, 1864-05-30
[FRoM WILSON'S TALES Of THE BORDERS. ]
The Restored Son.

tue neat uuu clcRduL dIIuHESulcub vi tue
grounds around bore evidence to the re-
fined and chaste taste Of its proprietor, Gavin
Douglas. He was a gentleman by birth,
and, "if merit gave titles, he might be a
Lord" for q more kind-hearted, amiable
Christian never existed. He hadsucceeded
to bis fathers property, nearly thirty years
before the time Of which We write, and had
constantly resided upon it ever since, grow
ing daily in the love and respect Of all who
knew him. His appearanc" and address
were particularly prep"s sing; he was
tall and upright in his person; his man
ners were bland and gentleman-like; and
his sne expanded forehead and mild ex-
pressivc eye told of warm and benevolent
heart, lie was widower; and his family
were at distance-the sons in the pursuit
Of their respective professions, and the
daughters all happily and comfortably mar
ried, with the exception of the eldest, who
resided under his roof with her three father
less children. His eldest son, Edward, had
been for some years settled in mercantile
house in Calcutta, where he had lately mar
ried, and had been admitted as one Of the
partners Of the firm. Gavin Douglas well
supplied the place Of father to his little
grandchildren; his whole aim seemed to be,
to study their happiness, and to soothe the
sorrow Of their bereaved parent.
One summer evening, the family party
at Eskhall were seated in their comfortable
drawing-room, engaged in that cheerful,
affectionate conversation which forms The
peculiar charm of well-educated, we'll
regulated family circle. The day had been
one Of the most sultry and oppressive Of
the season; but the clouds, which gathered
round the setting sun in dark and gloomy
masses, seemed as if waiting in sullen ST.
lence for his disappearance, to pour their
fury upon the scenes to which his rays had
given beauty. Nor did they threaten in
vain; all the wrathful energies Of nature
seemed to have awakened at the very hour
when man and beast were about to seek re-
pose. The rain descended in torrents. and
poured forth more like q continued stream
than a collection of single drops. The
vivid, forkcd lightning, appeared, in its
ragged and eccentric course, to tear asun-
der the veil Of darkness, only to render it
doubly visible, while, glancing ton thou
sand reflections from the falling "a n-drops,
II flashed across the eyes Of the fan ly par
ty, startling and dazzling them 9TH its
sudden and excessive brilliancy. The chill
dren clung to their grandfather in mute and
breathless awe, and the whole party sat in
silence, uninterrupted, save BY involuntary
CALCULATIONS, which escaped them at each
successive fash. Not a breath Of wind
was stirring, not q sound was to be heard,
bu. the dull, monotonous, incessant patter-
ing Of the rain, aud the loud, clear, crack
ling burst Of the thunder. as it rolled, peal
after peal, over their heads, and apparently
in dangerous proximity. At length, the
rain began to relax in its violence, the
flashes Of lightning became less and less
vivid, aud the thunder died away in faint
and distant murmurings
Grandfatherl' said little Gavin, leav-
ing his stronghold between Douglass knees,
twas not that an awful stormW
ayes, my boy" replied the old maa;
"awful, indeed and thankful ,ught wc to
be to the good Providence which mas blessed
us with roof 70 shelter us, while many an
uncovered head has been exposed to its viO-
lence. Such q night us this ought to
awaken in us q spirit Of gratitude for the
blessings We ourselves enjoy, and Of chari-
~ towards the sand sorrows Of others" ="
"Did you hear that strange noise during
the storm, grandfather said little Emma ;
ait sounded like the bleating Of lamb
close by; but was 50 much frightened by
the lightning at the time, that | did not
mention it to you, and-=-eth6ft il is again!
A low, wailing, stified kind Of cry was
heard, which almost immediately ceased,
and the whole party started up, with looks
Of stirpfise and alarm, and gazed at each
other, as IL mutely inquiring from whence
the strange sound could proceed. Again
the cry was heard; and Mr.. Douglas. seiz-
ing one Of the candles, rushed to the front
door, to ascertain the cause Of their alarm.
Great was his surprise to find, under the
porch, small wicker basket, covered with
coarse ragged shawl, on removing which,
he started to behold the little chubby fea-
lures Of an infant, which stretched out his
little arms, and crowed with delight at the
sight Of the candle. Mr.. Douglas first i'm
pulse was to hurry into the parlor, where
our little hero was safely deposited on a
sofa, and exposed TO the curious and inquir-
ing gaze Of the assembled party.
40 grandpapap shouted little Gavin,
clapping his hands, and dancing round the
baby, al have often heard you say, 1T is
an III wind that blows nobody good'-and
now see what nice little brother the thun-
der storm has blown usp
"Iuhuman wretchesv' exclaimed Doug
las, "to expose such sweet infant, in a
night like thisI But they Cannot be far
orr And, ringing the bell violently, he
went out with some Of the servants in pur-
suit Of the supposed fugitiyes; but vain
was their search; every nook and corner
Of the grounds were examined, but no
traces Of any such could be discovered;
aud Douglas returned, fatigued and disap-
pointed, TO the parlOr. On examining the
basket in which the child had been laid, q
crumpled aud dirty piece Of paper was
discovered, oh which was written. in a
trembling and almost illegiblc hand, Be
kind to the boyl-he comes Of good fam
lily. His name is Philip +. May heaven
prosper you, as yOu.behave to biprp There
was likewise signet ring, with few Per
sian characters engraved upon it. The