Delaware gazette. [volume] (Delaware, Ohio) 1855-1886, 1867-12-20
From warnss Christmas Annual
sL0KE s1RoyeER rHAE DEATH.g

from basement to garrett Once veal
Old scores are wiped out, old wounds
healed, brothers become boys again
and the battle Of life, with all its in
eYitahle shortcomings, Is forgottea.-
The hearth round which we clustered
at a mothers knee, is an altar upon
which every worldly mistake is saeFi.
feed and IF we miss some dear fBE,
from the gathering, we feel that. ever
on earth we have had a foretaEt te of the
eternal home 70 which we are hasten
ing So II is that, year by year the
old house stretches rs sides and the
church round Welch our f0refathers
sleep, mos us kneeling even TO the
thlrd ana fourth generation. But,
though Fe miss q face someumes, Hss
also often welcome new one ana
AZ the Christmas time Of which 4 am
going to write. a brother, after twenty
wears 81 exile. had come back TO us,
bringing with him his only child. Ina
was a half Spaniard. and the prettiest
girl ever saw; her uncommon Deau-
fy, for she was utterly unlike any Of
our girls, and her quaint ways took
our hearts by storm at once, and com
pIeteIy subdued that Of Mark Amber
Iy Now, though Marx was not,
strictly speaking. a relation, he was a
sisters step-son, and admitted, hrst
for her sake, was speed loved for
bis own. A soldier, andthe son OF a
soldier, Mark had won houors which,
In our out Of the world county. estab-
Iished him d hero at once, and / verify
believe the dear lad was half ashamed
Of his Y. c., so deep and earnest was
the worship with which he favored II.
Mark was always st Ina's side; 50
we all saw how il would be, and the
lOVe-making gave new charm 20 the
gathering. Christmas eve came the
church had been decorated, the
''guisers' feasted, the Christmas-tree
di5mantled, and, tired Of dancing Sir
Roger, we were all grouped about IN
the dinnlug-roOm waiting Tor mid
night, Whens according to an old GUS
tom, the devils kneH' was tolled at
the church, and the Squire dispensed
cakes and mulied ale to all those who
came to Bish him and his a merry
Christmas. My brother stood upon
the hearth, watch in hand & presently
the time-keeper was thrust into his
pocket, and he crossed the room
There was 81 general hush. Laughing
faces grew grave. Lips quITered and
eyes flied, for in the silence memory
woke up and The ghosts Of the past
came tr0oping by, some laughing some
weeping, until it was hard TO know
whether old Christmas was time for
mirth on sadness.
"Clang elang olang !" came the
bells, and a hundred voices smote the
frosty air, singing the old carol -
"Godrest you merry, gentlemen let nothing
Benls1li5sT, Ciirist our Saviour, was born on
Christmas daS.
The children crowded to. the bay
window, and turning TO another 1
found Il already occupied, Mark and
Ina stUod there; he was whispering in
her car. and half hid by a shawl. 4
saw his arm round her.
AS sat BY my bedroom hre an
hour after, a light tap. ct the door
woke me 8rem my dreaming. ina
came ia. her long Iight hair floating in
golden ripples over blue dressing
gown,
MAY 1 come and warm. myself,
Aunty2 29 she said the Ere has gone
out Id my room, and / am so cold. r.
She gave a pretty little shiyer, as If TO
verify the assertion, though the warm
face she pressed to mine rather contra
dicted her words Then, nesting
down upon the hearth-rug, she clasped
her hands round her knees. Present
lg she said, but without turning round,
" You fske Mark AmberlV, Aunty. i
acquiesoed, and she went on,-"So do
I, and ism Il funny, he says he likes
me, and
Then suddenly she was eneellng by
me. aud under a cloud of hair, and
amidst a shower Of kisses, / was listen
ing to her. .aecret. how Mark had ask ked
her 20 be his wife, but hos he had
first settled it all with his father and
hers; that he was to 80 to India until
he got his promotion, when he might
leave the army and marry her
Next day the party broke up, Some
to their own homes TO receive guests,
some 20 iein other parties. Mark went
TO India IA February; and during the
year, althpughI heard constantly OF
br ftoa Ina, I did not meet her 50
that when ChTIstmas came again, and
I say her At The Hall, ] was struck
with an alteFation what l could hard
l7 tell. She had grown handsomeF.-
Every one saw and said that, and vet
from the moment she came up to me,
and looked At me. with her great, gray,
Histful eyes, my heart chilled, and a
fear i eould not define came ever nae,
Nor was nv anxiety lessened when,
as We we're talking of Mark, Ina be
gan TO cry passIonately, and rushed
out of the room. There vas some
thing wrong, and missing her that
evening from the drawIng-roOm, I
went to look for her. Opening the
morning. door l saw Ina. She
was sitting at the window, but not
alone a man was beside her, bending
fondly over her. There was no light
savethat of the moon, 50 1 did not
recognize him, nor did 1 tarry 10 make
the attempt; to tell the truth, 1 was
indignant with her3 and elbslng the
door with a bang, i marched off to the
draWing-rocfn, People were seated
here. fhere and everywhere, so i could
not malzaEo out who It was that was with
Ina, though Z tried hard that night and
the dayto discover who had made my
pet so miserable. We were all busy
that day, Ina as hard at work as any
of US but when mIdnight came, with
its bell-ringing and carol singing, I
missed her and with feeling i could
neither withstand nor explain, / went
to the little room. There she was
This time the window was open, and
the man, for be was there too, was
standing by her, his arm round her.
[ heard her murmur something IN a
aobblne voice, and saw her lift her
hands above her head and wiring them.
Then, traitor as She was, / could play
the eaveshopper no longer, but hurried
away. and. when / got to my bedroom a
little later I sat down and cried OF
course it was foolish what had 1, an
ola maiden aunt, TO do with the per
jured faith Of a heaItless girl, or the
broken heart OF 8 toO-easlIy dupod
lOver2 As I sat there before the dy-
ing FIRE, with the tears still wet upon
my face, / became conscious of a sound
resembling waves breaking I listen
sd the waves beat grew louder, I
could hear them distinctly, and so toe
could ] hear the wind and storm howl
ing louder and louder it broke against
the windows Of my room, nay, in the
very room itself I shuddered as the
blast passed over me [ felt the cold
ss5-~ovr 4 hfq,r~H -, as,4- q