Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1877-03-07
From the Vermont
A Special Providence.

My grandfather was of the Stock of the
Revolutions" having served in early life in
the continental army. He afterward re-
moved with a little colony from Connecticut
to the wilds of Vermont, and lived at this
time with my father upon the farm where
he had with his own hand cut the first tree
in the then almost unbroken forest. Always
given to early rising, it was his habit to
build the morning fire-buid is the proper
term, for to lay in order" the huge pile of
logs and lesser wood in the wide-mouthed
chimney of the olden time was bit of civil
architecture that would require building
cotnmittee nowadays. On one occasion
the fire had gone out on the hearth, and as
the days of percussion caps and friction
matches were in the future, there was moth
ing better to be done than to 90 to the near
est house in the neighborhood for fire, or to
try for spark from the flint-lock of an old
musket that always hung above the chin
ney-piece. The slight difficulty of thus
uniting the civil and military to his adj
vantage inclined my grandfather to the latter
alternative. These old hint-locks combined
great awkwardness and ingenuity. The
fiery spark, upon which the whole en-
ginery depended, lay within dull-lookng,
smoke-colored bit of flint-stoue, to be brought
out only as in retaliation. by a blow of steel.
Taking in hand the ancient war weapon, he
carefully blew down the barrel, to make sure
it was not loaded, put fresh powder into the
pan of the lock- flashed it into blaze, and
soon a bright fire went roaring and cracking
up the chimney, boiling the family tea-kettle,
as if nothing unusual had happened And
still the family slept on, equally unconscious
that IA miracle had been perforned-that an
angel had come down, as 1T were, at the
morning sacrifice, and stayed the force of
nature for their preservation. But at tea,
when my grandfather gave charge to look
well to the fire, the story all came out. And
Notwithstanding that my grandfather was
a soldier of the revolution, and understood
all "the ways that are dark and tricks that
are vain of the regulation arms notwith-
standing the gun itself was reliable, " true
to what was best Within" it was heartily
ioaded still, having been double charged the
day previous for marauding hawk that had
wisely kept beyond range shall never
forget the look in my fathers face as he rose
up from the table and taking down the gun
from its place stepped out on the high ter
race in front of the house and with one
spring Of the lock, without any fresh priming,
instantly discharged it, the contents tearing
black, jagged rent in the smooth, green
turf of the slope below My grandfather
regarded it as special providence, for he
UeH knew how that death-laden tube had
been held in direct range with my parents
sleeping apartment, and at an exact level
with row of little heads in the trundle-bed
when the spark went down that kinded the
morning fire, the remainder being ere
strained" 1t was lesson of the personality
and love of God never to be forgotten. The
idea OF general providence, that takes III
nobody in particular, is 10 less false and alb
surd than the idea of general shower, that
waters and refreshes the earth, causing it to
bring forth 10y handfuls, no single rootlet or
blade in particular being reached.
:" Blessed are they that abide under the shadow
of the Almighty, under the covert Of His wings.
" How excellent is thy loving kindness, o God
therefore the children OF men do put their trust
under the shadow d. thy wing NJ