Fremont journal. [volume] (Fremont, Sandusky County [Ohio]) 1853-1866, 1866-02-09

THE PURITAN OF 1853.
BIZ MRS D. D. ROBBINS, xrDDLEBuRY, VERMONT.
1t was in the early part of October, 1866,
that the Rev. Mr.. Allan started to walk to
Farmer Owens over the hills. He had to
cross two low spurs on the Green Noun
tains, and as he climbed to the top of the
second, the rich valley of the Otter Greek
lay spread out before him. At any other
time he would have stopped to admire its
gentle undulations; its great flower garden
of forest trees, rich in every coler and hue /;
its silver threads winding their way to the
waters of the Ghamplain, and the glorious
autumn light which lay ike golden man
tie over them all. But this afternoon he
seemed oppressed by the beauty which
surrounded him. He looked upon it with
eyes misty from tears. There was dull,
heavy weight upon his heart-a weight
which even the long, feryeut prayers that
he had uttered so Increasingly since noon
had failed to move. Between him and
that landscape, we might almost say, be-
tween him and the mercy seat there
moved slight, tall boy, with laughing
blue eye, clustering brown hair, and lips
always ready with merry pleasant word.
To-day, there was no Bonnie nutting under
the bare, brawny arms of the butternut
tree; throwing his line into the little brook,
that came bubbling down from the steep
mountain side driving his cows along the
narrow foot-path; standing with Blossom
under the bright maple, and shouting
with pride and joy as she wreathed her
pretty face in the gay leaves.
"Oh, Bennie! BennieI' Mr.. Allan
hardly knew he was calling the name, un-
til it came back to him with such an empty,
mocking sound, from the heartless echo;
s'almostn-Mr. Allan thought, startling
himself by the seeming impiety of the
almost as if there was no great,
kind Father over us all"
AS he came near Farmer Owens house,
he saw his oxen yoked to the plough. He
knew they had been there since the tele-
gram came. Mr.. Owen had received it
in the field, gone to the house and forgot
ten them, and no one had dared to put
them up. He was man fully capable
of taking care of his own affairs under any
circumstances, never having been known
before to forget.
Mr.. Allan beckoned to an Irishlnan who
was passing. and asked him to take care
of them. The man came with an awed
look upon his face, as if even there he
stood in the presence of a great sorrow,
and without the least noise obeyed.
Mr.. Allan walked on slowly towards the
house. He had known Mr.. Owen for many
years, and he knew him well. Indeed,
there was peculiar bond of sympathy be-
tween the two men. In all his large par
ish, there was not one upon whom the
minister relied, as he did upon the strong,
sturdy farmer. Many and many an hour
he had walked by his side when he was
upturmng the brown earth, and had dis
coursed with him on topics which would
have sounded harsh and repulsive to COM
mon ears, but which were fraught with
deep and vital interest to them. Mr.. Ow-
en- was direct descendant of the Puritans,
and every drop of blood in his veins was
tinged with as strong and true ''blue,
as if he himself had landed in the May
flower. He took naturally to the sternel
doctrines of Religion, while Mr.. Allan,
versed in all the modern lore, questioned
and doubted. The keystone of Mr.. Owens
theology was the sovereignty of God
"Shall not the Judge of all the earth dc
riehti7 This was the man upon whom
God had now laid his hand so heavily
and Mr.. Allan felt that if the trial brought
no murmur, no rebellion against that
mighty Sovereign, the stern old faith were
indeed rich one in which to live and die.
He knew that one element in this war was
Puritan. Sons of the Roundheads filled
up the ranks of the Northern army. They
marched to battle to strains of the old
tunes that had fingered in the nursery and
the sanctuary from the day that Cromwell
and his soldiers chanted them on Marston
Moor. All down the aisles of Time came
tramping to the music mailed men, bearing
on their shields the two words, Liberty and
Equality. They trembled on Mr.. Owens
lips with his parting blessing to his boy
Would he remember them, and would
they comfort and give him strength noaO
Where there is affliction in house, the
minister is at home. Mr.. Allan entered
without knocking, and made his way to
the large, onld fashioned kitchen in which
he was sure of finding the family.
There, by table, with his arms folded
and laid heavily upon it sat Mr.. Owen.-
His wife was in small rocking-chair by
the fire, and Blossom, a young girl, sat be-
tween them.
Mr.. Owen rose to welcome him; so did
Blossom; but the wife did not notice him,
she sat still, rocking herself to and fro,
looking at the blazing wood.
Mr.. Allan put hand in the brawny one
that was held out toward him, and laid
the other on Mr.. Owens great heaving
breast. "My friend" he said, show is it
with the DEGREES of God"
"Just and true are all thy ways, thou
King of Saints" faltered the man.
There was something strange in his
VOICES thin, womanly sound, so unlike
the deep, stentorian tones in which he had
always spoken before. Mr.. Allan, when
he heard it, almost felt it had dealt him a
blow.
"Thank God! He has not then forsa-
ken you, and from the depths of this deep
trouble you can still say, The Maker Of
all doeth WE'LL"
"Yes, yes,"-and for an instant there
glimmered from his dull eye spark Of
the old controversial fre-''you don'tsup.
pose have held on to that anchor when
the skies were eloudless, and the little
waves just rocked my bark, to let go of il
now--ncw, when the great waves and bill