Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1879-05-01
an 0rigiual Starg.
Written for the Yorkville Enquirer,
RACHEL RAYS SECRET.

RACHEL RAYS SECRET.
CHAPTER I.
Far from the uadding crowds iguoble strife,
Their sober wishes never learned 10 stray'
Along the cool sequestered vale of life
They kept the noiseless tenor OF their way,
GRAY's "ELEsY."
Drowsieville was just the 9asintest, sober
est, oldest. fashioned little plSSsfn the world ;
inahat portion of the world, at least, of which
the writer has any knowledge. I recollect
thinking, the first time went there, that eve
rybody must be asleep, or i'll, or in aftiictlon !;
for the green blinds Gall the houses had green
blirdsl were all closed, and the few people l
met in the streets, walked along with slow
gait and serious air, looking very much pre-
occupied indeed, and scarcely glanced at me,
though was stranger in the town. 1t was
not exactly town either, and yet the inhab-
itants would not haveit called village. They
were rather an independent set, these Lfow-
sievillians, and held themselves and their
surroundings in high estimation, resentlng
anything in the shape of slight, and believ-
ing themselves to be quite equal to the rest
of the world. They had a school, presided
over by a worthy pedagogue, in whom they
placed such implicit confidence that they
wouldn't have sent their children anywhere
else to be educated; no, not if Minerva her.
self had counseled them to do so. They had
a church "a Westinghouse rather-they were
old.time Methodists, and didn't believe in
churches) where the preacher did duty in an
orthodox fashion, getting upa littleenthusiasm
in the prayers sometimes, but generally put
ting the congregation to sleep with his SER
mons, which all the older members knew by
heart ) They had public hall, where they
held temperance meetings, charity tairs' and
Sabbath.school sociables.; and where, on one
memorable OCCASION concert had been given
by some travelling musicians, which was at
tended by every man, woman, child and baby
in the community. They had everything, in
fact that was reasonable, rational and desira-
ble-and yet, melancholy to relate, among the
Younger residents something of the progress
siye spirit of the age, Whit of the atmos-
phere of the outer world, was beginning Sc.
cretly to circulate, though how it ever got
there, or how these younger residents came
to know that there was any outer world at all,
was mystery not to be fathomed, unless it
was through the medium of the "Drowsieville
Gazette," which, though treating chiefly of
home affairs, did occasionally startle its read
ers with paragraph relating to matters else
where. The editor of the Gazetts was, in fact,
looked upon as very adventurous individu-
al, and when, one morning, the paper came out
with the account of an elopement in neigh
boring county, actually giving the names of
the parties concerned, many were the heads
shaken over it, and old Mr.. Towzleham, the
chief authority in matters, both religious and
secular, went to the printing Office and told
the editor that if, in future, such disgraceful
reading-matter was notsuppressed, be, for one,
would withdraw his subscription, and that he
knew of others who would not hesitate to fol.
low his example. Mr.. Quillman, the editor,
was meek man, and Immediately promised
not to commit similar offence again and as
he faithfully kept his word, the rising genera
tion, who had greatly relished this small scrap
of scandal, were obliged to content themselves
with preserving copies of the obnoxious .edi-
ton, and reading them over in private until
the print was well-nigh effaced. This was ter
rible depravity, as every right-minded person
will allow; but then, as I said before, these
young people, in some incomprehensible man.
ner, had received taint Of the spirit of the
age, which, I fear, only wanted favorable
opportunity to manifest ITSELF
care you going to sewing-circle this after
noon?" asked Rebecca Cary of her. chum,
Lucy Melton, as they leisurely walked from
school together one summers day.
eyes, suppose so,' was the reply. "Moth.
er always likes ne to 60; but it has been
pretty dry lately, don't you think sol"
"Dry as chips" assented Rebecca. "But
it's little better at Mrs. Philipson's than at
other places; one gets sponge cake and lem
onade there, at any rate.
."And one does, occasionally, hear little
news" added Lucy. "Do you know, Becky,
think Laura Philipson must be going some
where She gave hint to-day Of something
of the kind, and I have noticed that she
has looked unusually bright lately"
$50 have I. Where can she be going, do
you think?"
II don't know, unless it is to some school.
She is so advanced, you know; and really
don't think Mr.. Fell can teach her anything
more"
"Why doesn't she stop, then?" asked Re-
becca.
"Oh because her mother thinks so much
of education; and I think she wants to be
a teacher herself, some time. I wonder,
Becky" continued Lucy, in meditative
tone, "what ever brought the Philipsons to
this placer"
"Why, suppose they fancied it." said Re-
becca.
Scarcely. They don't seem suited to it,
somehow, or it to them. And it's odd that
any one who wasn't born in Drowsieyille
should ever choose to come here to live"
"Somebody must have started the place
who wasn't born here" said Rebecca; "other-
wise don't see that it would have been set
tied at ALL"