Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1875-06-07
A pEaoRAIIz.p FAMILY.

Years ago an cid lady hved in AlshS-
ma On farm near the Tennessee River
with her eAalirsn and her darkeys So
secluded was her hSme that she had
scarcely hssrd Of the war. and had nsae
sf its effects Her enly sorrow had been
tie death Of her husband her ealy de-
privatSOn was the absence ef trading
beats, Previous 70 these beats were it.
ssi cut At the head Of nAvigSnea On the
river With every class of gods. and,
Seating down with the stream. they
would tie up st every landing to trade
with the people.
The old lady had watched long for
fostiug store. each day darkey would
be sent several miles to the river on the
lockout: each day he would return with
the sad light Of Disappointment in the
white Of his eyes, and with melancholy
he would say
'Dar amt none cum. missus- Oar
amt Jest muffin on de river at all"
And the old lady. IS she smoked in
the corner. would wonder if the world
was coming TO an end
One day at neon the darkey came
running TO the house all full Of excite
ment and delight, exelaiming:
"Missus, dar an : tradin boat down
dar. It sm cum. Golly. it an cum at
last.
Then there was hurrying to and fro
And hands were busy that an hour before
Brushed OF the flies from kinked heads
by the door.
The old lady and her children and
the darkeys gathered up the products Of
the farm, butter. eggs. lard. bacon. tur-
keys. chickens and everything that could
be traded OF for gcods- These things
were packed IN wagon 70 which two
innocent. chldhke mules were hitehed,
and the old lady. determined TO be com
Portable. sat in her rocking chair in the
wagon with the children around her IN
the straw. while the darkeys trudged on
/ foot. each with load. lead of special
/ farm produce IS the private property Of
! It's possesser. Thus the procession start.
/ ed. followed BY dozen dogs, for the
! river.
/ When the old lady and her family
reached the river they stood looking II
wonder at ; Federal tin-elad gunboai
! which had erept up on the river on re
ecnneissaRee. This was the tradin.
b0at that darkey Zeb had seen. The ok
lady drew her spectaeles down on tn
bridge Of her nose and gazed in aston
ishment On the strange beat. while {;
darkey exclaimed:
'-Golly. missas. it an steam tradil
boat what an got wheels u
Just then the sun was setting. and a!
the cid lady remarked that she ..reekon
! ed she'd sell things high" a sixty-feur
BouDder thundered forth its parting tri
bGte to the sun.
l remarked that this secluded famil,
knew nothing Of the war. they had new
er heard cannon fired; also remarket
that the mules were ehild-Iike and bland
/ They had been reared in the peaceful
/ walks sf life and were Of highly mora
temperament and when that awful iasI
/ Of faue and smoke Lie up the shadow
Of the forest with lurid glare, and tn
terrible thunder shook the earth an,
ratified the scaly bark from the hickor,
trees. It was sad % contemplate the de
morzlizsti0n that wicked cannon ha,
wrought Away up the Rad dozel
dogs, in bowling fright. had struck
bee line for home; behind them ver
those unsophisticzted mules with wreck
Of the wagon. while batter. eggs. lar
and sutteriBg fowls. scattered in ever,
direction. marking the disastrous retrea
Of that once happy family. The old Ia
/ dy stuck. with her head in the aud b
the roadside, graspiBg the ruins Of be
rocking chair. while the darkeys disap
pezred IN the woods. With their ear
standing up hike sign boards at eros
roads. and their eyes cleaning like th
headlights of locomotives.