The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1872-09-27
THE UNFINISHED LETTER,

THE UNFINISHED LETTER.
As twilight with its somber hues was
slowly settling into deeper darkness, ]
hurried along the streets of a great city.
| was stranger and felt that painful
loneliness the unknown traveller so often
experiences in the solitudes of ma
tion's metropolis. 1t was not so much
as the land Of my forefathers. Noloved
one lived on or slept beneath its soil.
To me it had no past-no loved exper-
fences and fond memories. AS 1 passed
a beautiful stone mansion, heard the
voice of fpenitence. Itchained me to the
spot. Oh, shall never forget the un-
earthly feeling that went all through
my being as out upon the night breeze
fioated that prayer which had prevailed
in the Temple ages agone, "God be
merciful to me, 4 sinner" Instructive
ly approached the door, which seemed
to open by intuition, as voice mourn
fully melancholy said:
"Come in; come as one sent by the
all-loving Father to smooth with prayer
my pathway to the tomb"
Beautiful creature, paleand trembling
she stood upon the outer verge of this
mundane sphere while the waves of
death dashed high around her. One
more wave and the frail bark must be
swept far out from the shore From
under her pillow she drew a sheet of
paper, and handing it TO me, said:
''Please finish this. 1t is a letter to
my mother, and she will he happier
when she knows L am dead. Do this
and when you are dying 1 will hover
over you, and very near, that you may
see what awaits you, and seeing, know
no fear. Farewell until them"
For a moment she was calm, quiet as
death, save only,
"Her eyes, they sometimes swan in light
And sometimes swan in tears"
How impressive the scene, and what
holy, heavenly influences pervaded the
room as she whispered, looking upward,
"You have come" and reaching out her
hands, added, "here, help me over the
river" 1t was death, and she rested in
the arms of Him who had said, ''Thy
sins, which are many, are all forgiven
thee" Pale watcher of marble corpse,
l fingered for a moment to close the eyes
and fold the hands over the breart;
then hurried out to tell the story.
At sunrise she was carried to Potter,
/ field and buried among the unfortun.
ate. A few rude men, with laugh and
jest, heaped the little mound above hei
and placed over her head board bear.
ing a single word, "Pauper." had fol
/ lowed at a distance, and standing a few
yards away, noticed the whole proceed
ing. Alone I now approached the spot
with the thought, ''This is some fathers
some mothers child" Upon that grav,
/ dropped tear, and over that face, 81
beautiful in death, though blurred an(
blotted by sin, planted a shrub and ,
] flower, to bloom and shed their fra
GRANGE upon the air. Poor child of hu
man frailty, she had drank to its bitter
est dregs the wormwood of dependence
In an evil hour the floods went owe
/ her, and the great salt waves drenchet
| the freshness and beauty of life al
away. Men, and alasI women, pointe,
at her and said, ''Fallen," and no on,
reached down the long arm of love t,
! Nn I,
wrongs. Many turned their faces from
her dwelling who i'm the secrets of othe
chambers shrank not from dalliance an,
guilt. Elsewhere other judgment seat
eth her among the martyrs; for Go,
seeth not as man seeth, nor judgeth a
man judgeth. Man judgeth the motiv
of the act. God the act by the motive
while penitent determines all things II
the ehancery of Heaven.
Here is the unfinished letter:
l., Sept. 10, IS.
lfy Precious Mother:-I am dyin
now; already / am wet with the dew @
death. When your eyes shall fall upol
these lines, mine, upon which you use
to gaze so fondly in years ] would no
now recall, will be sightless and in tn
tomb. / have been a great sinner
Under the dominion of the flesh and
thousand other evil influences, 1 hav
been hurried on, l know not how. Go
only knows how miserable l have bee
through these years of shame. All, a
is indispensable. Often l have said,
will 90 back to my mother In this
have failed; but ask your forgiveness
and surely you cannot be less mercifr
than my heavenly Father, who ha
taken me to his bosom. Farewell
Your eering child, EDITH.
All l added to the letter was the "fart
well, your erring child" 1 then poste
the letter as directed with the following
s. You can learn farther particu