Ashtabula weekly telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1880-1886, 1880-12-24
THE BELLS OF CONNYVILLE.

On beautiful summers afternoon, more
than fifty years ago, the good people Of
ConnyYllle hung chime Of bells In the ivy
mautled belfry Of st. Johns Church; and
after the good parish minister had preached
a sermon appropriate to the occasion, It was
voted, Us their sexton was growing feeble
that Ezra Potts should in future be in
trusted with the care of the little church and
the ringing Of the fine musical bells that had
just been hung in the belfry. So Ezra Potts
was made sexton, and though thirty years
had passed away since the day the chimes
were hung, yet he still performed the simple
duties of his long continued office.
He had grown to be nearly tifty-nine years
old, and though his dark hair was tinged
with silver, his step was firm and light
and his strong frame was still unbent. He
was sturdy fellow, this Ezra Potts, with a
broad, smooth, genial faCe-a good and
merry. heart will smooth over a sight of
wrinkles-and his eyes were as brmful of
mirth as they could be. In fact, this Ezra
Potts was as good q man as you often meet,
and the children all loved him dearly and
called him Father Potts, and the older folks
all loved him, too, and would shake the hon
est hand and speak to him as Brother Potts.
Yes, he was nearly tifty-nine the Christ
mas eve he lighted his lantern and left his
cosy cottage to go up the hill through the
snow to chime the bells, as was the custom
on every Christmas eve since the bells first
came to COnnyville. He wns very happy
that night as he walked up the village street.
past the shop windows gay with TOYS and
bric-a-brac, and merry with the groups Of
children gathered round to feast their eyes
and chatter with their boisterous tongues
for he had in mind the happiness abroad
that night and the Joy that would be awak-
ened with the children In the morning. Be-
sides, he mad bought his wife q new gown
and q large-print Bible, which he knew
would please her very much, and a little
lame girl down the street would find we'll
filled stocking beside her bed in the morn
ing, and she would guess that Father Potts
put 1t there.
But amidst all this gayety and his own
happiness there was something thattrOubled
him, and a sigh escaped his lips, and invol-
unfairly he walked slower as he assembled the
hill to ring st. Johns bell; and as he wend-
ed on his busy thoughts were drifting ten
years back, when his daughter Kitty was
seventeen-a bright, pretty girl she was, pc
tite In figure, and with a fascinating grace
in manner that made her q favOrlte with all
the good people of ConnyVile He, Ezra,
loved that girl with all his great might and
mlnqi she was such a winsome creature 1t
would have been hard, indeed, for anybody
to do otherwise; but II he loved her too
fondiy he was rebuked, God knows, and Bit
teTly, too.
AS the modest little belle Of that quiet viii
lagei Kitty bad many suitors, for the right
sort Of a girl will turn the heads Of half the
swains in any village; but the most favored
one was Ephraim Bates, a reputable Young
farmer Of sterling qualities, whom Ezra
loved as he would have loved his son, and
after a varied courtship of little ups.and-
downs, for they had their quarrels and
reconciliations which 90 TO make IN the
spicy sum Of human love affairs, he, In the
early spring-time, In his bashfIi, awkward
way, asked for her hand, which she-she
loved to tease the felloW-granted him, az
ter keeping him in agony for a month wait
ing for her answer, when she could have
told him on the spot he might have II II he
wanted. They were very happy till June
came, with its balmy air aud fragrant bos-
SONS, for with it came a wild, handsome
fellow up from the city down by the sea 10
while away his time among the hills and
trout brooks Of Connyville. Now he found
Kitty out and made her acquaintance; and a
brilliant, wellmannered fellow such as he
was just the sort to turn the head OF q SIM
ple-hearted girl like Kitty, who knew but
little Of the life beyond her native village, or
OF the articles OF handsome, reckless men,
Ezra noticed the change In her with panied
anxiety, but he held his tongue, hoping the
young man would soon quit the place, and
hat Kitty would as soon forget him.
Ephraim was madly jealous Of such ardent
devotion to his betrOthed, and one evening
when he had come down from his farm on
the hill to call on Kitty he said, In his blunt
way, "Kitty, this young man from tho city