Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1874-02-02
ssSHE HAD OUTLINED HER USE
FULNESS..

/ came 10 our door asking Tor the mlnls-
ter. When told that he was out oftown,
he seemed disappointed and anxious. On
being questioned as to his business, he
ansvered
4 have lost my mother, and as my
father lies here, We have come to lay
her beside him.
Ny heart rose in sympathy, and |
said: .sYou have met With a sad loss"
.'Well. yes he replied, with hesitan-
cy, "a mother is a great loss in general,
but our mother had outlived her useful
ness. She was in her second childhood.
and her mind had grown as weak as her
body. so she was no comfort to herself,
and was burden to everybody. There
were seven of US, sons and daughters
and We agreed to keep her among US.
year about But | had more than my
share of her, for she was too feeble to be
moved when my time was out, and that
was three months before she died. But
she was a good mother in her day, and
toiled hard to bring US up
Without looking at the face of the
heartless man. [ directed him to the
house of a neighboring pastor, and re-
turned to my nursery. gazed on the
merry little faces which smiled or grew
sad in imitation of mine-those little
ones to whose ear no word in our Ian
guage Is half so sweet as mother, and
| wondered if that day could ever come,
when they would say of me, ''She has
outlived her usefulness,-she is no COM
fort to herself, and burden to every
body else ~ God forbid that | should
outlive the love of my children Rather
let me die while nv heart is part of
theirs, that my grave may be watered
with their tears, and my love linked
with their hopes of heaven.
When the bell tolled for the mothers
burial, went to the sanctuary to pay
my only token of respect to the aged
stranger for felt that I could give
her memory a tear. even though her
children had none to shed
'.She was good mother in her day,
and toiled hard to bring Us all up-she
was no comfort to herself, and bnrden
to everybody else -
The cruel, heartless words rung in my
ears as l saw the coffin borne up the
aisle. The bell tolled long and loud,
until its iron tongue had ehronicled the
years of the toll worn mother. One
two-three-four-fve, How clearly
and almost merrily, each stroke told of
her once peaceful slumber in her moth
er's arms and of her seat at nightfall on
her fathers knee. Six-seven-eight
-nine-ten-rang ou. the tale of her
sports upon the green sward in the mead
ow and beside the brook. Eleven
observation-disclosures Of
her school days. and little houshold joys
and cares. Sixteen-seventeeI- ght-
een-sounded out the enraptured visions
Of maidenhood and dreams of early love.
, Nineteen-brought US before the happy
bride. Twenty-spoke of the young
mother, whose heart was full to burst
ing with the new. strong love which God
had awakened in her bosom. And then
, stroke after stroke told of her early wo-
manhood-of the loves, and cares, and
hopes, and fears, and tolls through which
she passed during those long years, till
/, fifty rang out harsh and loud. From
that to sixty. each stroke told Of the
warm hearted mother and grand mother
living over her own joys and sorrows il
> those of her children and children's chill.
q dren. Every family of all the group
wanted the grandmother then, and the
only strife was who should secure the
, prize. But hark the bell tolls on
: Seventy-seventy- ne-two-three-
four She begins to grow feeble. requlr
: es some care. Is not always patient oi
T satisfied: she goes from one ehild's hous'
: 70 another. 50 that no place seems like
2 home. She murmurs in plafntiye tones
that. after all her toll and WEAKNESS i
2 Is hard she cannot be allowed home t.
. die in that she must be sent rathe
e than invited, from house to house Eigh
2 ty-eighty-one-two-three-four.A All
= she is second child, now, "She ha
= outliyed her usefulness, she has nov
4 ceased 10 be comfort 10 herself or any
n body"-that Is. she has ceased TO b
b profitable to her earth-craTing and mon
e ey-grasping children
|. Now sounds out, reyerberating througl
e our lovely forest, and echoing back fror
l. our "hill Of the dead'-eighty nine
+ There she lies now, in the coffin. coli
b and still she makes no trouble now. de
b rnands no love. no soft words, no tende
-e little Offices. A look Of patient endu
> ranee-we fancied also an expression 9
n grief for unrequited love sat On he
re marble features Her children wer
?. there. clad in tie weeds Of woe, and i
irony we remembered the strong man
words, ''She was good mother in be
day"
= When the bell ceased tolling, th
s.ranne rnirister arc.se l.. The r.a,Ir.it III