Smyrna times., 1874-02-25

one replaced the muSket, anu, returning TO
the fence, covered the body with boughs and
after she related the occurrence in in care
less, casual way, and, leading the way to the
fence, with piece of bread and butter in her
guilelsss little fingers pointed out the result of
her simple unsophisticated effort. The Hes
sian was decently buried, but could not find
out what became of the little girl. Nobody
seemed to remember. | trust that in after
years she was happily married-that no Jersey
Lovelace attempted to trihe with heart whose
impulses were so prompt, and whose purposes
were so sincere. They did did not seem to know
it she had married or not. Yetit does not seem
probable that such simplicity of conception,
frankness of expression, and deftncss of execu-
tion were lost to posterity, or that they failed
in their time and season to give flavor to the
domestic felicity of the period. Beyond this,
the story perhaps has little value-except as
an offset to the usual anecdotes of Hessian
atrocity.
They had their financial panics even in Jer-
sey in the old days. She remembered when
DR.. White married your cousin Mary, or was
it Susan yes, it was Susan; she remembers
that your uncle Harry brought in an armtul Of
bank notes-pap9r money, you knOw-and
threw them IN the corner, saying they were no
good to anybody She remembers playing
with them, and giving them toy your aunt Anna
no, child, it was your own mother, bless your
heart Some of them was marked as high as
a hundred dollars. Everybody kept gold and
silver in a stocking, or in "chaney" vase like
that. You never used money to buy anything
When Josiah went to Springfield to buy any
thing he TOOK cart load Of things with him to
exchange. That yaller picture frame was paid
for in greetings. But then people knew Jest
what they had; they didn't fritter their sub
stance away in unchristan trifes like your
father. Eliza Jane, who doesn't know that
there is a God who will smits him hip aud
thigh-for vengeance is mine, and those that
believe in me-but here, singularly enough,
the inferior maxiIaries gave out and her Jaw
dropped. Il noticed that her giddy daughter
of eighty-hv was sitting near her, but | do
not pretend to connect this fact with the ar
rested flow of personal disclosure.) Howbeit
when she recovered her speech again it ap
psared that she was complaining of the
weather
The season had changed very much since
your father went to sea. The winters used tC
be terrible in those days When she went
over to Springfield in June she saw the snow
still on Watson's ridge. There were days whsr
you couldn't git over to William Hsnry's theil
next neighbOr, quarter of mile away. I
was that dretful winter that tho Spanish sailor
was found. You don't remember the Spanish
sailor, Eliza Jane, it was hefore your time
There was little personal skirmish here which
l feared, at first, might end in a suspension O
{ maxillary functions and the loss of the story
but here it is. All me, it is pure white win
ter IdyL How shall sing it this bright, ga!
autumnal day2
1t was terrible night, that winters nigh
when she and the century were young together
The sun was lost at three clock the snow
! night came down like a white sheet that hap
ped around tie house, beat at the window
with its edges, and at last wrapped it in clos
, embrace. In the middle of the night the
! thought they heard above the wind vOic'
crying, "Christusl Christusl" in a foreigr
tongue. They opened the door-no easy task il
the north wind that pressed its strong should
. ers against it-but nothing was to be seen bu
, the drifting snow. The next morning dawnec
: on fences hidden, and a landscape changed an,
, oblterated with drift. During the day the
! again heard the cry of "Christusl" this tim
" faint and hidden like q child'a voice The
. searched in vain, the drifted snow hid it's Sc
cret. On the third day they broke a path t
the fence, and then they heard the cry di.
> tinctly.
! Digging down they found the body Of ma
. "a Spanish sailor, dark and bearded, with ear
4 rings in his ears. AS they stood Gazing dow
! at bis cold and pulseess figure, the cry O
I "Christus, again rose upon the wintry air
/. and they turned and fed in superstitious terro
: to the house. And then one of the children
i. bolder than the rest knelt down and Opene
: the dead mans rough a-jacket and found
- what think you?-a little blue and green pal
rot nesting against his breast 1t was tn
= bird that had echoed mechanically the last de.
+ pairing cry Of the life that was given to save il
Il 1t was the bird that ever after, amid outland
"a ish Oaths and wilder sailor songs that fea
!. often shocked the pure ears of its gentle mil
II tress aud brought scandal into the Jerseys
70 still retained that one weird and mournful cry
!. The sun meanwhile was sinking behind tn
, steadfast range beyond, and could not bel
: feeling that must depart with my wants I'll
N satisfied. had brought away no historic fraG
ment; | absolutely knew little or nothing ne
70 regarding George Washington. | had bee
=. addressed variously by the names of differer
:. members of the family who were dead and fo
a. gotten. had stood for an hour in the pas
nt yet had not added to nay historical knowledg
a. nor the practical benefit Of your readers.
ID spoke once more of Washington, and she r
~ piled with "reminiscences of Perkins.
ar Stand forth, D Josiah W. Perkins, of Basl
Il ing Ridge, New Jersey. Thou vast of lit
rs account in thy life, warrant; thou didst n,
ID even feel the greatness of thy day and time
v thou didst criticise thy supsriers; thou wa
ID small and narrow in thy ways-thy very nan
al and grave are unknown and uncared for. b.
he thou vast once kind to a woman who survive
of thee, and 10, thy name is again spoken of me
n and for moment lifted up abovs thy bette
nv BRET HARTE.
:, =. Basking Ridge. N. j., Oct. 8, 1873.