Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1877-09-07

In an obscure village. in the State of ver-
mont. there lived an aged man, friendless
and without connections for he was one of
the earliest settlers of the country, and
came here alone. Daring the revolution he
took arms with the rebels, and gave his
property for the benefit of the revolutionary
army. He endured all the privstions which
characterized that struggle for liberty. be
signalized himself in several battles. and
after the 6if0rts OF the friends of freedom
were crowned with success. be retired to
private life. lie became very poor. and was
compelled to earn bis daily bread by work
ing one DAY here and next day there. His
wife died children, he had none. In this
state alone in the world. divested Of his
property, aged and intirm, Il creditor seized
the few fleets be had and committed his
body to prison. Some Of his acquaintance
bailed him out 10 the liberty OF the yard. :"
He remained within the limits twenty-seven
years-sOmetimes working for one person,
and sometimes Tor another, at such work rs
he could perform. Gardening in the Sum-
mer, and doing chores in Winter, were his
usual occupations. Finally. be made q
bargain with the village tavern-keeper. and
bound himself out during hle Tor his board
and clothes. lie used to take care OF horses,
make fires, etc. At this period OF his
life there was conspicuous character
travelling through the country, receiving
the congratulations and attention Of all
classes Of our citizens. As he hsstened
through our villages his fame went before
him, and the people turned ont en- ma,se
to bid him a hearty welcome. lie arrived
at the village where the "old soldier"
lived, and STOPPED over night at the same
house. The old man knew him, and often
frleH a & OF "a hIl hnf
without success. The aristOcrscy of the
place. the ruiiled shirts. the silk gowns,
the little masters and pretty misses must
irst greet the stranger. However. the
old man made interest with one of his vii
lage acquaintances TO request an interview
with the stranger Tell him." said he,
THAT Captain b. of the -- Regiment of
infantry, wishes to see him at his leisure"
The man conveyed the message. The
stranger was electrified What :" said he,
''is he live? Where is be ?' At the same
time leaving his ruifed shirt company, he
went into the bar room in search of the old
soldier. lie found him. SIS it possible"
said the stranger, that you are slive?"
They anbraced each other. and were 20 al
fected that neither could give utterance to
one syllable. The spectators wondered.
gazed. and were coniounded. The best
mastery Of the whole assembly. At last
the stranger said to the old soldier.
Come with me- They retired to
room aione and cOnversed about by
gone times-abOut the battles they had,
fought together and the hardships they
had encountered Each gave q particular
narration OF his life since their separation,
and that Of the old soldier was heart-rend-
Ing to the lllastriOus stranger. lie told him OF
his poverty, his troubles, and his incar-
ceration in pri-On-his present means of
subsistence, etc How much do you now
Owe?" said the stranger. have been
on the limits hreniy sern years for ninety
dollars. The costs and interest may now
amount to one hundred dollars" There
are two one hundred dollar bils," said
the stranger, pay what you owest. |
shall leave deposit in the bank, where
you can draw for two hundred dollars a
year as long as you live" By this time
the people without were impatient and
could not divine the cause of the privacy
between our two heroes. They went out
and took some refreshments-the stranger
returned to his company, and tn old SOL
der went 10 the lawyer Office and paid his
debt. lie then went into the tailor's and
procured suit Of clothes The next day
the old soldier and the stranger departed to
gether, leaving the people to conjecture the
cause Of the metamOrphosis Of the one and
the strange conduct Of the other The old
soldier. however. returned to his village in
a few weeks. and the people who before
would scarcely speak 10 him unless it was
for the purpose Of telling him to get out Of
their way, were glad to see him. He.
nevertheless, pursued the even tenor OF hi.
way" The stranger was Gen. Lafayette.
THE Ice FIEyD-The other morning as the
driver of an ice wagon halted his team in
front of house ia Columbia street at 430.
and was making ready to hurl twenty-five
pounds OF Ice against the gate with the usual
crash, the owner OF the place came around
the corner Of the house and gently said
Might as well drop that on the grass or
fling it through window, Just as it suits
you best And after that you can shout at
your horses a. you stop. OF you needn't ut
ter a word You can also exercise your own
discretion about yelling to other drivers
mile off ="
"Why, whats the matter - asked the
driver.
"My wife has lett me. I've sent the child
ren away, the furniture is mortgaged, and
I've reached the point where nothing can
annoy me used TO- want to Kill You for
waking up the whole family at daylight, and
once did try to get your range with my re-
volser, but that all passed and gone You
can now come up the street on gallOp, yell
like an Indian. smash the front door in and
break window OF two, or you can creep
softly up and let me sleep on. This is sad,
cold world, and want you to take all the
comfort you can
The driver has been thinking over it. Be
fore that morning he was figuring to borrow
bass drum, a pair Of cymbals, II hand or
gan, dinner horn, and a shotgun to help
along the good cause, but he now feels
dovn-hearted and discouraged - Detroit
Free PresS.