The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1875-07-15
THE ROMANCE OF BIRDSEYE.

Birdseve in Pennsylvania, near the bor-
der Of New York. is TO this dav what so
mny Amarican ponds have been and will
never be again. IL has never known the
echo of steam whistle. On one side
there is a narrow opening in the surround
ing woods. permitting j4st glimpse Of
green meadow and the messy roof Of
low farmhouse. This is the only point
where the water lilies will not grow. The
outlet oppo .ite il a little jungle of alders.
rank grass cat-tails and muskrat-mounds.
Through this may be seen another distant
roof shabby one of slabs. Along the
two Shadowy semicr relies between one
may find bittern meditating confusion TO
tadDoles. or kingfiSher ende8vOring to
sit on dead bongh until il shall decay
entirely, or wi d-duck turning his sus-
picious little head this way
the shore, or at least, a devils
nee1le f'ickering above the pickPrel weeds.
But there hangs about all an atmospheric
influence through which the barrenest
forms and color yield an feet that battles
the ANALYSIS of art. and enables the dullest
observer to feel as would the subtlest seek
er after truth. There is a relationship be-
tween the light and shadow that must be
interpreted bv { e inhabitant of a more
ethereal world than this.
Under the shabby roof of slab half
mile away is a crazy old mill. The reader
must not be disturbed by the knOwl dge
that il is a saw mill. The miller has busy
wrinkles round his eyes but the slow.
wise smile w ich curls about his dusty
forehead seems to Indicate subtle knowl-
edge not of the world and its wavs. but of
tail-races and fintter-wheels and logs that
suffer when they are not ripped into"
Mr.. Hersey pretendS not To be aware
that his hair is whitening very fast, his
JOINTS stiffrning and his muscles shrivel-
ing. In the busy season a man of thirty
is the real worker, always taking the
heavier end Of a log yet so managing that
it seems to fall into place by the strength
of the Ol 4 man alone. The younger is a
silent. patient man. He will grow old
premat"rely. In trying circumstances he
would be almost. and vet no. quite. he
70. Enter the mill, and there is one re-
mark that Mr.. Hersey will find an Oppor-
tunitv to make TO you. If you retreat too
soon, he will follow you mysteriousy 10
the fence, cant-hook in hand, and there
enlighten you with one foot on rail. He
has been known to stop total stranger
i'm the highway that he might impart the
information. Wherever he Is. to whom
soever he talks, he will say it: "'FOre
Dawes arm was broke, sir. he could ham
die any thing of his inches in this neigh
borhOOd-'fore his arm was broke" MIR.
HPrsey's conscientiousness in repeating
this is not affected by the irrelevant fact
that David himself has no knowledge of
the breaking of his arm.
IL has not been necessary to their repu-
tation for " sand - that Mr.. Hersey should
continue breaking David's arm. But the
a in
when common grief drew them closer in
friendship. he set the small fiction afloat.
As time wore on and compassion grew,
he reneated it Oftener. And when his
friendship and compassion deepened into
affection for David. then he rather ovrrdid
it. No doubt the little lie, like Uncle
Toby's profanity, has long been hlOtted
out for ever because of the charity beneath
it. Ii is still whiSp red among old ac-
uuaintanceS that " "Hersey hasn't been the
same man sence."
Some wears ago, on a bright June morn
ing, when the woods rang with music,
and the invigOrating air was tXqniSltely
pt.rfumed, and the sparkling wafer mir
rored delicate white scud which flnated
like an exhsled lily in the blue heavens, as
if pond and sky wrIe holding each other s
treasureS-a snowy blossom above and a
transient cloud below woman stepped
from the low farmhouse to make horti-
cultural discoveries. As she stopped TO
sift handful of fresh soil carefully about
tlouriShing little pig-weed uRder the
pleasant dClusiOn. that il was tomato
plant. her sou ID avid stopped his plough in
the field beyc nd the garden and pushed
SOM damp oartn from the shining mold
board. while the glossy bl;ckbirds f1ocked
noisily about and waddled greedily after
him IN the furrow. Ere his mother had sat
isfied herself that there was difference be-
tween rhuharb aud bur1Ock he startled her
by asking vacantly for the bait-box.
= Singular said the good woman
"you used TO bring home such gOoo
ones! What'n the world makes you "a
round 50 fur? It's better place on this
Siu,.'
Perch like to lie around the lily-pads.' -
Somebody besides perch likes il, and
somebOd, besides perch II get hooked
there to0;" and she unwound the apron
from her head and entered the Use.
David threw in at various good places
with Carelessnes> and haste that offered
no temptation to fish not stepped in ig-
nOranc,', until be reached secluded point
over,hd d owed by birches and naples
Here was usually mOored the only craft
that had disturbed the pond for years-a
was lost i'm tradition. Certain it was, that
one man had been drowned from IL, and
no one claimed il afterward. Ii had drifted
and been waterlugged and cast up 10 dry
and drift sgain, uucared for, the diving
base of idle boys and shining turils ant
lugUhgiouS trOgs-reg' ried with fear, an
ill-iattt, treacherOuS, restless thing, tha
in all It's drif ing never tloated over tn,
deep plare where its victim had gone
down. David was the last TO clear il o
sand aud mud. He considered it his owl
unul the day when he first detected Eller
ii Hr~ey padding it fearlessly among thu
lilies.
The lower regions of a saw-mill had NJ
terrorS for her, and >he wouh risk her lii'
for a floating frond. As for tn tt resultan
which we lgree to call culture" on
neither missed it nor found It, but simpl,
forgot all about it in her presence. he
father, who was externally a shagg,
hickory. internally a white pine. anpeare'
TO love his daughter mex after his iiutteT
wheel and tall-race, and never failed Q
smell all the. flowers she brought hom
from the pond. or to use her vase next da
for a tobacco box.
David's rod la, half in the water, an
thecork. which his mo her supposed wa
protecting her jug from the winged am
creeping ills that molasses is heir to
trembled and dipped and rose unnotice
till the hook was bare. The breeze sub
sided and the pond became gradually llk
glass.
From the circling shadow Of the wood
far out into the sunlight rocked the snow.
fleet. Ellen. with straw hat clinging q
the sunny side Of her golden head, he
right arm uncovered TO the shoulder, bend
ing lithely from the stern of the crum5lin!
canoe. a. il TO embrace the image of her
sell Using from he dark aepths. was wind
inc the long stems about her head an'
renderly drawing on board the dripping
cool. sweet water-lilies. Far before her
not 20 be attained. magniieen
blossom was riding like swan; behiu'
her tir,,Iessly wandering over tn
one tn9t held aloof and wasted its fra
GRANGE in hopeless isolS;inn beside her
below irs fiat e shield. The swelling
gr-en bo,lic,. of another revealed a glImDs
Of >1aiale,s hosom where a golden hear
SRI slept concealed She fa;trnFd IN
sunnle tens beside her, letting her gle IN