The Albany register. [volume] (Albany, Or.) 1868-18??, 1880-07-23

Dead in his bed on the hillside.
Dead i'll his cot by the wall,
Hillside, hillside,
There where the snow covers all,
Green is the trail in the sprinetime,
Adown by the broad brooks side
Springtime, springtime,
Green since the miner died.
what's in the wild hills signing,
So soft through the waving pine,
Signing. signing,
Afar in the days decline.
When he ceased to sing. there was a
stiffness in tile room as dead Us the miner
IN his song. Colonel Holten was brayely,
hut SILENTLY blowing his nose in his lIand-
kerchief. under the dclusive impression that
lie was suddenly attacked with catarrh !;
the two younger girls had drawn near to
the piano. and were looking at Norman
with pathetic funeral expression Mrs.
Holtcu, being easily moved to tears. was
crying :. what tue rest of the company
were doing could ilot be we'll ascertaii.ed.
before Miss Alice remarsSeiI:
why. Mr.. Maydote, where in the
world did you get such horribly sad
song 90
''t,nt it out of an old newspaper" sen-
teutiously remarked Norman, as he come
away from the piano.
Many, many. are the poor fellows
who have gone cur that way in the his
terry of this State" said Colonel Uolten !;
s'but not generally in spirit SO prayer
full"
"who wrote the air to your song, Mr..
Maydnle." asked Judith. p"
II do not know that Ii ever was writ
ten. 1t sprouted from the red earth. inn
ngiue, IN the footprints of the pioneer.
like other wild-weetl flowers that follow
our civilization, aud beg tor a kindly rec
ognition which they seldom get.a
lit has the far-away wall of a Celtic sad
ness-Irish, perIIaps.'' said Alice.
at may be. - said Norman. teI have
been told there is a good deal of Ireland IN
the musical taste of America. ;"
'-Ah. we'll, we cannot tell.'' said Colo
| mel Holten, 1.-The men of the early miuing
| their wild exterior. have known.
among the rou2liest of :iiem, men who
| would sit With their feet up OH the rough
| ianb Of the smoke-begrimed stone fire.
! place. in the mining cabin and. while
| the long winter rain poured down the hills
and roared through the canons, they
would whistle and sing ut times improvis-
/ atious. which if written and heIatled.
| might have made fame for the author.
And if one had gone to the impIovi>atore,
| lifting the slouchcd hat from over his eyes,
! they would have found the tears that we'll
cd from the sad source of his Inspiration
| Yet this man in affrays or at the gaming
| tables was wild and fierce rs IA Viking y
/ '.The ballad and the chant,n said Miss
| Alice. ''are the children of the se,ltl and
the rune. The hearth-stane and the fam
| lily circle were born of a hlaZing fire. The
| most pitiful thing In rhe Bible is the con-
| spienous absence of ;he fireSi1e. Blessed
be the Mid men of the North. who gave
| us the scalds, the sagas. and the family
| circle. Look at poor apostolic Peter be-
heath the palace at the kitchen fire OH tlle
| ground. among the servants, warming his
| blood 20 fortify his faiih-it sends cold
| chill through the Whole plan of salvation.
| Every one knows that Christianity had no
peoples nusic-for the psalms and songs
| were priestiy no hymns, 10 chants, no
| t:piIquering measure of martial tramp. till
| II met the tireside men of the firciad North.
/ The inspiration OF our be 81 leart-mtlsic il
| the march of FalhaIla and the wall OF
! Valkyrias-love aud war"
AT the conclusion of this speech Colo
| mel Holten lifted up his voice again and
pious!v asked
Miss Winans. what is that style of con
verSatiun called -
THAT. Colonel IIo!ten. Is a faint echo
OF what Western barbarians sacrilegiously
| call culcfa ~
ut sounds" said Norman "a good deal
| like what my friend Canutsen calls folks
| letre''
''Well.' continued Miss Winans, per
| slaps Il little piqued at the reception of her
outburSt. ''wlIat [ wish to say is !: that
| civil liberty, civilization. or Christianity.
is upheld by the family circle, and hoid
that there can be no permanent family cir.
Gle without n fiTeside-and the fireSide
comes from the wooded north, where thf
| names of our days come from. and fron
whence came many good things long since
tranped out by Roman legio,,s and priest
~ prejudice. When the wild miner wa
| whi$tlipg fearful improyiSations by hi
4 starn-rocked inglesifie III the mountains,
as just now spoken of by Colonel Hoiten
he WAS yoicing the brave. sad echoes o
hnme-hone means fireside, and a fire
side means the north.''
Norman clappetl bis hands. in which ap
plauSc he was Joined by the company. fol
lowed by Il late but earnest cry OF '.Hear
Hear - from Miss Judith.
''Is there not flavor of iufiae1ity IL
your phiiosophy?" asked a pious male Wis
itor, of Alice.
II am an infilel in some things; but
think the most evil intidelty is lack o
faith in the virtues of ones ancestors. -
Rank paganiSm.'' exclaimed Colonr
Holtel, striking the arm OF his chair.
II care moi what it may be called bni
| hold that no race of people or nation car
abide if it neglects its ancestor Ancestral
love is The staying power of people
| Honor thy father and thy mother, that
command borrowed from the most ancient
of days.
1T is the Chinese law,' said Colonel
Hoiten.
III Is an English virtue, F" said the sing
ing lady visitor.
| s.Ir is New England idolatry,'' said
some other voice.
Yes. said Alice, proudly s'New
| England is to-tlay a monument of what
may be achieved by the worship OF ones
| ancestors y
$50 is China" said Colonel Holten.
VERY good said Alice II ask no fur
ther proof If there is any staying power
left or this continent after the last Yas,
kee shall expire, it will be found tc
speak Chinese
..Al. Miss Winans. such doctrines will
not do in iconociastic California;" sale
4 Holtpn.
/ ..Oh. Colonel Holten, how can you say
sol The process of ancestral deificatior1 /:
going forward here with great vigor-
greater than any State in the Union. Tllf
gols of '49 and the Spring of go mr..
climbing Olympus will, grave solemni.
fy beautiful to behold
Alice paused. aud Colonel Holten. see
ing the trap that was springing upon him
ieaued his head back upon his chair. thew
his handkerchief oser his lace. and laughea
silently, as it were behind the curtain.
Perhaps the old sarcasm about tht
best part of a potato plant beitu ta.ltle,