Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1873-01-19
AN INDOOR TRAGEDY.
An Every Day Story Gracefully Told.
.l,o Ma, VOr TrihuDP

An Every Day Story GrAeefuAlJ AoA"'
From the New York Tribune
Well nigh half century ago newly
married coIlpIe settled In one of the western
counties of Pennsylvania. They had what
their peighbcrs deemed fair capital Win
which to begin life-a well stocked though
small farm, sound health, good common
sense. ara q mora than average amount OF
shrewd Intelligence and culture. Under all
this was a sincere trust in God aud Jeal-
ous, sensitive love for each other, nelLner
of which their neighbors knew much ABOUT
American back-WOods farmers take prlde N
covering their emotions under a bids as
touph as that Of their own beeves. Ihey
had three or four children, and
nigbt after night, over the Kitchen
fire the problem they set themselves
to snsver was. what is the best thing we
can do with them, and for them, the ques-
ton asked daily with such a Wrencnlng Oh
heart in myriads Of homes and ans"ereu
so djferently. The fear OF Coz seemed 70
Jsoob and bis wife the best heritage 70
eivs them; the next best, plenty OF money
TC eve them the first, they began Dy heus
ING lie children's lives With system OF
ruIsa. borrowed half from the Jewish laws,
half from the theory Of their sect. Strict
morality, the keeping of Sunday as perl
odical day of penitence and Wretcheoness,
the learning, under penalty OF dark Closets
and tbrsshipg. of the chief duty OF man,
therein was their religion. Life they were
shown as a straight and hard path through
a dark valley, with the terrors Of Sinai pc
hind. and the traps and pitfalls OF flaming
he'll ON either side. Even Jacobs vile,
Mary, holding her GarIings to her breaSt,
than which nc mothers ever ached or
tbrobbed with more tenderness, had 60
other sermon to preach to them. 1t never
occurred to her or her husband that II was
into lust s1ch selds Of grain a. those ABOUT
them, under Just such towering cedars, t1as
;Jesus led his disciples and taught them, Dy
| the sunshine and the rain, the tender msr-
cies of God. The world grew green around
them, faded sgain, and wrapped ltsei Ia
snow, wear after year; the river sang lts
| mysterious song to the woods At their very
door: and overhead the stars that had de-
olared tc the patriarcbs Of the old world the
infinite secrets of Jehovah, hlazoned them
forth still unregarded. Day unto day ut.
tered sueech, and night unto night showed
forth knowledge Of Him, but both farmer
and wife were deaf and blind. God was
to he appro.ched only through dog g-eared
catecbisn, and fields and river were worm
only so much fish and ghea. per year
The children's salvation being thus pro-
yided for, the next thing TO be insured was
money. Husband and VIE WorKed anu
stinted as only Scotch-lrish 1anliy can
work or stint. All produce that was sala-
bic went to the market; tne chlioren
were reared on the refuse, the sKlm mllz,
noorest bacon and watery potatoes. Their
clothes wers coarse and patched, their feet
hare and chillblained. The house grew
barer wear by wear, the f:her's back more
bent, his face harder, but the balance IL
hank increased dollar by dollar. AS fol
the plump, bonny Mary, she had long age
ioined that sisterhosd OF lean, yellow
skinned, toothless women who, with dirty
calico dresses and wisps of hair twisted ul
behind are sometimes found In farm houses
like ohssty megrims, or daylight spectres o.
a wasted life, When churning and scrub
hing were done she would sit up until neal
moTning washing and darning theil
clothes that they might look more "gen
teelD than she, dragging her aching
bo3v tn look at them where they slept, pray
inc for them with fierce longing to have
mower TO be God hiuself-to be able to pro
iect and care for them. The boys had Ger
tain tsfn s strong W animal propensities and phys
icaI Tendencies which required skull anC
knowledge to guide or restrain. One had !
morbid imagination; another tendency Y
Alcoholic poisoning, against which his die
and training from infancy should have de
Tended him. The girls, left to themselves
were filing their brains with sickly, ials
fancies of life and their work In 1t. Bu
what time had Mary to read or acquire 1
any way the power to comprehend or hei
her children? There was scrueblng an
cburning to be done, the money to oe saved
Bows and girls were sent to colleges an
seminaries; every advantage that educatio
could give them Sas theirs; the only mi
take Jacob anI his wife made in ID
| respect was not to educate themselves