Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1867-03-07
The Maiden .frsnf.

~ etat@s@*.fs - @~fess
Ii is mercifully ordered, in the great
scheme Of existence, that nearly every
person should have an aunt who is
willing to grow up an old maid, and
to sacrifice her life to the good of 9th
ers-these others being generally her
nephews and neices. Aunts are the
fairy good godmothers Of society, the
supplementary mothers who are often
more kind and indulgent to the child
rem than their parents are. There is
not single person anywhere who is
not familiar with the idea Of good
aunt. We sometimes hear OF children
who never knew father nor mother;
but where is the child that never knew
an auntg When the father and moth
cr disappear, and leave the poor in
iant 10 the mercy of the world, who
is il that takes tho little waif in, and
feeds and clothes it, and sends it to
school Whog The aunt. The good,
kind, tcnder-hearted soul, who, per-
haps, has been passed over in life /;
who has toiled hard who has suffer-
ed much who, at any rate, has never
tasted the joys Of maternity who
has certainly never incurred its vexa-
tions. 1t is really wonderful, under
such circumstances, that these women
should retain SO much humanity that
the fire of love should not have been
qnenched in their hearts; that the
milk of human kindness should not
have dried up their breasts long ago.
We should be thankful to Heaven for
these maiden aunts Of ours; they are
a legion Of angels upon earth, forever
lowering about us TO pity and to sue
cor. ii the natural history of aunts
were faithfully and accurately follow
ed out, we are rather inclined to think
that the aunts of whom we speak
would be found TO be a distinct species
of the genus. There are points of re-
semblance in all aunts of this class,
which are TO be observed in persons
who stand to society in other rela-
tions. There are many varieties Of
mothers some good, some bad, some
Indifferent. There are also many va
rieties of fathers, brothers, sisters and
uncles. There is kind and indulgcnt
father; but quite as often .here is the
harsh and tyrannical. There is the
aflcctionate brother and the jealous
brother; the loving sister and the
spitcful sister. Then, as to the uncle,
who should be a counterpart of the
wife il everything, (being the mascu-
line Of the species, is it not proyerb-
ial that while some Of them poke
their nephews in the ribs, call them
sly dogs, and give them no end OF
bank.notes because they would not
sell their uncle's pictures, there are
others, cruel, Neutrality-suspicious.
uncles, who take their nephews into
dark woods and leave them TO die OF
hunger.
But our aunts-our aunts are al
ways good. Who ever heard of a
wicked aunt Be it understood how
ever, that we do not reckon among
our bright particular stars, the sister
of your father or mother who marries
and has children Of her own nor the
lady whom your uncle may take to
himself with the same, common p lace
result. We don't think of her, be She
one or the other, in the true aunt
sense. Do you ever call her ''aunty,
and 20 and sit in her lap, and put
your arms round her neck 7 Answer
us that. No, no. She is aunt-mark
how cold the word is without the en-
dcaring diminutive Aunt Charles
or Aunt John, without lots of little
buckets of her own, dipping into the
well OF her affections, aud she has not
drop for you. Dare to sit in her lap
and she will push you rudely and
coldly away. Venture to put your
arm round her neck, and she will
probably stand upon her propriety'
The person you call "aunty dear" is
quite another being. She is your
fathers sister or your mothers sister
occasionally the wife Of your une'e
but, in this last case, she is only
"aunty dear" when she has no CHI.
dren of her own. As to her n-tlra
disposition, she is b, IN TO love and tt
be loved; born TO deny herself, tC
suffer patiently, TO toll and spin, no
for herself, but for others born, above
all, to rear the weakly sheep, and tC
rcsnno tho black ones who 30 astrav