The Republican journal., 1874-11-12
The Light in the Window.

lie Plodded on through sleet and snow
with step awkward and shutlling, yet with
a certain resolution in it. Other men
might have turned aside unwilling to
breast the force of such storm. Not so
with Daniel Shutting Dam y
his fellow workmen called him. He was
no tayollte among them, silent, brood
ing, sullen fellow they thought him. but he
lived q life Of which they understood very
little 1t had been consecrated for four
teen years to one object and there was
IN Il an element of chivalrous selEsacrifice
OF winch he was utterly unconscious him
| self. re passed a store, where some of
his comrades We're laughing, then the
forge, with its door invltingly open, and
the bright red light streaming out OF it
cheer1ully in the murky gathering night
| For a moment he was tempted lust to 90
IN ana warm himself II little in that glow ::
but he shook his shaggy head, and turned
away She will be waiting he said as
he drew up the collar Of his coarse coat.
"httle lamb, she'll be waitin'" And then
as If the thought had given him new life,
he plodded on again valiantly.
On through sleet and snow, till he came
at last III front of low cottage standing
III the midst OF a square lot A light
Streameu forth from its front window
over tile white pathway. 1t had shown
thefe Tor him every winter nightfall for
many year, and he never saw that bea-
cen ray without blessing his little lamb"
over and over again. How warm she had
kept his heart And yet among the hard
things IN his life, people who took the
trouble TO speak Of him at all, ALWAYS
reckoned that crippled child"
When his wife died and left him her
hour-old baby to bring up as best he
could, they commiserated him. and wond-
cred what he was to do And when it
was found that the child would never be
able to walk they thought his burden was
heavier than he could bear. But he knew
only he could not have told them or
reasoned about it-what had been his
sweet compensation, AT first, to be sure,
it was a hard blow when he found that
the little one he loved was never to be
quite like others-that she would never
come toddling down the path to meet
him, clinging to his hard palms with ROSY
little hands-but this very grief about her
made his love all the more tender.
She was the one idea OF his life. The
only absorbing feeling he had ever known
was for her He had liked her mother
well enough, but it had been an ordinary
common place regard, until she died ana
left this tender blue-eyed blossom, which
he was afraid to touch The child conse-
Grated the mothers memory, and he cared
toI her dead more than he ever cared for
her living But it was little Eunice who
filled his heart full, and sat on her throne
queen regent t0revermore He had her
nursed carefully, and he cheerfully gave
up every hour Of his life to the task of
being father and mother to her both in
one. When she was old enough to sit in
Q little wheeled chair in which she could
trundle herself about the room his de-
Eight knew nc bounds In summer she
was always at the door to meet him, and
in winter her CHEEKY lamp burned ALWAYS
at the cottage window
When she was twelve wears old. She
herself proposed to keep house for him
There We're three rooms in their little cot
tage, all on the same ioor, besides the un-
finished garret overhead From room to
room of these three she could trundle
herself around She connved TO do a
good many household tasks and with
neighbor hired to come aud help each
prondest of little housewives OF late.
however she had been growing weaker.
and her father had insisted that She should
not be lett alone. 50 the neighbor who
helped her stayed all day now, but went
home At night when Dan came for he
was not ready to give up the pleasure Of
having his darling quite to himself these
long evenings
Now, as he entered the yard, his steps
grew quicker. All that was shuffling and
uncertain passed out of his manner. and
ne walked with the strong sure step Of
one sure OF his welcome. Draw ING near
he saw her face at the window which the
light illumined-a face OF almost ideal
beauty, Not the features so much when
YOU analyZed them; they were far from
regular, and bore a curious likeness to
his own. But the great blue eyes were
full Of light and the color came and
Went on her cheek i'll faint pink fushes,
and the skin was transparent as the most
delicate crystal. Around this wistful. |
loving, waiting face tloated a mass of soft
golden hair, like the halos You see some
times in old pictures around the brOws of
saints. When she saw him the blue eyes
kindled, the tace disappeared from the |
window and when he opened the door
there she was in front Of IT, with her lips |
uplitted for a kiss The neighbor stood |
by, her things on ready to go, and it |
struck Dan that there was look Of pity |
On her face,
You'd better not get to near the child !
with those wet things on" she said kind |
" Shes but weak little thing and |
she mustn't get cold"
He started back remorsefully and did |
not 60 up to the girl again until he had
taken all his wet things off in his own
room and made himself dry and tidy. |
BY this time the nelghbor was gone and
he and Eunice sat down together to the
supper which waited He had the keen
hungry appetite Of workingman, but it
did not keep him from noticing presently
that the food on his child's plate remain
ed untouched He laid down his knife
and fork, and looked at her anxiously.
"An't YOU gong to keep father com
panv little, deary? You amt never
hearty, l know, but want to see YOU eat
something
She smiled family
You know you don't let me work any
more, father, and | can't get hungry like
ou that ai0 puoS al4 uay, WORKING lol
me-
Yes, lamb, for you,' he repeated as
i tbs words gave him pleasure. "God
knows its all for you, and he knows how
thankful ! am to have You to work for.
Folks talk about my lot bein' hard, but
that is all they know. | would change
places with no man. SO long as he leaves
me you III never doubt that God loves
me-
The girl sighed and look of white
pain qulvered moment about her lips.
Take me up, father she said half an
hour after, as they sat before the bright fire
together, No mothers touch could have
been more tender than that rough mans
rs he lifted the little twisted form into his
arms and laid the sunny head carefully
against his bosom. She rested there for
4 while silently, looking fondly up into
his face, and now and then touching his
cheeks gently with her thin fingers At
last she said with an air earnest, yet hes
tatng-
You do believe God loves you, don't
you father ?n