glimmered
through the windows, and shed a crimson
gleam over the waste and barren land about
the building. For it was stirring place, this
factory, and the work, people were there
among the whirring machinery night and day;
strong, stalwart fellows, with begrinmed
hands and faces-old men, who could Just
to ter up the stairs-women, tidy and trim,
and some of them very pretty, and little chill
dren, who, had they been born of wealthy
parents, would only q have been permitted to
leave the nursery under the guardianship of
maid. There was occupation for all M -
at the great factory, aud, in the eyes of all his
employees, Caleb Graymarsh was a man of
mighty wealth and power. Fabulous tales
were told, of possessions IN real estate, and
the women folks had a legend an1ong them
that the tea service which some of them had
seen ghttering ON the factory table was made
of solid dollars, melted down for the express
purpose, and that throughout the house the
furniture was covered with real silk velvet.
1t was a pity, they said, that poor Mrs. Gray
marsh could not have lived to see all this, but
had died when Caleb was young man strug-
Cling f'r5the fortune which was now his A
few years before, there had been simple
white slab in the old grave yard, bearing the
words, Kitty Graymarsh, aged 20.,' Butof
late splendid marble monument had arisen
there with a fowery inscription on its face,
and the figure of an angel bending over it,
( A snowy thing. with nothing artistic about it;
yet, though the dead girl, who would have
been an elderly woman by that time had she
lived, slept no more peacefully beneath the
costly structure than she had beneath the
simple slab, there was something touching in
the sight when one thought that by its ersc-
ton the old man had striven to make his lost
wife participate in the only possible way in
the wealth which he so much valued. ~ 8.
1t is hard to think of most old business
men as young loyers-strange to believe that
smiles or frowns from one woman were once
of greater moment to them than the rise OF
failof stocks has now become. And the grim
old factor, whose brows were puck cred into a
continual frown, and whose mouth had be-
come straight stern line with groove-like
wrinkles on either side of it, scarcely looked
" the hero of a love tale.n Yet Caleb Gray
marsh had been young once, and had loved
his little Kitty with a strong, manly earnest
ness. She was the sole love of his life, the
only woman who had ever made his heart
beat. When he won her, simple country girl
though she was, no monarch was fonder of
his queen, although all but his wife believed
him cold hearted, and wondered what charm
young, blue-eyed Kitty had found in his stern
face. Only Caleb Graymarsh himself knew
how well he loved his wife, and, when the
sod was piled above her breast, he knelt above
it. fearless and speechless, and prayed silently
that God would let him die also We talk
| OF wishing for death very often, but only
those who have drained the eupaof suffering
to the very dregs ever pray, for so earnestly
/ that they would not shrink and tremble il
! their sinful prayer were answered, and the
bolt. from heaven weresseen descending. One
17of those rare and terrible moments came to
Caleb Graymarsh as he knelt above his young
fwife's grave, but who that knew him evel
guessed it? They saw, few. moments after
wards, plain, homely workingman. with his
Grape about his hat, rise to his feet, and rplod
slowly homeward, and, seeing no tears in his
eyes. .eand hearing no complaint from his lips
thought that he did not feel much, and so lef
him. But Caleb Graymarsh, having no liv.
ing kindred, and not being at that time rict
enough to have made friends, took the wall
ing baby from the woman who had cared foi
it, while he followed its mother to the grave
and nursed it all night, feeling strange com
fort in the soft cheek he held against his own
and in the unconscious trihing of those tiny
fingers about his face. -. rs 80 .-s5sz4lz 6s
He had thought very little of the BABY
while his wife lived, save as a pet and play
thing; it was we'll enough for him to have
but now he experienced a new feeling toward
it. It was a part of her, Their mutual Low,
4 had created il. It would grow, perhaps, t,
have her form and features. He wished /
were a girl instead of boy; and yet evei
now he felt he was not quite desolate, sine
God had left him this And so, when tn
morning dawned, and the golden sunbeam
serept through the bedroom window, they fel
on Caleb Graymarsh fast asleep, with his ba
i by on his bosom. eI-SJ ssk -sse.
/ He put the child to nurse the next day
4 and went about his work as usual. Whatev
er were his feelings, he never spoke of then
to any one, and, young as be was, he had
Il grim, unsocial way with him, which encour
aged none to seek his confidence On Sun
days, instead of going with most of the othe
7 men to drink and frolic, or joining the fey
more sober minded at church, Caleb Gray
marsh went to the country place. where hi
baby was at nurse; and kept it with him un
der the green trees all day long. And th
4 child. unconscious as it really must have beer
i was SO strangely happy and contented, ths
one might have easily harbored the belle
that its little eyes could low see and read tn
tender secret of that rough workingman,
soul. sz--- ......,
!, Y ear after year passed by, and ploddirgcar
and industry helped Caleb, Graymarsh 1
climb the ladder Of fortune. At first, som
deft handiwork brought him higher wages
then he became foreman, aud at last q partns