Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1872-01-03
VOL. XII.
LADY Ntentn ortiz.
By HENRY W. LoNGFELLow.

EaIY " entH oftiss
ey HENRY W. LoNGFELLow.
One hundred years ago. and something more,
In Queen street, Portsmouth, at her tavern door,
! Neat Ps a pin and blooming as rose.
/ s,;ood Mistress 5taTs4s I'll h ? futbelo~G
just as her cuckoo-clock was stirling n1nes
Above her head. respleudent on the sign,
The portrait Of the Earl Of Halifax,
! In scarlet coat and periwig Of fax,
! Surveyed 8t leisure all her varied charms,
Her cap, her bodice, aad hen White foldcd arms,
Aud half resolved, though ne was past MS primo,
! And father damaged by the lapse Of time,
I 10 fail down at her feet; and to declare
OF sstof that had driven him to despair
| For from his lofty station he had seen A-,7
| Stayers her husband, dressed in bottie-greeIi,
Drive his new Flying stage-coach, four-in hand,
| Down the long lane and out into the land,
And knew that he vas far upon the way
To Ipswich and TO Boston on the Bay
! just then: the medltatiqns CT the Earl
| We're interrupted by { tittts Girl,
Barefooted, ragged, with neglected hair,
Eyes full of laughter. neck and shoulders bare
| a thin slip of girl, like a new moon,
! Sure to be rounded into beauSy soon,
| A creature men would worship and adore,
Though now in mean habiliments she bore
pail of water, dripping. through the street,
| And bathing, as shs went, her naked feet,
| 1t was pretty picture, ,ull of grace
The slender form, the delicate, thin face;
The swaytle motion, as she hurried by .
The shining feet, the du5hter IN her eye
As in her pail the shifting sunbeam danced;
And with uncommon feelings Of. delight
The Earl of Halifax beheld the sight.
Not SO Dame Stayers for he heard heFisay-
These words. or thotght ne cid. as plain as day:
GO Martha HiIton Fie ! how dare you go
About the town half dressed, and looking SO y
At which the gypsy laughed and straight replied:
| No matter how [ look; I yet shall ride
In my own chariot, ma'am." And on the child
| The Earl of Halifax benignly smiled,
As with her heavy burden she PISSED on,
cJyoHh hoetr al he
What next; upon that memorable day,
Drew his august attention was gay
And brilliant equipage, that flashed and spun,
The silver harness Glittering in the sun,
Outriders with red jackets, litae and lank,
Pounding the saddles as they rose and sanL,
While all alone within the chariot sat
A portly p5rson with th-ee-cornered haG
A crimson velvet coat, head high II aifj
Gold-headed cane, and nicely powdered hair,
And diamond buckles sparkling at his knees
Dignifed. stately. fiorid, much at ease.
Onward the pageant swept, and as it .assed
Fair Mistress Stayers, coprtesied low md fast
For this was Governor Wentworth, driving down
To Little Harbor just beyond the town,
Where his Great House stood looking out to sea-
A goodly place, where it was good to pe.
It was pleasant mansion, an abode
Near and yet hidden from the great highroad;
SeqUestered among trees, noble pile,
Baronial and colonial in its style;
Gables and dOrTneT windows everywhere,
And stacks of cbinneys rising high III air
tandasan rires; on which all winds that blew
Made moutnfIi music tie whole winter th+oughs
Within, unwonted splendors met the eye
Panels, and floors OF oak, and tapestry;
Carved chimney-pieces, where en- braZ6n dogs
Reveled and roared the Christmas fire of logs;
Doors opening into darkness unawares.
Mysterious passages, and flights OF stairs;
And on the wallis in heavy gi!ded frames.
The ancestral Wentworhs with 0ld@Scripture names.
Such was the mansion where the great man dweit;
4 widoWer and childless f.: and he felt
The lonelines s; the upcongeuiai gloom
That ike presence haunted every room;
For though not given to weakness, he c1uld feel
The pain OF wounds that ache because they heal.
The years came and the years went-seven in all
And passed in cloud and sunshine DER the Hall;
The dawns their splendof through its chambers
shed,
The sunsets flushed its western windows red
The snow was on its roofs, the wind, the rain
Its woodlands were in leaf and bare again
Moons waxed and waned, the hlacs b1oomed ant
died,
In the broad river ebbed and flowed the tide,
Ships pent to sea, and ships came home from sea,
And the slow years sailed by and ceased to be.
And all these years had Martha Hilton served
In the Great House. and wholly unobserved;
By day, by night, the silver crescent grew,
Though hidden by clouds, her light still shining
maid OF al work, whether coarse or fine,
servant who made service seem divinef
Through her each room was fair to look upon,
The very knocker on the outer door,
If she but passed, was brighter than before.
And rev the ceaseless turning Of the mill
OF Time, that never for an hour stands still,
Ground out the Governors sixtieth birthday
And powdered his brown hair with silYer-gray.
The robin, the forerunner of the spring,
The bluebird with his jocund caroiling,
The restless swallows building III the caves,
The golden buttercups, the grass, the leaves,
The hlacs tossing in the winds of May
Ali welcomed this maj este holiday
He gave splendid banquet, served on plate,
Such as became the Governor Of the state,
Who represented England and the King,
And WIS magnificent in everything.
He had invited all mis- friends and peers
The Pepperels, the LangdoHs, and the Lears,
The SpafhaHks, the Pennallows, and the rest,
For why repeat the name of every guest
BIT must mention one, in bands and gown,
The rector there, the Reverend Arthur Brown
OF the Established Church with smiling face
He sat beside the Governor and said grace
And then The feast went on, as others do,
But ended as none Other I e'er knew
When they had drunk the King, with many cheer,
The Governor whispered in q servants ear,
Who disappeared, and presently there stood
Within the room, in perfect womanhood,
maiden, modest a1ld yet sslf-po 5s9s531
Youthful and beautiful, and siTnrly dressed
Can this be Martha Hilton? 1t mGst be
Yes, Martha Hilton, and no Other she!
Dowered with the beauty Of her twenty years,
How lady-liKe, how qUeen-iike she appears;
The pale, thin crescent of the days gone by
Is Dian now in all her Majesty!
Yet scarce a guest perceived that she was there;
Until the Governor, rising from his chair,
Played slightly with his rufles, then locked down.
And said unto the Reverent Arthur Brown:
'' This is my birthday, it shall likewise be
Ny wedding-day: and you shall marry mel"
The listening guests were greatly mystifed,
None more so than the rector, who replied:
" Marry you? Yes, that pleasant task
Your Excellency hut to whom, ask? +"
The Governor answered: ''To this lady here"
And beckoned Martha Hilton to draw near.
She came and Stood all bushes at his side.
The rector paused. The impatient Governor cried
'' This is the lady; do you hesitate?
Then command YOU Chief Magistrate.
The rector read the service loud and clear:
Dearly beloved, we are gathered here, "
And so On to the end. At his command,
On the fourth finger of her fair left hand
The Governor placed the ring and that was all:
Martha was Lady Wentworth cf the Hall
-AtiGHtic Monthly for JGRuGTs.