The Van Buren press., 1870-10-04
MISCELLANY.
I" She has 0utlived Her Usefulness.

-NOp iOiH oiiSC q man III IuIuult Illk
came to our door asking for =" the min.
ister." When informed that he was ou
OF town, he seemed disappointed and
anxious. On being questioned as TO his
business, he replied: Il have lost my
mother; and as this place used to be hel
home, and as my father lies here, we have
come to lay her beside him."
My heart rose in sympathy, and said,
" You have met with great loss"
"Well, yes," he replied, with hesitan.
cy, " a mother is great loss in general,
but our mother had outlived her useful.
ness. She was in her second childhood,
and her mind had grown as weak as her
body, so that she was no comfort to her
self, and was burden to everybody.
There was seven Of US, sons and daugh-
ters; and we agreed to keep her among
us year about But ! have had more
feeble to be moved when my time was
ont, and that was more than three months
before her death But then she was a
good mother in her day, and toiled very
hard to bring us up
Without looking at the face Of the
hcartless man, directed him to the house
Of a neighboring pastor, and returned to
my nursery. | gazed on the merry little
faces which smiled or grew sad in imita-
ton of mine, those little ones TO whose
ear no word in our language is half so
sweet vs mother, and | wondered if
that day could ever come when they
would say of me, " She has outliyed her
usefulness she is no comfort herself, and
a burden TO everybody else" And |
hoped that before such day should
dawn | might be taken TO my rest. God
forbid that / should outlive the love OF
nv children! Rather let me die whilc
my heart is part of theirs, that my grave
may be watered with their tears, and my
love linked with their hopes of heaven.
When the bell tolled for the mother s
burial, | went to the sanctuary to pay
my only token of respect to the aged
strnger; for felt that could give her
memory tear, even though her own chill
dren had none to shed.
"Shc was q good mother in her day,
and toiled hard to bring us all up--she
was no comfort to herself, and burden
10 everybody else! - These cruel, heart
less words rung in my ears as | saw the
coffin borne up the aisle. The bell tollcd
long and loud, until its iron tongue had
chronicled the years of the toil-worn
mother. Observation-Disclosures
How clearly and almost merrily each
stroke told of her once peaceful slumbei
in her mothers bosom, and of her seat at
nighttall Oh her weary fathers knee
Observation-Disclosures rang on,
the tale Of her sports upon the green
sward, in the meadow and beside the
brook. -twelye--thirtcen---
teen-spoke more gravely of school
days, and little household Joys and cares
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS sounded
out the enraptured visions of maiden
hood and the dream Of early love. Nine
teen--brought before us the happy bride
Twenty--spoke of the young mother
whose heart was full to bursting with thu
new, strong love which God had awak
ened in her bosom. And then stroke af
ter stroke told Of her early womanhoot
of the loves, and cares, and hopes, anc
fears, and tolls through which she passet
during those long years, till fifty rang
out harsh and loud. From that to sixty
each stroke told of the warm hearted
mother and grandmother, living owe
again her own joys and sorrows in thos'
of her children and children's children
Every family of all the group wanted
grandmother, then, and the only strf'
was who should secure the prize. But
bark, the bell tolls on! Seventy--sev
enty y-cne--two-three--four. She begin
to grow feeble, requires some care, is no
always perfectly patient or satisfied; sh'
goes from one chlds house to another
so that no place seems like home. Sh
murmurs in plaintve tones, that after al
her toll and WEAKNESS, it is hard she cal
not be allowed a home to die in that sh
must be sent rather than invited from
house to house. Eighty--eighty-one-
two--thrce--four. All she is a sccon'
child--now "She has outlivcd her use
fulness, she has now ceased to be com
fort to herself or anybody" that is, sh
has ceased to be profitable to her earth
craving and -grasping children.
Now sounds out, reverberating through
lonr lovely forest. and echoipg back fr0n