The Andrew County Republican. [volume] (Savannah, Mo.) 1871-1876, 1874-05-08

ne Will soOH ule !! HNeu yct, WAS oiu
and white haired. The old adage says
that white hair is the blossom of old
age !" and with him the blossom was
p~rofuse /; he vas now al old schoolmas-
ter. His pupils spoke of him as wise,
knowing so much of history, geography
and astronomy.
"All things return" he said "only
set your mark upon characters and
transactions, and You will always find
the same again in some other dress,
some other country"
And the schoolmaster told them of
William Tell, who was compelled to
shoot an apple fromthe head of his son;
but before shooting had concealed upon
his breast another arrow with which to
pierce the breast of the wicked Gesler.
In Switzerland this occurred, but many
years before the same t%ranspired in
Denmark with Palnatoke. He, too,
was compelled to shoot an apple from
the head of his son, and, like Tell, con-
cealed an arrow with which to take re-
venge; and, further back, more than
a thousand years, the same event is
recorded as having TRANSFERRED i'll
Egypt /; the same events reappear as do
the comets +; they disappear, remain a
while away, and then come back again.
An he told of the comet, now expect
ed, the comet which he had seen when
he was a little boy. The schoolmaster
knew much about the heavenly bodies,
meditated upon them, and yet did not
forget history and geography.
He had laid out his garden in the
shape of the map of Denmark. Here
herbs and flowers were arranged accord
ing TO the adaptation Of soil in differ
en-. parts of the country. bring me
peas !" and these were brought from the
bedthat represented Holland. Bring
me buckwheat !" and this was brought
from Langeland. The beautifulbluegen-
tan andsweet-willow wereto befound up
at Skagen {; the glossy Christhorn over
Silkeborg. The towns were signitied as
embiems. Here was st. Canute with
the dragon, s~ignifying Odense .Absa-
lon, with a bishop-staf, signifying
Soro !; and n little vessel with oars
CARER signifiea Aarhus. From the
schoolmaster's garden one could learn
quite well the geography of Denmark,
but of course he must be instructed
by the schoolmaster, who was so agree
able.
The comet was expected, and concern-
ing it he told what people of old days,
when it was last here, had said. "That
comet is a good wine year. he said ;
"water may be mixed with it without
being perceptible. Wine dealers like
comet years"
During fourteen days and nights the
sky was clouded, and the comet OBJ
scured but it was there. The old
schoolmaster was sitting in his chamber
close by the school-room. The Born
holm clock, which had belonged to his
childhood's home, stood in the corner,
the leaden weights neither rising o
the pendulum motlonless the
little cuckoo, which had formerly come
forward c%uckooing each hour, remained
back in its place silent /; all was still
there the clock had ceased to go. But
the old piano, which had also pertained
to the home of his childhood, still pos
sessed life /; the strings could resound,
although somewhat hoarsely, the mel
Of a whole human life and there
by the old man kept in mind 80 much,
both pleasant and sad, in the long row
Of intervening years, since when as a
he had gazed on the comet, until
now it was again here. He remembered
what his mother had said about the
in the light he remembered
the beautiful soap-bubb!es, each denot-
for him a year, he had said. How
how full Of c%olors, only the
and joyous hesaw therein child
play with youthful delight ; the whole
wide world seemed to open for him in
he sunshine, and out into it he was to
20. Future bubbles As an old man
ne heard in the tones of the piano mel
,dies of the past! Retrospection bub-
Dles in all the color tints of memory.
He heard his grandmother's knitting
song:
"Surely no Amazonian
The first stocking knitted