The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1875-07-01

mpH iAf adsabQed it YEAR, % was ioI-
mefiy a resident Of loeap5H, and tie
wife of praetioing physician q that
place sae !. personally known 10 lhs
editor Of .hs country Geuf'ea1a, aud re.
llsBoo may be placed 10 ail Der statements.
/ The occurrences RI ferred 70 began aboul
I 1923 or 1921, when tbe great excavation
ior the Ella canal through The solid rock
COR miles at Loekpori was 10 progress,
under tse upertisign Of David Thomas
s eh.ti eagin9er cad II which Darious
+ ComdoeE 5 widey.known citizen, was
one 81 tie largest contractor.
The physician 10 v aom We have re.
leacd returned oac day ffom bis visiting
rounds anaer good deal Of excitement,
aud exclaimed 10 his wife: II have
visited to-day, 10 poor Ifishman's hut,
Tie mos, beaglifnl woman | ever saw ia
IS life. she q very sick her case must
pe ~ extraordinary one-aud you must
-c and see nlai YOU eau do loF hcr" The
Rltc consented g Sc, and on entering
one oi the raoEi poyerty.slrieken novels
.he had ever sceu-tbe floor OF bare earth,
tbe door cui parly down through the log
sides, tbat on entering was necessary
20 step over The logs that we're !ef,- she
found lhe sick woman lying on = bed OF
straw, supported on rough poles, which
constituted tho uedstead. She was young
ia years, aud trouble had not obiierated
the surprising beauty nor The refined ex-
preston OF her cOuntenanoe. The LAM
gusge She used indicated high aud eX-
csllcnt education, and she had evidently
been brought up IN genteel society. not
wi.hIaEdiug the utier 1estitntion Of her
present surroundings. Her husband, a
yoang man recently from Ireland, was a
day laborer, employed by Darius Com
stock aud Otis Hathaway, his assistant,
IL cxcayating the bed of the canal. The
sick woman was of course adverse to
giving any account Of their history TO a
stranger, but after several visits the phy-
sicisu's wife secured her confidence, and
she related their remark able history 10
substance as follows
she was The daughter of gentleman
i 10 ireland IN high rank bat little below
the mobility Her father employed as
iclerk and steward q young man named
joint, ofrare attainmouts and ability
The gentleman daughter and the young
steward formed a mutual attachment /;
but as he was below her IN rank, not
withstauding bis bigh character, the
father would not listen a moment to any
thing OF the kind, and seeing what was
going on, dismissed him from his service.
But the attachment was too strong 10 be
quenched by a mandate. When the
young lady and her lover found there
was no other resource, they concluded to
get married and "run away" With his
scanty means and what little property Of
her own she could secure, they sailed for
/ Quebec, in Canada. The ship was wreck
ed in the st. Lawrence, and they barely
escaped with their lives. All their affects
and money went TO the bottom OF the
wide river Their condition was desolatc
enough without means, without expert
ence, unaccustomed to hardship, and in
an unknown country among strangers.
lie was compelled TO labor By the day to
keep them from tarviug, lie became
/ utterly discouraged, and through the en-
Gcements OF bad companions he resorted
to drinking. IN this state they found
their way tc Eocbport--g place where
many iaborere were wanted at that time
for exCayatinR the canal, and where be
could obtain employment, Il was here
that bis young wife, unaccustomed to
such accumulated hardships aad priva-
tons, was prostraied on a sick bed, and
Ii this condition was found by the ply
sician ana bis wife, a. already related
Il was about the same time, or before,
that Comstock q Hathaway, the contrac-
tors who employed him, observed that
the young man had not been accustomed
to the severe labor which be had under.
taken, and that in handling The heavy
crowbar, and IN Wheeling the loaded bar
row, Tie blood oozed from his fingers. A
few days aflcrwsrd when payday arrived,
he signed the receipt for bis wages by The
usual cross, or bis mark, used by the
Irish laborers generally. In the course
Of few weeks his employers (who were
members oi the Society Of Friends,) OBJ
serving that he possessed superior intel
lgenee, said 10 Lin h the common Lam
guage used by the friends in that day -
John this isnot thy right plsce-s man
like thee ought 10 know how to write
and know better than to make cross
mark
John was stung by this reproof, bis lat
ant ambition was aroused; aud stepping
forward, he took the pen aud signed bis
name 10 rapid, practiced, and elegant
hand his employers were aslonisbed,
aud sala to him "John, this Is no, the
place for tboe-stop drinking, aud we
wil take thlo iato cur employ as clerk,
and 81 once double ihy wages These
were The lrst Kind sud helping words
which be bad heard ID Ameriel heir iir
giving energy went through him ike
electricity, and ffom ibat moment he
: never drank drop lie proved himself
. faly worthy their confidence, AMI be.
came distinguished for bis tfiiaieucy Tho
morning of prosperity began TO dawf
upon him Iiis wife recovered her heaitl
His progress toward great success began
lie subsequently went into the forwarding