Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1873-03-07

| cestor. But by degrees grew Interested
his account was clear enough, If mine is
not and he had con ontirmatory documents
to show for everything he advanced. AT
last was able to conceive how 1t was pos
sble to keep him out of what seemed so
undoubtedly his own but then was not
| a lawyer.
Nevertheless, as soon as we we're intimate
enough for such liberties, talk ed'reason
to him, urging him to throw theA losing
game up, leave the ruin to the care Of Mol
| ly and Dabble, and look about forsome
method of earning bread and bacon; for
even as an upskilled artisan he would live
better than he did at present.
lie let his remaining patch of grassland
for forty pounds year he got about len
pounds for the apples in his orchard, aud
half more for the hay that was cut in ii.
| Dabble, who was an arrant, but not self
seeking poacher, occasionally brought in
rabbit or leveret; and that was what the last
of the Musgraves lived on. He owned that
it savored of lunacy to go on like that
that his best course would be to sell what
little homestead remained to him,-which
he could do at fancy price, as his remain
ing in possession OF It destroyed the COM
pactness of the remainder of the estate
and make a fresh start in the world; but
said he simply could not do ii.
"Surely you could make one vigorous ef-
fort" said I.
"Of course I could" he replied, "lf that
were all ; but after il was made,-a week
after, or month, or year, or FIVE years
| l. ...4 "A.
heritcd struggle and if then had to bear
the reflection that / had thrown away
| chance, feel certain that a sentiment of
remorseful regret would drive me mad
Mo- YOU IN 'ght as we'll tell LAGOON to make
an effort and wrench himself free of the
serpent-folds. If he could, they would
twine round him again when he was wea-
ry."
So never annoyed him with common
sense again. and, indeed after a little
while, caught the chancery infection my
self. OF course, it was but in a mild form,
as l had no property of my own at stake;
but had it su fficiently TO alter my ideas
entirely, and sympathize with the persist
ent struggle with fate in which my friend
was engaged. To tell the truth, was in
an unhealthy state of mind at that time.
having been recently iited,- "a misfortune
which, till they grow accustomed to it, Of
ten makes young men snlky with the
world in general. My sulks took the form
of isolation tempered by photography ; and
residence at Dowd with man bound to go
crazy, a witch and an uncanny black cat
for my sole acquaintance, exactly suited
me Just then. There is free masonry a
mongst the forlorn in love which enables
them to recognize one another; and I soon
learned that Musgrave ha met a certain
Mary, the daughter of a poor clergyman
who had acted as his private tutor, and that
he had INDUCED in dav-dreams of taking
his degree. going into orders, and leading
a life of married bliss in parsonage on a
hundred year; but he had to leave the
university abruptly when his father died
and left him the dormant lawsuit, and
nothing else. Then at first he was san
gune of being able shortly to offer his Ma
ry better home than they had modestly
pictured for themselves but after while,
when he had we'll studied the story of the
family failures, his love was but another
wedge in the torture-boot. 1 consoled him
with the reflection that his case was far bet
ter than mine; his girl was faithful to him,
or at least he thought so, and had a chance;
whereas, l knew for certain that the heart
of mine was a mere pop-gun, and that
had been shot out Oft asanother fellow pop
ped in. But he did not pity me properly
for he considered that was lucky in that
she had changed her mind before marriage,
instead of after; and could not contradict
that.
But the cup of Musgraves misfortunes
was not yet full. Dabble died.
Do you laugh at people who grleve for
pet animals? A? don't. "Onlv dogW folks
say. Well, dog who loves me is better
worth my regret than continent full of
J men and women who don't. Still more alb
surdly, argument is sometimes attempted;
: and we are told not to give second though
to the loss of an animal "that has no soul
Now, surely. If the death of dog, cat, ol
, horse means its utter annihiation, that Is
; an extra cause for sorrow. But there is M
e reason for such notion. Real Buffers
D analogy" and never speak with that ig
: norant confidence again. I do not reie
I You to Plato, heather Greek, but to Bish
a 0p Butler, as orthodox man as yourself
r perhaps more so. Well, whatever may b
K the spiritual endowment of other animals
e Dabble must have had a soul; at least h
o reasoned, and certainly would have talked
= the formation of his mouth had permitted
n him. Do you mean TO tell me that mer
t breathing machine would have found ou
IS that his master wanted rabbits without be
s ing told, and so brought them home whe
i he caught them, instead of eating then
= quietly in the woods? He took no medi
# cine; he had no doctor and yet he died
@ poor dear, (which looks as if the medica
II profession was slandered sometimes. Hi
d illness was short. He did not eat one morn
)f ing; the next his coat was rough, and h
i did not lick IL on the third he went abou
o mewing, and his eyes got filmy; on th
s fourth he had convulsions, in the course {
IF one of which he succumbed. We made
l. wooden box for him, and determined [
t, bury him in the orchard, under his favor
y ite tree, where he used to scratch holes an
:. lie in wait for dickey- birds. 1t was on
l. lovely autumn evening that we bore th
3 box to this spot, and commenced our sa
s. preparations Musgrave being chief mourn
IS er. took the part Of sexton, and struc
g the spade into the ground. For a lttl
IS while the task was easy; then came o
y roots, which delayed me. Hacking throug
ID them, however, dug grave some thrc
1T feet Deep and we tried to carry the obs,
IS ques a stage further; but the box stuck
& the grave was not wide enough. l bega
l. again at the sides, and soon widened II