The Bloomfield times. [volume] (New Bloomfield, Pa.) 1867-187?, 1872-04-16

In neat but scantily furnished dwelling,
in retired part of the stricken city, a
mother and her daughter are seated, watch
to the burying- ground. On the face of the
elder lady are traces of suffering, mingled
with anxiety and alarm, alarm for the.safety
of her child. For herself she has no fear.
Death striking down his victims all around
has no terror Long Injured to grief, she
would welcome death as the end of suffer-
ing.
The mother and child are Mrs. Lyle, now
known as Mrs. Latimer, and Bertie now a
lovely maiden of sixteen. Mrs. Lyle had
been resident of Norfolk for ten years.
She had long given up all hope of ever
again seeing her husband, and had devoted
all her energies and all her resources to the
cultivation of her daughters mind and
heart. And never was mother better re-
warded for her pains. 1t would have been
hard to find girl of sixteen summers pos
sessing more and higher attraction than
BERTHE.
Mother may raise the window just a
little? 1t is so close and sultry this morn
ing"
You had betternot, my child, there is
poison in every breath of air, we must keep
as close as possible. Oh ifI could send
you away to the mountains, till the plague
be passed.
"Send me, mother?" Do you think /
would go and leave you behind, desert you,
as my cruel hard-hearted father did?"
"Hush! my darling child your father was
ri ght. have never blamed him for single
moment. was careless and Indifferent as
to his feelings, and he naturally thought
did not love him."
"But surely, mother, in all this long
time he might have come back to see if
you were alive or dead. You say that he
loved me too, why has he never come to see
his child ?"
"That has puzzled me no little, BERTHE,
and am satisfied that your father has been
to Philadelphia, andlearning nothing of us
has gone again in search of us, or that he
has died in some far off land"
"Perhaps, dear mother, he is looking for
us now, and we may soon see him."
81 should greatly rejoice for your sake,
darling. feel that my course is well nigh
run, and what will become of you then?"
"Why, mother, you are looking as well
as usual. You are not sick, are you?"
"No, not sick, but am strangely de-
pressed, and feel WEAKNESS and lassitude
not habitual with me-"
In the course of the day BERTHE became
seriously alarmed about her mothor, and,
while she was asleep, the young girl left
the house and hurried breathlessly along
the street until she reached the office of a
physician. Entering the Office, and the
doctor being pointed out, she earnestly and
tearfully implered him to lose not mo-
ment in fastening to the side of her moth
er."
The young physician was one of those,
who, prompted solely by feelings Of human
ity, had come from distance to minister
to the afflicted. Braviug all the horrors of
the malignant pestilence, he had labored
day and night, and great success had at
tended his efforts. Large contributions,
too, were daily reaching his hands for dis
tribution, and many humane individuals
were united with him in his work of be-
nevolence.
He was soon ready to obey Bertie's sum
mons, and he followed rapidly as she al
most flew back to her mothers house.
Mrs. Lyle had grown much worse, and
the doctor readily discovered symptoms of
the prevailing epidemic. Directing BERTHE
how to administer the medicine left in her
hands, he returned to his Office, promising
TO come again in the morning, and in the
meantime to send a skillful nurse TO spend
the night with the patient.
"Well, Doctor" said getleman, en-
ployed in the good work, and whom he
found at the Office on his return, "any new
cases this evening?''
A" Yes" replied the doctor, "the fever
has made its appearance in new quarter.
have just returned from visiting most
interesting patient; a mother with an only
child, daughter just arrived at the age Of
womanhood, and one Of the most bewitch-
ing creatures ever beheld. II we can get
them out Of the city all may be well, az the
lady has the fever in modified FORM"
"Well,' said the worthy man, "if you
have no objection, / win 60 with you, and
perhaps ] can prevail on them to leave. At
least the want Of money shall be no reason
for not doing So"