Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1878-12-28
HIS LAST CHRISTMAS.


Cooling. that he couldn't bc master of his own
m nd. Ee had lived great many years, aud
Ne TIER renCfSe nor memory had ever been in
The habit OF disturbing hial; bat Il nov seemed
70 him as il the very foundation OF his life were
breaking up. Tie E3S wei through with MS
tiiy WCFk-"C had usHcd comfort olY--iie sat
III an easy chair in q luxurious dTawiUg-gaO,a,
whose CRIMSON hlE-iD-S shut CJt the stiff cod
OF the December afterEOOn-he nlI nothing 10
ou uOl ENJOY hEISc:I- Mr. to.LinE liEci n en-
10Y himself al This sEts0l "a EU"h as otheEs
did, for it was Christmas sye. what hou-H ne
Was IN lhe b&til OF spending II solitary he
.stt Slittt-'at tfiiitls because hot itiiS III re
hNti\ c2i1e IN MS way, ana Hc was too shy and
Fl0ud - I2ok oiij f5f IL
FGi many year or christmas eve he had sat
bdiaEtihE IN Ills 3Ll-ld Ire great accounts pre-
Seltte4 IN ms le'i.ei'7. the as,laz iLs CoI,."S
~ ms taiNeT > me S. io.e9 u business ne Eo}-d
ii-;sst III IutUit- NJ. . now, me year . IS
u[.' Ing t0a tlo. e some lA,Fui-h& 1o-cs ke4t
~ I'll pctlaI jlloi IN Exc manner 50 was his
:ttf.- lie CyUiu ial mi y iFplh ann W as ne
sUdid INC Nt-.H LJ-hi'-tt'i nun 81 & coming
lhiip wen rs re : WbEh "oa;i al re up1c-
even as az, Gay f,Hs.> Nt- Iii done no" a-zl
Ac would te ready % SD down III the evening
ana louS over tHe bdi1lcc-aEc@J or rs deeds,
2uuu anu eva tGfIc-i>iy the Old Gays came
curluS Ia SOW procession before AEG AHd
lie Lad btth dVie 10 forget tIt-n ior 50 very
4oiiS- ,,.., -, -,
Ills etad we. lt Iidq m, lott4 neg ihtcl
VIE, ie We LIN iii GaI nov 'iIiu W,tS e
IhtHOfl ul Lti nov. HI tOtiu see u6f moving
round the house, n0iseieSs IS 2 shadow, never
HtTudlhs on itiln 'iter ne lid once or twice re-
pui9td Itf srCiiLy. oEt gong ON hef own lhteN
gay: ne Ueesin 70 uiititFStIt5i' as ne i2oA.i
pack why hef slftng1n nad l,9l't;: ana sac h;;d
Uetn ready WleE ler oaoy came 10 lioat OUT on
we ltte iho le1t II dflIt il,'r IaJp GGIS maven
she hau ilslu enough 70 eat ana u dilnk bIt ne
saw now that he bad left her heart TO Starve.
Heaven. what a h2rd man he had been. He
seemed 10 see her white, slli face IS be looked
coffin Id, with the dunno rePr9ach frozen on it;
the eyes that would never plead Yainly any
huIt, cloSt "a iEIt VI.
He recalled now paSSionately the thTea-diyS-
o.d baby cried In another room Just at that mo
tnehI MOVING al tne people gathered Tor the
mOtherless morsel. She rGs a passionate, viii
Iul o2oy, an through hef bap5 noOd; ne re-
iilehotftu th,it; SLe W'lnJeti-ntsSed without
showing what the rack WaS-the love ana s'lS-
ienance Whch her lnothef Would nave given
her ana protested AGAINST fate with ali tue
tlls NJ OF heF infant !lhSs. Bul as soon as she
grew CD enough 10 understand now useless ii
was, She hdu CROWN qiItt 700; JUST IKE lief mo-
ther. He recalled her. all through her glrlho0d,
a shy sun SliI- Always OOeueht ana SuO!liS-
SiSe, but never craving very near him. why?
Beeause ne would nave Tepuls3d her as be re-
puISeu hef mother. lie could see III nov. II
was very strange ines IaGtS should come PACK
20 nun tO-ddy. ana thtlr naked truth with them.
lie had been cold, hard, ungenial man, With
out sympathy iof any one human belllS; a0-
sofoed utterly IN the pursuit or ui0neV-indklng.
And so the child, Amy had grown up 10 shadow
without him.
But suddenly, when she was eighteen, the
old. passionate spirit that had made her cry 50
when baby, must nave awakened again, lie
haffS 40 marry III dtiiance OF MS wishes. lie
remembered her standing proudly before HIN
after one OF their quaTTelS, where lie had baen
harsh ana bitter, and abusive OF the man size
wanted TO call her husband She had borne in
Silence reproacn OF herself; but not oil him who
had pecoIne 70 nef as her pest existence. Her
words came back 10 the Old man now
FatheF, Go you Know any thing against Harry
ChGIcn
Is he nan answered Wfat hluliy; ~ know
mat he Is as poor as DOB WAS when he sat
among the ashes lie cannot keep Wife aa
daughter Oh mine must DE kept
Anything else, father" looking him steadily
IN the eye.
. No, that's enough" ne had Numbered. ''Ill
tel you, besides, that II YOU marry him You
INST lie III the bed You VIII MAKE. My doors
VIII never open u YOU again. never
he met with VII IS strong as his own. that
TINE. she dad marry him. and went away with
i nom ner laJher : n1else tlr GodlnS mad
known the DAY The wedding was 20 take place,
ana IN GisGdiLed 20 stop IL he washed his handS
or Harry Church ana OF Amy. his wife. sac
wIote home afterwards over aud over again
pu MI Gol1lAS sent al the letters back IN
Op-htd- subsequent 70 iAat theJ disappeared
tiii tnt Town; ana ne had never heard what
ttfdnt VI tttei. IL Was AZ least ten years ago
nov.
1, Seeined very strange that these things
ShOl4d have come back tonight 10 haunt him
$naWlth VIE ieulorsc, q 9ll5 llS regret. lie
h3dd0ne nothing . recall them Could IL be
his sense OF falling health that brought them!
Tor a he drew nearer and nearer to the end
ing? lie began To wish that ic knew what had
DttIllh ldO~t Ftyt'itd ictttfo-"netAef Amy
had been suffering fOr ANYTHING that money
COult supply. The next thought that struck
him vas. why he had opposed the marriage 50
viruhntiy. Ii is true Harry Church had been
but Clerk in his own employ: but he was u
Well-ducated gentleman. and would rise with
time. Faithful. intelligent. peFsevering re-
spect'd-bUt poor. Ia that last word lay tae
head nd front OF Harry Cnurcf's Offending
lie, JEeph G0IdiBg was ricn then: he was far
TChernOw: but, lie could not help asking IT,
what ,peCial good were his riches bringing
him? Sic was an old man the span of life ran
ming quickly on anu he was ali alone. Wlo
would 0Se his gold then. He could not carr;
il aIonewith him. Al in mOment-he saw It
clearly-the dreadful truth stood naked AMI
bare: rs life and its object has been mistaken
ones
All lone. al alone" he kept saying TO him
self. int sort OF vague SCiI-p.ty. i've tOfled
ard Wokcd fOr h0ught.
But dring this time. even now, as he sat
there, ameSSlcC OF love was on its way TO him
Ierhapc Heaven had been preparing his bp1ri
70 $50 :, -, $3.50 i-NA 10 -Ai' iAO''' l