The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1865-09-12

more generous days with fineiywrouel,
ngures, but lntcly with plnstpr IFOiIn
\ lPurchnsed from itineraht Image Ven
dOrs. n IL. ,,l7-Tl. ''Ytt' 'st'
| ~ Wns with little hope of success
therefore, that broached the subject a
the Steadmans on the last dny Of m,
stay. did II, however, resolntely. al
tecting not to see that the old wolilnn'
iaee grew set ut the first mention o
their names. She sut stiffIy erect AM
permitted me to finish without a wort
of Interruption. j did what L could,-
showed how. . little present help woult
enable the brothers to start in lift, ut
terly different men from their presen
selves, ,-7stnted in plain terms the peri
IN which the woman stood, and the i'm
mediate necessity for aid.
BUT mile, madam" said,-'tnoi
more than the value of that least rinG
on your finger, but immediate. It viii
snYe her life, in all probability"
Have you finished" taking snuff
fr2m her tewelled box, pervousiy.
"1'Ilen may ask what are these ca
not cousin within the first degree al
Colonel Shepler,Ea carter, sir,-a hod-
mani Colonel Shepler was n gentle.
veins" .,t..a
"All of which did not render Stead
mans sons less the heirs-at-IaY of the
SnePIer properties" replied, cOolly.
Humphreys! have seen them; /
know what the physique of that race is
worth; l will walk over their graves
yeti" 5ff..lI
And upon my soul, she looked dia-
bolical enough to live forever, and walk
over all ofour graves. began to speak,
put she waved her hand imperiOuSly,
II have had enough of this. The old
carterand his sons have prowled, iackal-
ike, at my gate for years, waiting 10
prey upon my dead body. If they are
needy, let them work. l thought bet
ter of your instincts than to suppose
you would hear the country possiI1s
and worse still, regale my ears with iti,'
II spoke simply in the cause oTthu-
manity. If the country people Judge
your conduct as / do, Madam they nrc.
more just than / hOped.n
She was silent moment; but think
in her secret soul she liked the coarse,
rough blow.
'"1She matter is an.Old story, ii me tap
ping her box impatiently. i find it wear
isome: For this ring to which you al
lude have You remarked it? 1t is Il
Nubian anttque,-rare, / fancy"
And so on, and on, sketching the his
tory of the rings she wore, with II Curl
GUS felicity in throwing an interest
about trities. l dined with her that Clay
Tor the first time; n Iuehgre repast SER
we'd on the family plate. But her wines
were exquisite, and dealt with an uu-
spnring hand. left her that evening
AS supposed forever,-loOking back al
the bent figure in themasSive doorway.
and thinking her the loneliest human
being had ever seen, One of her NOR
fnnnfn9 ~ IL
solitude,-the negro-quarters being at
some distance from the house, and af-
ter she was undressed at night every
thing living wns banished thence out of
her sight. Out of that long life she had
not brought the love of even dog to
benr her company in the last hour.
When l parted with Matthew Stead
mau, ] said nothing to him of what L
had tried to do. l saw his eve grew
at first.
. ''I told you had a plan, and find
II will answer.''
"Well, Mat? ?"
"Joe Carver is an old friend of ours
Captain of the Belle Louise, Won know
runnin' to Orleans. He begun by pilotin'
an has gone up as they do on these
boats. He'll take mo on as fireman.
and for my pay give mother her passage.
down. Once there, I'll turn an honest
penny"
tBy carpentering?
"Yes, / find one always clears the
ground faster by Reepin' i'll the same
road, Abe won't go with us. He thinks
luck comm soon, and he'll wait for
il. That Luck has been ghost in the
house. for one will breathe freer to
be clear oft"
"And Jane ?"
His face showed that I had touched a
sore chord. ..; -
Jane will go out MS sseamstress some
where. Ifever the good day dawns. ri
come back for her. But my first care is
gIIHl -
left them the next day, with a real
Teluetanee. Ihad few friends, and these
boys had come near to me in manv
ways. But years passed, and never
heard from them again. Mails We're
uncertain in these days. wrote often.
but they never received my letters.
But when returned to tho West, af-
ter thirty years absence, this last spring,
one of my chief faims was to find some
traces ofthem. 1 took passage forNV--
therefore, the largest town in their old
county, finding that n railroad had in
yaded that region, passing by the way,
through the very spot where we opened
the mound. Business detained me in
W for several days, and at the close
OF tho week, one close, sultry evening
was strolling about the dingy streets
with lonesome feeling which always
besets one in n strange place, when 1
came to n little foot-brfdge over the
creek, from which opened n view of the
river below, and the foundries plnrinp
red on either side. 1t was n lonely place
though in the midst of busy town. /
stopped, leaning over the little hand
rail, looking down into the muddy wa
ter, and Mt the silent, melancholy lights
burning duly in its depths and in the
air above. There was a solitary figure
on the bridge, which strangely entered
into the quiet and drenriness of the
scene, depressing it, giving to its dino-y-
and unclean shadows human sipniff-
canoe oflosS and discomfort. ItWasnn
old man, in a filthy suit of black, who
stood smoking coarse cigar and look
ing vacantly down into the creek. His
head was bald, u fringe of uncombed
red hair struggling about the pinched
and pimpled face; it shook weakly
when he tried to look at me: the liClSt
eyes blihked blindly in the dim lirSbt
A weak, tipsy bit of old human flesh
which once might have made a man:
yet you fancied he had become a Clrun.
kard as n cowardly escape from pain
that he had been disappointed before he
quietly watching him,-then, hayinS,
known him for some time, 1 touched
his arm, a.it 'II lGl7-l =
Abel" I said, d,-'Abel Steadnan?"
He started, REDEEMED in his old wo-
manish fashion, and, when lie recorni-
Zed me atlaSt, stood cringinfr. loldinp
his frowZy hat in both hands with q
subservient humility pitifuI to see.
His manhood had Slipped from him so
utterly, TINT his harmless vanity had
LETT but the dregs ofself-disgust.