The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1878-12-21
christmas Stories,
THE MESSAGE OF THE BELLS.

Ring out, Christmas bells, under the
moonlit sky Softly fling afar the vibrant
notes of peace and joy! Over hill, over
dale; through wood, through void, float
clear and sweet the tremulous tender tones,
bearing good will to men. Near and far;
far and near-across feecy plains of snow;
over cleaning ice-incrusted brooks;through
the solemn woods, silent and hoary
into the dome of heaven Far and near;
near and far, peal the glad tidings, peal
the glad tidings!
High in that throbbing heaven shines
glorious star-call it not the heather war
gods shield By such blazing lamp did
the Eastern shepherds, centuries ago, bend
their wandering footsteps over the wild
Judean plan, to find the cradle of the
Heavenly Babel Steal gently beneath
the starry host, oh, frosty winter wind
Hush thy mighty footsteps to be min
istering angel on this night Of nights.
Scatter, oh, frost, from the hollow OF thy
hand, the sparkling gems that glitter on
hedgerow, tree and fern; light up each
shrub and bough, each delicate, faded
spear of grass with rainbow-tints OF beaded
rime! See how they gleam among the
dark green branches of the cedars that
shade the sweeping lawn of yonder man
sion on the hill Its gray, thick walls OF
stone rise ghostly and grim from the sheet
ed terrace, crisply the ivy wrinkles against
the windows, loudly the great Newfound,
land barks from the portico as the bells
peal out upon the air. Now there is a
stir of crimson curtains at the window, a
thin hand parts them, aud the light shines
bright and ruddy upon the snowy terrace
The figure of an old man darkens the
great square of light; he peers out for a
moment upon the glorious night, then as
the sound of the pealing bells comes rush
ing sweet and clear across the valley, ne
lets fall the heavy curtain to the floor, and
dark shadow settles upon his pinched,
care-worn features.
No Christmas joy for Gilbert Paine
No clinging arms to caress, no children
voices to break the lonely stiffness OF the
grand old house No meaning in the
ioyous Christmas chimes for such as he
It was not always so. The widowed man
could remember fair mother seated in
wonder chair, with a laughing baby play
ing at her feet; lovely, dark-eyed boy,
the image in miniature of the pale, beau
tiful woman bending over him with love
unutterable in her tender eyes. But God
has taken the fair young mother. AS for
the babe
Again the black shadow falls upon the
rich mans face That babe his first, his
only child Bittercr than the thought of
death is the pang that tears the old mans
spirit, as with clenched teeth he begins to
pace the splendid room. What boots his
wealth to the lonely, childless man? the
wealth that it has cost him the best years
of his life to amass Widowed, stricken
and bereft; who, ON this Christmas night,
would change places with Gilbert Paine !?
Again peal the bells, sweet and clear,
through the frosty air. "Peace on earth,
good willtoward men" !" "Peace on earthl'
and there is no peace; nothing but an end
less succession Of days, where the bitter
sorrows of the lonely man are brooded over
in morbid silence, and the name of his
living only SON never passes the fathers
lips
That peal of joyous bells appears to ias-
cinate poor, rich, lonely Gilbert Paine.
Again he crosses the ckly-carpeted floor,
and looks out into the night. Just such
night it was when his boy Jasper stood
there on the terrace and craved the stern,
proud fathers forgiveness for his sin. So
young he was foolish, erring boy Was
there need for such cruel, unrelenting
sternness Yet the proud, passionate
father had turned deaf ear to the boys
eager entreaties, and with finger stretched
out into the night had closed the doors of
his birthplace upon his only child
1t was done in fit of passion, and yet
Gilbert Paine never repealed his edicts.
When the boys mother died men often
wondered what thoughts lay beneath the
proud widower's iinpassive face; whether
if he could he would have recalled his er-
riag child. But the boy, too, had some
thing of his fathers pride; never once had
the old manor walls looked down upon the
lads 1.-THE, graceful figure and clustering
dark curls. His mother2 Well, she must
have had some token, else how could she
have borne, even for their short earthly
parting, her hidden sorrow? For even to
his wife Gilbert would speak no syllable of
his son, and then slowly faded that lovely
and loving wife, until at length she was
laid to rest in the great sombre vault Of
the Paine's. Since then no living soul
had heard Of Jasper Paine.
just such night the stern father
thinks, as he holds back the curtain once
more and looks out upon the sky. The
moon shines among her attendant court
Of stars 10 silver splendor; white aud vast
stretch the fields beneath; far down il the
valley twinkle the clustering lights Of the