Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1879-04-18
ENSIGN RINSON.

chamb,oss Joprof.
ENSIGN RINSON.
scarcely remember the starting point Of
our conversation, though its scene rises up
before me yividly as memory touches thus,
magfu plates which She keeps stored up IN
her mysterious chamber
There were several young people gathered
in Mrs Martins "parlor" Probably there
was not another old lady in London had such
"parlor.' From the long deep Window.
the sloping walls the low ceiling. and tie
chirping of birds, 10 say nothing OF the scent
of wall-howers and musk, one faucied one s
self in the ground floor apartment of som,
quaint country cottage. In fact, it was IL
room on the topmost story of u grand old
house in an old city square.
In that house Mrs. Martin had spent the
last happy married days Of her early woman
hood, and there it was her wish to remain till
she died. The house was far too large and
too costly for widowed womans sole occu-
patton. and 50 she had rttr,ated. up and up.
until she reached soltude and silence
which the occupant of many a country High
street might have cnyi,d A perfect curiosi-
ty was her little Lubiiatiou, It's walls covered
with pictures, It's corners bright with dainty
old china, its whole r,pl,te with every simple
toullpIl Inc oiu ittll ncIhtu fuftll went
out now. but she did not lack visitors. There
were some with great names and great pow
crs who, in the world of fashion, found no
temptation to forget their old friend and
there were many more, bright, saucy lads
and sweet, enthusiastic girls, who found with
her "A refuge and rest, where they could
Autter their incipient wings safely aud hap
PLY.
lean only remember that, at that time. some
great trial was running its course and all
England WAS eager for the sight of the even
ing papers, which one of Us had brought in,
and the contents Of which We had been all
eagerly discussing, rashly giving our decided
judgments on points over which the Jury Of
twelve good men and true" would have to
spend many an hour Of weary consideration.
One witness came in for our special an-
imadyorsion. In her crosse oXaminutiou some
questions had been put to her which she had
declined to answer, and on appealing to the
Judge whether she was compelled to do SO,
lad received an answer in the negative.
I'VE all know what that mean-,' vas the
dictum OF our juvenile leader in which We
all heartily coucurred. "If what she must
have answered would have been to her cr. dit,
she would not have he-itatld. whether the
question was iustfable or not We may De
sure that her answer would probably hay,
evoked some further question, with results
still more l,screlitabla to her"
There was quite a little chorus of assent OF
this point only Mrs. Martin was quite si-
lent, and gave h,r knitting-ne,dles peculiar
shift, which We had long learned to recoguiz,
as what would bee described in parliamentary
language "a, "murmurs Of dissent"
Don't you think so too - asked one Of U.s.
| turning to the old lGdy with that defarlncC
which We always felt TO be due her, oven
when her wisdom differed from that Of ouI
| contemporary solomon.
My dear, it may be so-hut it may not. -
she answered Il know a little story ON this
very point. I knew a gentleman who wa,
| present when the incident happened.
We w.r. all attention. A story was not to
| be Sighted, even when told to prove our.
| selves in th, wrong.
"Wtil,' said Mrs. Martin, "nauy year.
| back, long J. fore I was born and that j.
| nearly sixty years ago. a young man came
ont Of a little house at the eastern end Of q
town hy tho sea. There was plenty Of III,
and gaycty AZ the other end Of the town,
which was enliyenod by one or two barracks.
a fort, and castle. But the eastern end was
| very poor, and would have been quite lonely
but for the fishermen and their boats. IN,
| house from which the young man came wa'
| beyond even this homcy hustle, and was lit
tie moro tLan a wooden hut, tarred to defend
| il from wind and weather. Its only neal
| neighhor was a huge windmill whose gauui
arms were almost over its humble roof and
though its windows and doorstep were cleal
and its curtains white, it was clearly very
| poor place, where none but very poor pcopl,
would live
but the young man who came out was il
| the full dress of a military officer, though
| that was screened from first view by the lonl
IL. L 4 = a. 4 I
necessary. He looked back and waved hi,
hand toward the little house, asif he knew thai
somebody there was watching him, though
| certainly, nobody could be seen from the out
side And then he turned and struggled
| against the strong gale that blew in from the
sea.
"He was quite young and his face was fine
| ly cut, and would have been pleasant but foi
a look Of stern and painful sorrow, not un
mixed with bitterness, which seemed strange
| ly incongruous with his years and his dress
He walked on quite through the town
There were few people taking exercise foi
| pleasure in that rough weather and the
crowd of shipping in the Downs made til,
seaward view almost less lonely than tn,
shore. It was a very simple little town, viii
rad-tiled, decent dwelling-houses crowded
| forward toward the sea, as if their inmate'
wanted to watch the boatmen and fisher,
| from as neara point as they might, Whereve1
| the houses broke apart. one caught glimpse,
| of a wild, flat country, dotted here and thcr,
with weird trees in Indian file and the you'll
| looked wstfully toward these desert fields, "a
| if he would have struck away across them, in
stead of going on, as he did toward the grin
old fort.
''Yet there, it was clear, festivity was 60
ing forward, and friendly voices greeted hin
as he passed the gray old portal Anl
then, over his stern, sad face he dropped
mask of gayety, and though he relapsed int
silence at times, he was as polite and convers
ible as the best of them.
There was preparation for dinner party
in the fine stiff old hall, with its rows of mill
tary portraits, and its dingy, blood stained
banners. The castle, the barracks, and tn,
fort itself had eagerly furnished guests tC
welcome the visitor of the day, a grand ole
General recently returned from honorable
| victories in the south of Europe.
"To our ideas of to-day" said Mrs. Martin
shaking her dear, whte-oapped head "ther
was perhaps a great deal in that dinner-tabl
conversation which ought not to have been
We have left oil openly despising our thel
enemies the French or speaking of any for
eign allies much as if they were vermin
whom it WIS our good pleasure for the tim
being TO support and protect, Let us not b
afraid to condemn our honorable grandfather
in that wherein we think they were wrong
Only let us remember that, strive as we may
we ourselves shall still say and do man,
things which, as we believe in God and prog
ress, our still more fortunate descendants will
characterize as ill-judged and perhaps wicked
! We can but do our very best according TO thu