Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1872-03-29

i cannot say but In the midst of tbi
bright happiness my wife was taken I'LL
was consumption. Worked day and nigh
to procure the necessary medicines ant
food for her; l wrote to her father but re-
ceived no reply went from publisher tc
publisher hawking my songs about selling
them almost for anything TO buy bread
Obi how they ground me down. Mer
who had had successful songs from me
now that they saw me in poverty cut down
The prices until starvation was close upon
me.
Zone afternoon-I shall never forget it.
1 left poor Milly in bed-she could not rise
and went to seek for work. / called al
her fathers, but was turned from the door.
i wandered about from one place to anoth-
er, but all my efforts were fruitless; I
could not gain penny. Heart-broken and
weary, I turned homewards I had not
money to buy even loaf of bread. Sew
erol times paused as a well-dressed man
approached me, and determined to beg I;
but the words choked me, and they passed
on without noticing my distress. When
they had passed l was ashamed of having
thought of begging, and yet angry with
myself that / had not done so.
" was standing at the corner of street,
thinking what should do, for could not
60 home to Milly-my poor, hungry, sick
wife-empty handed, when 1 received a
hearty slap on the shoulder, and turning
round, saw Glidden, the music publisher.
swell, Burdon," he cried, "you don't
seem happy. You look as pleasant as if
you had lost half-a-crown and found a six
pence"
Happy! y ! exclaimed happy with
wife dying of consumption and--and star
vationr'
"Dear mcl' that's very sad why don't
you work?"
Work | have sought it far and near;
l have done everything but without sue
cess"
"The music trade is bad, and no mistake;
| but still think something might be done.
Your songs have gone pretty well. Now
what time would it take you to write l.le
fou songs?'
"rhat all depends upon what sort you
want"
"They must be strongly bacchanalian-
eyes"
"And must have them the first thing in
the morning"
"That is short time"
ut is, but ready money you know"
"Under those terms agree"
VERY well then; there is the price; you
know the music trade is very bad at pres
ent; | can't give much, so we will say two
pounds for the lot"
"What" exclaimed, "only two pounds
for the four songs? Why you gave more
for one."
"Things were different them two pounds
for the four songs, and half sovereign in
advance; l can't give penny more"
AS he spoke he drew half a sovereign
from his pocket and held it invitingly be-
tween his finger and thumb The sight of
the money was too tempting so / agreed
to write tn, songs.
"Mind, have them early to.morrow
he said. If you do not bring them down
by ten, shall send for them"
= 81 hurried away to purchase some food
for my wife, and also to procure her some
medicine. I bought a roll and ate it, so
that could tell her l had dined out, for I
needed all the money for her. Amongst
the things 1 bought was some brandy. the
doctor having ordered Milly to drink it.
Loaded with these poor things, which to
me looked heaps of riches, hurried home
ward.
Poor Milly, when reached her bedside
and showed her what l had bought, met
me with a smile of patient love that almost
broke my heart She tasted little food
and drank small glass of weak brandy
and water, and then fell into light sleep.
Illness, at the best of times, is terrible, but
when we sit alone and see all we love fad
ing fast, the disease aided by want, to see
the thin, pale face, so like death in life, to
know that before long even the sad pleas
ure of attending on it will be lost, and that
before we can give proper comfort-ths is
indeed, awful. As I sat watching and
thinking / became desperate; my brain
seemed on fire, and my mouth was parch-
ed. Selling the brandy bottle, poured
out large glass of spirit and drank it off.
1t steadied my nerves, and l sat down to
commence my songs.
"For sometime could gain no thoughts;
the duh silence of the night, broken only
by the heavy breathing of my wife, aud a
low purring sound that ratified in her chest,
palled upon me the thin, wedge-like face,
half in shade, that reposed on the pillow;
the ghost-like hand that lay so still,
stretched out on the coverlet-all seemed
TO crush me. How with such things a.
round me, could write of mirth, drink
and jollity?
81 pressed my hands over my eyes, and
the hot tears forced themselves through nv
fingers. l grew hysterical l felt as if
could have screamed with laughter. |
could not write, but the songs must be
done, or should not get the money In
hopes of gaining more calmness l drank
more brandy. Glass after glass OF the
burning fluid I poured down my throat. l
felt mad was not tipsy, but delirious l
could hear the rattle of glasses, the merry
shouts Of laughter; strange tunes, such as
would have suited orgies held in praise of
Bacchus, rang in my head. | seized my
pen and wrote rapidly; some fiend SEEM
ed whispering the words to me, they were
so full of recklessness and abandonment.
"My candle burned out, but continued
writing by the grey cold light of daybreak
that came slanting over the house tops. At
last my task was done, and springing up,
FASTENED to my wife, to tell her my sue
cess and TO cheer her with the assurance
that these wild songs would make my
name. / felt my blood rushing through my
veins as | leant over to kiss her our lips
met, but started back with a wild cry of
terror-she was dead I"
As he spoke, Burden stretched forth his
thin hands and closed his eyes as if to shut
out the painful memory, but the tears that
rolled slowly down his hollow cheeks
showed the immensely of his agony.
1 L L. L