The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1873-04-18
THE POOR HUNCH BACK,
And His Secret

lOly we'll, TO WHICH lew 30 now except
the sheep that crop the rich, green
grass that springs around its brink. Be
side the well sat little boy, and as he
looked into the crystal water, his tears
dimpled it like rain.
1T only tells me what l knew be-
fore" said the disappointed little fellow
with a sigh.
The little boy was weeping because
he was hunchback. The big sad eyes
melted the heart like minor melodies,
but there was nothing else beautiful in
his stunted, distorted, feeble frame.
His mother Iavished fondness on him
at times. but at other times there was
look in her ewes which it was hard to
bear-the notifying pity of crushed
hone. His father looked at him as If
he wished that he had never been born.
His sisters were kind to him after
fashion. but their proud love was re
served for his beautiful younger broth
err who patronized and promised to
protect him with alf-contemptuous
COMPASSION. Outside his ownfamily the
little hunchback was either ignored, or
coarsely pitied, or made the butt of
most cruel ridicule and the victim of
downright brutality. He felt very
lonely. in a world which he loved be-
cause it was so full of beauty-amongst
so many people, whom he longed to
love if they would only let him.
He had heard the old tales that we're
told of the curing power of the desert
ed holy we'll 1t dubbed up as bright
" as ev it had bubbled /; why should
ii not be as good a doctor as ever 1T
had been? He determined to try it.
Fearing to be laughed at he kept his
determination to himself, and started
without telling any one for the noun
tain-side.
As he passed through the village
street. he was ieered at and pelted by
the village children, but good hearted
woman rushed out from her washtub
with brawnv, bare, soapsuddy arms,
and drove off his young tormentors by
sounding boxes on the ear and breath
taking thumps upon the back, and
acknowledging shakings by the collar.
The little bov was grateful to his pro-
tectress. but he thought it hard he
should need protection, and when she
said. Poor little boy, it is not his fault
that he is such an object" her pity
made him feel sore.
But he left the village behind him,
and got ont into the sunny country be-
yond, where he met no one to twit him
with his ugliness, aid the pain of his
poor little smarting heart was lulled.
1t was a glorious day in June. The
trees were out in full leaf, but the
leaves had not yet lost their fresh May
green. The mottled hemlock stalks in
the bitches were covered with veil of
creamy lace. Purple and golden vetch-
es grew IN and about the hedges, and
the meadows and patches of turf be-
tween the bitches and the road were
tufted with white and red and yellow
clover heads. The purple thyme was
breathing out honey beneath the suns
warm kiss. The foxglcye was nodding
its claret-colOred bells, and the globe
flower was tossing about its golden
balls like conjurer. The little boy
picked handsful of honeysuckle bios
SONS and smoked the sweet bugles as he
walked The travellers JOY and the
bryOny were trying, like bird's-nesting
boys, which could climb the higher.
Where clump of trees hung over the
swampy margin of pond, witch's night
shade put out its pretty pink flowers.
The pond glowed with the golden
droOping-Epped vases of the water-hag,
and purple water-viOlets and cinque-
foil trembled on its banks. The PIN
pernel snuggled its little pink face into
it's messy pillow. All along the lanes
dog-roses put forth their struggling
sprays, and Uttered the ground with
their shell-like petals. In and out
crept the silver-leaved, golden-blossom-
ed silver-weed, mixed with the snowy
bells of the bindweed, and beneath the
plantain stood gay in its gala suit of
pink and silver. The pink and the pur-
pIe cranes bills were both in blossom,
and when the little boy left the plain
and mounted the hillside, bluebells
were tossing as if fairies were ringing
an inaudible peal, and the butterfly
orchis was pouring ont its delicious fra
GRANGE to mingle with the sweet scent
of the mint and thyme. Larks sang
overhead, golden-banded wild bees
went booming about, lilac-colored but
terfies fluttered hither and thither. the
bells of a distant church were Ginning
merriIy, in a meadow down below-too
far off for him to fear teasing from them
-haymakers were singing and laugh
ing.
q In this beautiful and happy world, >"
thought the little boy, chow is it that
am so ugly and sad %
He toiled up to the holy well the
bidth lUttNl SHE btlftb LAdAA bcCA
ing its clear water and cropping it's lush
grass, scampered off; and, kneeling
down, he curved his hand into cup
and dipped it into the well. Thrice,
according to old custom, he drank of
the holy water, thrice he sprinkled it
over his head, but he became no strong
er, no handsOmer.
% 1t only tells me what / knew be-
fore, said the little boy, as he sat
looking into the liquid mirror. LEV
erything is beautiful except me-" he
murmred. mo. there's an ugly
thing" he added, cas- hump-backed as
| am. What is it d? It looks like a bit
of dry stick, and yet it seems to be
alive. It's moving"
As he spoke, the hump-backed bit of
stick cracked, and there came forth a
beautiful butterfly when soon spread
its wings of Orange-tipped white and
flew off to hawthorn bush hard by.
The little boy, stretching himself on
the sunny grass, watched, for a long
time, the beautiful insect fluttering
over the beautiful mass of creamy
blossom fecked with red aud green
Presently it flew off and began to flut-
ter around him. It alighted on his ear,
and whispered something to him and
then butterfly, and hawthorn bush,
nay, more, the very mountain itself
vanished But, after having been
spoken to by butterfly, the little boy
could be astOnished at nothing.
He was no longer a lite boy, but a
man. He was still a hunchback, but
he had ceased to be sorry for that.
When people, as was still sometimes
the case, sighted or insulted him on
account of his ugliness, he would smile
and whisper to himself, "Ah. if they
only knew-but that's secret"
Two brothers were going to fight,
but the hunchback ran between them,
and, being ashamed to strike such one
as he, they ceased from their quarrel
long enough to cool, and finally shook
hands over the hunchback's head.
In bare room, an almost blind old
woman lay alone, bedriddcn. Every
one belonging to her was dead. She
was peevish old woman, interesting
in no way, and in the wide world there
was not a soul to care whether she lived
or died, until the hunchback found her
l., l,,1,,~rI,&