The Potter journal and news item. [volume] (Coudersport, Pa.) 1872-1874, 1873-12-24

they should meet with the spirit of
frolic in their new work. bat the
scenes which they had witnessed in
the interim had changed the current
of their feelings entirely.
MY SOUL" exclaimed Sam Pep
per. - never dreamed what sorrow
and suffering there was right here in
our little town Last night l went
down 10 the Widow Bashlot's and
found her, with a sick child, abso-
lutely freezing and starving"
And i" said Tom Lowden, found
poor old Uncle Ben Driscon and his
wife both in the same plight. The
old man is down with the rheuma-
tism, and when both he and Aunt
Sally sat and cried like babies with
fear Of goiHg 10 the poo.-honse.
tell You, it brought the tears to my
eyes"
And SO the reports were made,
and then they planned how they
could best use their ten dollars. 1t
seemed like drop in the bucket
when set against all the suffering
and want they had found; but it
would do something.
On that Saturday evening the Wi
dow Bashlot bent over the bed of her
sick child with weeping and with
walls Of anguish. The howling blast
piped without and the keen frost
nipped within. She suffered because
she had not yet brought herself to
beg. For herself, she would rather
die than become pauper; but for
her chiid-"Oh! God. have mercy :"
A wailing cry like this had burst
from her lips, when the tramp of feet
at her door attracted her attention.
and presently q gentle rap followed.
She answered the summons and found
four young men upon the stoop. She
knew them well, for they had been
schO0lmates with her son. who had
gone away to sea and never returned.
And they came into the boase: and
they brought with them wood and
'AsnHiSions:. and they Iiled pp the fuel
upon the hearth until tie hr;gE:
fame leaped anti roared; and the
sick child stretched out It's wasted
arms to embrace thc genial warmth.
And they brought forth bread. and
tea, and sugar, and bu,ter, AMI
cheese.
"All right" sa,l sam Pepper, who
regarded these as his especial charges,
in answer to the widow S ejac:slations
Of amazemen.. "We are John Dig
by's Reform Club; and We are going
into tIie missionary work; and such
folks as YOU are We want to convert
want to convert You from suffering
t. comfort if We can. SO keep up
good heart. and let Us 10 for yea
hat your own Willie would have
done if lie had lived. It'll be com
fort for rs. Well call often Iou
saan't want if We can help it,
The widows sobbing, bursting re-
un OF gratitude, and her esq. r.
heart-sent prayer of blessing cannot
be reproduced by tongue or pen.
Y ben the young men bad reached
the highway sam l'tPiser barst forth;
"Boys, as sure as Heaven, would
not exchange the blessing Of that
poor widows heart for all the JOY
that ever came in the old way at the
tavern. There's something more
than fun in this"
And his companions agreed with
bin.
In another part of the town, on
the outskirts of the village, in a poor,
thatched hut, lived Ben D.iscoll and
his wife Sally. In other days they
had been well and happy, and, though
never beforehand, yet they had not
known want until old age and sick
ness had deprived them OF the ability
to work. Aud on this cold winter g
night Uncle Ben and Aunt Sally sat
and shiyered over the embers of such
poor stuff as they had been able to
gather from the snow-coyered hedges.
and the old man sighed as he thought
Of the alms-house. "If we could on
ly get throreh the winter! But who's
to help u.s.
And Uncle Ben and his Wife were
aroused from their stupor of clIiti and
hunger by the tramp of feet and The
hum of voices; and very shortly the
door Of their cabin was opened and
John Digby and his companions en-
tered. A ire speedily blazed upon
the hearth and good store OF pro-