The Dallas weekly herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1885, 1875-05-15

testament there is something mex
pressibly sweet in the term 'patrarch."
1t was applied to the heads of families
and tribes. The offspring of such faith
ers were wont to regard them with
reverence and an affection peculiar in
itself. Among the people of Mexico
and all Spanish America this custom
has come down to the present day.
| The writer, in the course of Prov
idence, spent the Christmas of 1865 at
the seaport town of Champoton, in fu-
catan. The grandfather of his land
lord, venerable man of ninety years,
early came to the house, and for hours
sat to receive the salutations of his de-
scendants and give them his blessing.
| Five generations thus assemb bled, num-
berng nearly two hundred souls. The
usual ceremony was substantially in
| this wise:
"Revered father, the head of our
house, come to embrace you and ask
your blessing on this day, commemora-
| tive of The birth of our Lord and Savior,
Jesus Christ. Bless your child"
The venerable old man, placing his
hand on the head of the applicant,
would respond:
"Holy Father Savior and Redeemer
bless this my child-make her dutiful
to her parents, loving to her brothers
and sisters, charitable to her neigh bors,
fill her heart with holy riety, and
make her blessing to the human
family in her day and generation"
The blessing was varied to suit the sex
or any peculiar facts pertaining to the
| individual.
Late in the day, the wife of our land
lord, seeing that we were deeply af-
fected by the scene, stranger in u for
eign land, said, "Stranger friend this
| is the head of our housea-faithful ser
want of God-do you not want his
blessing? Father, will you not bless
the stranger, our newly made friend?"
Moved to tears and encouraged by
the benign expression of the old patrl-
arch's face, we waited not for reply,
but bowed before him, saying:
"Venerable father, the religion of
Jesus Christ is legacy for all the earth
before Him all men are brethren.
War once separated us; peace has
made us friends. Father, give me
your blessing, and not only for me, but
for my wife and children far away ~
The blessed old man placed his hand
on our bowed head, and with eyes
looking heavenward, while all present
stood reveiently, said:
"Oh thou God of Abraham, have
mercy upon this, our stranger brother!
make him dear to Thee aud dear to
all of us in Yucatan. Bless the part
ner of his bosom and the children
of his loins. Bless all who are
prscious to him. Bless his land and
his people. Guide his footsteps while
wanderer. Let Thy angels guard his
return home; and when death comes,
! let him and his and all of us meet in
bliss around Thy throne, oh! Lord
God of Hosts !"
Such scenes, deeply impressed on
memory's tablet, are ineffaceable, and
their recollection never fails to awaken
| sad but blissful emotions.
These reflections were recalled yes
terday by our attention being called to
/ the fact that there are at least two eases
in Dallas where four generations yet
live in the same family. Mr.. John
Browning, well known to most of our
citizens, is veritable patriarch, who
has in this town and vicinity, children,
grand children and great grand chill
dren. Yet he sits his horse like man
of fifty, and is as proud of the partner
of his life as young man of thirty.
Another is DIR. Paul Venable, recent
ly from Mecklenberg county, Virginia,
who also has children, grand children
and great grand children among US
but who, though feeble in body, is yet
instructive in conversation.
The late Judge John Thomas, of this
county, whose death was so recently
announced in these columns, was an
other such patriarch-one among the
first pioneers to Dallas county-hon-
ored by his fellow-citizens with the
first county jndgeship in the organiza-
tion of the county, twenty-nine years
ago.
I'm this age of dash and change, is it
not well, now and then, to pause and
give some little reflection to subjects of
this kind, and to recall the words of
holy writ2-"Honor thy father and thy
mother that thy days may be long"