The Hancock Jeffersonian. [volume] (Findlay, Ohio) 1857-1870, 1869-12-03
1T MIGHT HAVE BEEN.
BY MAY MILLER.


"Of all sad words OF tongue OF pen
The saddest are these-"lt might have been.
"This way-here," said my friend
and we paused at the door of hov
el-nothing better. We waited bu
a moment for the response TO Ou
knock, an almost inaudible "com'
in" Obeying the summons we en-
tered low room whose only occu
pant was a poor old man, bowed
with the weight cf years, and palsiet
by excessive indulgence in that liq
uid poison whose victims are mum
bered by hundreds even in Christian
lands. He was seated on low chain
near a cheerful fire, the only rea
comfort he seemed to have bed o
straw and a broken table being al
the room contained besides. My
friend explained to him that "wt
were out for a morning walk, and
called to see if he was comfortable. .
at was kind of you to call or
such poor creature as l am" ht
said, "and If you could stop to heal
l would like to tell you how came
to be so miserable. l have done nc
good to any one in all these years
that l have lived, yet l love tie young
and would bid them take warning
when they see my self-inflicted mis-
cry, and not do as / have done"
We assured him OF our willingness
to listen to what he wished TO say
concerning his unhappy, wasted life
He raised his trembling hand and
smoothed the white locks back from
brow that gave evidence OF more
than ordinary intellect, and in a voice
tremulous with emotion said:
"It might have been different with
me now--oh, how differentiated
needed a mothers counsel needed
the entrestles OF my own conscience,
and had courage and manliness
enough to have said no to tempta
ton but alas the most despicable
coward among men is that one who
does not dare to do right, because
forsooth--some poor knave will
laugh at him. Oh. this weakly
yielding to temptation; this being
slave to Satan, is a fearful, fearful
thing, more terrible than we can
know in this world. But you are
waiting to hear the story of my poor
wasted life. Well, then, 10 begin
once more, L was the Oldest of -four
children. My parents were educat-
ed christian people, surrounded by
all the luxuries and refinements that
wealth could procure and 1, their
first born, was their joy and pride.
But of evil companions Ieasily learn.
ed to be profane, and from my first
indulgence in that dreadful practice
nv course was downward. o, that
dreadful word, do,onooard! down to
ruin-to eternal death! Before
reached my twenty first year the
ballroom and the low dances were
frequent places of resort. My faith
er counseled, my mother entreated,
and my sister wept. With her arms
.wined around my neck and heI
sweet face pressed close to mine, she
pleaded with me to be-what ]
might have been--a man, christian;
but l would not then, noao 1t is toe
late!
In my twenty-second year. while
on visit to q neighboring city, ]
became acquainted with a lovely girl,
whom l wooed and won. For awhile
l left the companionship of the vile
for her pure society, but not long.
l soon yielded to the vice of intem.
perance and in two short years from
the time Minnie Collins became my
bride, two short years from the time
she wore the orange blossoms and
the snowy bridal robes; they closed
the beautiful eyes, from which had
ever looked a soul of iqveliness and