The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1874-05-21

i
the lowest rounds of the ladder. becam
settled. My mothers hands, being ou
only support, were never idle. gave he
all the assistance possible when out q
school. My father seldom remained 8
home during tie day, and generally cam
in at night in state of helpless intoxics
ion. Long ago he had lost all elfrespec1
and there is little left OF man when tina
is gone. ''-''
we were sitting quietly sewing on,
evening when we were startled by a visit
or-to US an unusual occurrence. Thi.
visitor WAa a man ~~aeeo aacce UclUKVueC
gentleman. His face would not hav,
been homely but for dark, sinister ex
preston of the eyes and an unsteady, sen
sual look about the mouth. He seemed
to have no object in view but merely t.
make friendly call. His attentions K
me were very flattering; he spoke of hav
ing seen me perform in q school drams
and sing song at the last school exhi
bition. Despite his attentions I felt an
underlined repulsion to this man. l was
sure he had a concealed motive for this
intrusion, and instinctively shrank from
him as from viper. My presentiments
of evil became so strong that If he had
not bowed himself out of the house !
should have, screaming, left it. When
the door closed upon him, and l hao
tremblingly locked it, l burst into flood
Of passionate. tears without knowing OF
being able to tell why. My mother tried
to soothe, to reassure me, but could de-
tect from her manner that she too was moi
| without distrust of this man and his un.
| welcome visit.
Soon after this man left my father came
home, much to our surprise, it being 50
much earlier than usual for him to re.
turn-apparently not under the influence
of drink. There seemed, however, an un.
| accountable strangeness in his manner
which quite alarmed us. He came to.
ward us both and, taking US in his arms,
wept like very child. Then, throwing
himself upon lounge, he sobbed aloud
We tried TO sOOthe, to quiet his excited
grief, but it was useless, tor he grew wild
and incOherent in his manner and con.
versation. In fear and consterna.
tion l ran for q physician, but
before he came my father was
raving maniac. All me! the horrors of
that night it is fearful to recall. During
his delirium his mind was constantly
agitated by thoughts of some terrible
wrong he had inflicted upon me. He
seemed to be fighting some demon who
was dragging me away. Piteously he
would sometimes implore them to leave
me with my mother while longer. Then
he would rave and strike as though some
demon was in his way. Toward morning
he became convulsed, and passed away in
struggles which were fearful to look upon.
This was the first time l had ever seen q
death. This one was so horrible and so
sudden that my brain and nerves seemed
paralyzed. An awe, q dread, q great
cloud seemed overshadowing my very
life and crushing out OF it all the sun
light which had been there, small as it had
been. I could not weep, for terror had
dried, nay, scorched up, the waters of my
heated brain. 1t was not grief, but hor-
ror, which benumbed all my faculties, for
l could not claim any love for my father.
His life had been an outrage upon every
feeling of my nature, and I had no re-
membiance of him when he was other
than brutal drunkard.
My poor mother was wild with grief,
for she loved my father despite his
faults-despite the wrongs inflicted nv
those faults; she looked upon them with
pity and forgiveness, for to her it was in
sanity.
1t was to me strange that when she
closed my fathers eyes in their last
sleep she laid away all thoughts of what
he had been for years, and again he re.
turned to her the same noble-hearted,
ardent lover and husband he had been in
the early days of their cOurtship and mar
riage. All the rest was forgotten.
We were alone with our dead. There
was no humane hand stretched forth to
to assist in preparing the remains for
the grave could not without q shud.
der touch my fathers stiffening limbs.
My mother, with sad and streaming
eyes, did it all. Night came on-a night
which still shudder to think of. Oh.
how terrible in its shadowy gloom! The
very air seemed full of ghosts demons
hooking our despair. Surrounded by
that gloom my mother and myself sat all
night without fire or light in our deso-
late home, save the gas-lamp in the street,
which threw its Pickering rays upon nv
fathers lifeless remains. This unsteady
light dancing over the ghastly form took
shape in my excited mind, and felt each
moment that it would rise from its sleep
of death. My eyes became riveted vpon
the remains of my father. Horror, i6de-
scribable horror, took entire possession
of me. A whole lifetime of happiness
can never erase that nights agony. The
lost souls in that world where the worm
dieth not can suffer no more. That night.
too, seemed without end.
My griefstricSen mother, forgetful of
herself, tried to allay my terrors. Clasped
in close embrace we sat the night
through, and when morning dawned at
last it found us both as pallid as he whom
death had claimed.
How should we lay decently away our
dead was q thought which came with the
morning light. The thought of pauper
burial, associated as 1t was with q rough
coffin, rude hands and unfeeling hearts,
we could not endure. Yet such q burial
seemed inevitable. We had no one to
procure for us even this. For in nv ex-
cited state could not be left alone. and
we dared not thus leave my fathers re-
mains.
This accumulation of suffering was too
much for even my mothers endurance.
Her fortitude forsOok her, - we'll asher
usual quiet selfpossession. my Godl y
she exclaimed, why am / thus afiiictedi
What have done to merit such q chas-
tening!" She sank upon her knees in
an agony Of prayer, in which I Joined.
We had scarcely risen from our prayers
when some one knocked gently at our
door. Trembling in every limb, opened
It. A gentleman with kind, benevolent
face asked If this was the residence of
Mrs. st. Clair, and, being answered in the
affirmative, requested to see her.
Ny father had in early life joined the
Order of Masons, and, erring though he
had 4,onu fh0u ots11 hnvNSnr Enr = ~c|r~~..
ton, had not expelled him. They came
now to ask the privilege of burying him
mot with the honors of the Order, but
decently. What burden this lifted from
my poor mothers hearth What . quick
and decided answer to our prayersi How
1t again Frightened up faith which had.
for . moment only, been obscured-a faith
which had sustained my mother through
Ill her afnictionsl Through this Order
my father was decently laid ct rest
The reader very naturally asks Why In
our distress We did not apply for aid. I
can only reply that brous st up q We had
AAAtk $1,000 wsn~En->n1>