Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1870-03-02

broken. once had noble, bright and beau.
tiful boy, but he was driven out from the
ruins Of his home, and my heart yearns to
know II he is yet living. | once had babe,
sweet, tender blossom but these hands de-
stroyed Il and IL lives with One who loveth
children.
"Do not be startled, friends--I am not a
murderer in the common acceptance Of the
term. Yet there is light in my evening
sky. A spirit mother rejoices over the return
of her prodigal son. The wife smiles on him
who has come back TO virtue and honor The
angel child visits me at nightfall, and ! feel
the hallowed touch Of her tiny palm upon my
cheek My brave boy, if he yet lives, would
forgive the sorrowiug old man for the treat
ment that sent him out into the world, and
the blow which manned him for life. God
forgive me the ruin which have brought up
on me and mine"
He again wiped tear from his eye. My
father watched him with a strange intensity
and countenance unusually pale and excited
" / was once fanatic" continued the old
man, " and madly followed the mangn light
that led me to ruin. was fanatic when |
sacrificed my wife, children, happiness and
home TO the accursed demon Of the bowl. |
once adored the gentle being whom | wronged
so deeply.
81 was q drunkard From respectabiity
and influence plunged into degradation and
poverty. | dragged my wife down with me-
For years | saw her cheek grow pale and her
step weary left her alone amid the wreck
Of her home idols, and rioted at the tavern.
She never complained, and yet she and the
children often went hungry.
"One New Years night, | returned to the
hut where charity had given us a roof She
was still up, shiyering over the Goals | de-
manded food, but she burst into tears and told
mo there was none. | tiercely ordered her
10 60 and get me some. She turned her eyes
upon me, the tears fast rolling down her pale
face.
"At this moment the child in the cradle
awoke and set up famished wall, startling
the despairing mother like a serpent's sting.
We have no food, james / have had none
for two days. l have none for the babe.
My once kind husband, must we starve p
"That sad, pleading face and those stream
ing eyes, and the feeble wall of the child mad
dened me, and I-yes, | struck her a fierce
blow in the face, and she fell forward upon
the hearth. The furies of hell boiled in my
bosom, and with deep intensity, as felt
had committed wrong. | had never struck
Mary before, but now some terrible impulse
bore me on, aud | stopped down as well as
could in my drunken state and clenched both
hands in her hair.
God Of mercy exclaimed my wife, as
she looked up into my 6endish countenance,
you will not kill us? You will not harm
Willie aud she sprang to The cradle and
grasped him in her arms. caught her again
by the hair and dragged her to the door, and
as lifted the latch the wind burst in with a
cloud of snow. With wild ha, ha | closed
the door and turned the button her pleading
moan mingled with the blast and the sharp
cry Of the babe. But my work was not com
plete. turned to the bed where lay my
eldest son, and against his half.awakened
struggles opened the door and threw him out.
In agony he called me by name | was not
fit to bear, and locked his little fingers in my
side pocket could not wrench that fren.
zed grasp away, and with the GOODNESS Of a
devil, as | was, closed the door upon his
arm, and with my knife severed the wrist"
The speaker ceased moment, and buried
his face in his trembling hands, as if to shut
out some fearful dream, his deep chest heaved
like storm-swept sea. My father had
arisen from his seat and was leaning forward
his countenance bloodless, and large drops
standing out upon his brow. Chills crept
back to my heart, aud | wished was al
home. The old man looked up, and | have
never behed such mortal agony pictured upon
human face as there was on his. He con.
tinued
1t was morning when | awoke and the
storm had ceased, but the cold was intense.
| FIRST secured drink Of water, and then
looked in the accustomed place for Mary. Al
| missed her for the first time, shadowy
sense Of some horrible nightmare began to
dawn upon my wondering mind | thought
| had dreamed fearful dream, but invoun-
tarily opened the outside door with a shud.
dering dread
"As the door opened, the snow burst ill.,
followed by the fall of something across the
threshhold, scattering the snow and striking
the floor with a hard, sharp sound. My blood
shot like hot arrows through my veins, and
rubbed my eyes to shut out the sight. 1t wa,
% God, how horrible lit was my owl
Mary and her babe frozen to death
The ever true mother had bowed hersel
over the child to shield it, and had wrapped
all her own clothing round it, leaving her owl
person stark and bare. She had placed he
hair over the face of the child, and the slee
had frozen it to the white cheek. The fros
was white in its half-opened eyes, and upor
its tiny fingers. | never knew what becam,
of my brave boy"
Again the old man bowed his head ant
wept, anA 'll that were in the house wep
with him. In tones of low, heart-broken pa
thOs the speaker went on
was arrested, and for long months ravet
in delirium. | awoke, was sentenced to prisor
for ten years, but no tortures could equa
those Of my own bosom. o God no ! | an
not fanatic ! wish to harm no one. Blu
while | live, let me strive to warn others no
TO enter the path which has been 80 dark ant
fearful one to me. | see my angel mother
wife and children beyond this vale of tears
The old man sat down, but spell as deel
and strange as that wrought by some wizard
breath rested upon the audience Heart
could have been heard in their beating, an,
tears to fall. The old man then asked tn
people to sign the pledge. My father leape,
from his seat and snatched at it eagerly.
had followed him as he hesitated a moment
with his pen in the ink A tear fell from tn
old name eye upon the paper.
"sign it, young man, sign it, Angel
would sign it. would write my name ter
thousand times in blood if it would brin,
back my loved ones"
My father wrote his name, " Mortime
Hudson"
The old man looked, wiped his fearful eyes
and looked again, his countenance alternately
flushed with red and deathlike paoness.
1t is, no, it cannot be, yet how strange,
muttered the old man. Pardon me, sir
but that is the name of my brave boy"
My father trembled and held up his left
arm from which the hand had been severed
1 a