, 1873-09-28

wofu1ly burtlenod with tho cares Of humanity |
and the responsibilities OF Immortality still pay
to tho
ENcuArTMENTs or CHILDHOOD. |
Ago hnB stolen upon tllom 80 slowly and steadily
Tint thoy hnvo simply outgrown tho childish aen-
satfons, and 1t is not possible to recall them by
any effort Of will; yet In somo unexpected |
momont, ,thoy viii return inHtantanoously, wildly,
md, just flashing acrosB the consciousness,
mo lost again. Tho businessman, hurrying to |
keep his engagement, gives but short, irritatod
reioindor to the boyiBh petition for q now top,
or q gatly-tintod toy-balloon; but, at night,
whom ho Is on the Btreet-cars returning home,
and it Is too lAto for roparation, |
Memory, with ono lghtning-1ike 1ash, ropro-
ducos tho grieyed, disappointed look In his
child's eyes, and recalls to him tho anguish
which lled Ills own little hoart. years and years
agono. when somebody forgot tho promised play
thing. Ho remembers we'll how indifferent
everybody else Boomed to what was to him 80
vital mattor. He can almost bear again his
fatber's half-jocular, half-contomptuous tone Us
he calls out. "Crying for playthingi Why I'm
ashamed OF you;" aud the gentle mothor's mild
remonstranco: 40 ho, my dear! wouldn't
cry" He remembers we'll what o vaguo, income
municablo distress 1t was, because children
cannot analyze their SORROWS. Ho eeen,s
again to feol that strange, child
ish geneation that tho world IL
all too big for him; that ho is in tho way Of a1l
grown-up people, and yot he is hero and cannot
got away. Is 1t possible that the dear little fol-
low, that watched him in pttiful silonce to tho
cato this morning. Was feoing all that Just ae ho
once felt 1t? He wishes ho had thought to buy
that toy after all. It seems 80 unnatural that
child should not boliove in Santa Olaus. should
not conslder birthday something to DO proud
of, should not talo 1t for granted that all grown
people arc perfectly just and impartial, al-lnow-
hng hg 9P Ra nDe a sSnffps pa o, q v esg9 g ha { ss
To DO su1e,. they arc all tho time taking
mental photographs Of persons, placoB,
and scenes but 1t takes years to enable them to
put tho Impressions thus derived in words. They
gauge everybody with whom they come In con-
tact, ard nro Indifferent to them, Or find thom at
tractiye or repollant but yet, in all those
things, they act by instinct, and not BY, reason.
CLildren have impressions, bus not opinions.
equaled 10 their abandon. thoir kcenueus and
their {roshneBs, by any subsequent joys. The
senHo Of illimltable wealth conveyed on Tho
possession OF that first whole dollar, did that
Paris begin now with those hard, glassy"looking
balls Of translucent candy bought by tho penny
worth at tho little cornerstone 50 convenient
to tho ola school,honso 81 ? Could 1!l thore re-
4boaFd % or heoise such @ thrilling words as voso
ae1awled on those paper.pollets and tossed to
their destination when the toacher's back was
turned 2 Gould your adult imagination conceive
Of lSys 3 ausa So R9asnt hs ornDn which
anco Of q, ride on tho sled Of another boy. and
was terminated by her gracious recoival Of tho
gnggeativo gift q sugar-heart An, no!
Thoeo brilliant bubbles OF childhood disappeared
forever, md woro followed by tho
1NFATUATlONH YOUTH.
Who can forget tho first delicious draught Of
admiration which society puts to tho lips Of tho
dobutantee Al homo young man is y only
got away from lie neigh'borB, to whom their
gradual bloaaoming has been M unnoted change,
and they hardly know themselves. Their opln-
ions are consulted; their sayings are quoted !;
they are conplimented on charms and graces
which they never droamel Of possessing. Lyddy
Bays, and bolioves. that her brothera are the
boat brothors In tho world aud yet, at tines,
md Oh certain subjects, they do snub her most
brothers arc far from snubbing her. Augustus
listeus With an air Of tender reverence to her
crude opinions on subjects far beyond her ken,
1 sRa d'S5es that ntuten. doubt sso she y
otc. Then he quotes Aoma beautiful
sentiments about women, and wind up with =
mere suggestion Of sigh';;, Lyddy is enchanted
-as girls always do,-ahe 1nds ho has dupli-
Gated Tint speech aa many times as there were
girls. Such pretty little speech as 1t was tool
It Is dreadful shock to two young people
whom ono learns that tho other didn't say what
| he meant, anl the other finds out that ono didn't
! mean abe said.
II the first thing learned by tho dobutant in
Society is. that he Is somebody, tho second los
son toachos him that ho is nobody: There is
always some ono who can do all that he can d.
and do 1t better. Flo finds always. in tho higher
circleB, D novelist who ia moro popular, or q
singer TINT is more attractive, or . painter who
is moro skillful, or a politician who outranks
him. Nor does be find any Of theae celebrities
as he expected to find them before he climbed
mp to his standing among them. Tho humorist,
whose jokos aEe making nation laugh, sits at
latipg as captured nre-ny. The novelist,
| whose latest work ia piled in stackB at tho
bookstores, cannot 10 induced to indulge
in any higher conversational flight than the
morning nows. Tho great pulpit HhoBo
! spiritual sayings stir mems souls, ia found to
have slight dash Of the horso-jookoy ia him:
creation Of some rambling dreams grotesqgo
1T.