The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1873-04-17
How the Mortgage was Redeemed.

How the Mortgage was Redeemed.
A DOMESTIC SKETCH.
There were grave looking group that
gathered in Dean Lindsay's best room
that lovely June morning. First there
was Dean Lindsay himself. always
prominent figure anywhere, from his tall
muscular form, bold, resolute face. At
| his right their elbows leaned on the
| table, whereon lay writing materials with
sundry folded and crossed papers. sat two
men, one Of them idly toying with pen
which he held in his hand. He was
slight, dark-skinned man. with short,
bushy hair and whiskers-the latter of the
mutton-chop style-and both of the color
denominated as pepper and salt He had
bright alert face, and clear, blush gray
eyes. and his name was Mark Seldom,
and his calling, attorney at law.
| The man at his side offered the strong
est possible contrast He was tall and
| loosely built, with a slight stoop in his
heavy shoulders. He had a fiorid COM
plexion, with small sleepy-looking pale
| blue eyes, "A beardless face, and long, lank,
| sandy hair, pushed behind his ears, said
| ears being modelled on generous plan,
as regarded size, and if | use the express
sion, placed in the most favorable possible
light to show advanta geously. And as he
| carried his head I little down, they gave
him the appearance of listening covertlv,
without seeming interested This mans
| name was Wilson-Amos Wilson, and
| though you might not think it from his
dress or general appearance, q rich man.
| mean OF course, rich for his locality.
He might not have been rich for New
York, but for Dalton, a small western
township. he was a perfect Crnsus.
besides those, there was small colony
Of young Lindsays, in assorted Sizes the
largest of whom, pretty Della Lindsay,
stood behind her mothers chair, her arm
thrown over her shoulder in a pretty pro-
tecting way. Mrs. Lindsay had been an
invalid since Harry's birth, four years,
and Della was practically at the head of
the household. 1t was moreover no light
thing to be at the head of the household
There was besides herself, seven children,
which with her father and mother and
Paul Leicester, who had been with her
father for the summer, lust eleven in the
family. Added to this was the care of
dozen cows and added to the fact. that
the state of their finances would not ad-
NIT OF their keeping servant. And this
question of finances brings me to the real
| subject of my story.
You'll excuse me, Wilson, tor being
a little doWn-hearted about this thing"
Mr.. Lindsay said with faint, deprecat-
ing smile. at seems like signing away
my hearts blood to e i've stranger Il
claim on the old homestead !"
\ slow red burned itself through
Amos Wilson's cheek 81 wish YOU
wouldn't speak of me as a stranger" he
| said hastily, with an involuntary glance
| at Della, which no one but Paul Leicester
saw.
II meant any one but relative, Mr.
| Wilson," replied Lindsay soberly "You
know had hope of help from my cousin
| in New Orleans. mentioned it to you.''
Mr.. Wilson listened and nodded thought
fully.
''Well the fact that | have applied to you
shows that hope has failed me, and so
We'll say nothing more about it. Per-
haps you had better write the deed now,
Mr.. Seldom
Mr.. Seldom bowed pleasantly, dipped
his pen in the ink, and for while the
faint scratch of the pen on the paper, and
the loud ticking of the kitchen clock,
were the only sounds in the house
Mr.. Lindsay leaned his face on his
hand and looked steadily on the floor, the
slight twitching of the muscles about the
mouth being the only 81 on of emotion one
could discover Mrs Lindsay, white and
still as a statue, her face little dropping,
sat a few feet at the left of her husband,
while Della retained her old position by
her mothers chair troubled shadow in
her soft brown eyes, and over the sweet
young tace. Harry, awed and perplexed,
hid his face in the folds of her dress, while
in a group at the open window were
gathered the rest of the children.
How unnaturally still it was How in
| contrast to the freshness and brightness
of the sky and air! Looking from the
open windows one saw long reaches of
softly undulatng prairie bathed in golden
light, while away to the right, Il blue,
sparkling river, sentineled with cotton
| woods and sycamores, and overhung with
pale, translucent mists, flashed and rippled
between its velvety banks
No wonder Dean Lindsay shrank from
the thought cf his fair heritage being
compromised; but there was no help for
it, and he had got to make up his mind
to think of 1t as no longer really his, but
subject to Amos Wilson's authority. He
could hardly keep from groaning aloud
as he ran over in his mind the half score
or more OF fine farms which belonged to
Wilson, all of which had first been mort
gagged to him, as his was being now, to
raise the necessary money to keep them
from being given up altogether. And
then, one after another, they had been
given up, and Amos Wilson was the pos
SCISSOR. Would his 90 in the same way?
Would there be few years of struggle
with i'll lucl-blight, and drouth, and
mildew-and then his wife and children
be homeless? He started with a nervous
shudder and glanced up. Amos Wilson
was leaning a little forward, looking
steadily at Della with q strange fire light
ing his sleepy eyes
"The deed is ready for your signature,
Mr. Lindsay" Seldom said briskly, "yours
and Mrs Lindsay's"
His voice broke the weird spell which
had seemed to hold them, and Paul
Leicester got up from his seat by the
kitchen table while the deed was signed,
and the money, seven hundred dollars
counted and given to Mr.. Lindsay, who
in turn handed over the mortgage OF the
homestead TO Mr.. Wilson. Then he
turned abruptly and went out. Mr.. Sell
don looked afterhim with his quick, bright
eyes, but no one else appeared to notice
it as being anything unusual that hired
man should intrude his presence upon
such an occasion.
And now that business is over, viii
take the opportunity OF saying word
about this same Paul Leicester.
| First he was a stranger in Dalton; that
is, he had been there but little over two
months, having come early in April. He
had seemed SO anxious for employment,
and offered to work so cheaply, withal,
and upon such easy terms-not asking for
payment until Christmas-that Mr. Lind
say had thought it best to take him. He
could not work the large farm alone and
was specially anxious to do good deal
this season, to try to recover himself.
MIR. Leicester was not very much used
to farm work, it was quite evident, but he
was so ready to learn, and SO quiet and
| persistent about everything he undertook,