The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1880-03-06
BIRDS IN THE SNOW.
10uida in Belgravia.l

fouida in Belgravial
Keziah, with more grief on her shoul
ders than she felt. it right for one lon
woman to have to bear, carried Ray vi
to his little bed, and bidding him no
10 fret SO, because there was always hope
ran down stairs, stormed at the peddle
Tor having been such fool as to speal
10 before the children, and then tool
counsel with her neighbors as to wha
was best to do.
The men volunteered to 60 In search
but there were only four or five of them
and two Of them very old. Still, GU
they went with their horn, lanterns. ano
pick-axes. and the thick falling snow
BOOB hid them from sight.
They thought of going up to hechurcf
tower and ringing the two bells that are
there; but thev reflected that it would
be OF no use, because the wind was SC
high that the bells would have no chance
of being heard. So the men went out to
search as best they could in the wild
night, and their frightened women sal
for the most part in the kitchen of the
vicarage, taking strange and terrible
pleasure in hearing the peddler cry q
hundred times, "Lord save usl he's g
dead manW till Keziah told him to 60 to
bed for an old fool, which ut last reluct
antly he did.
The women sat over the fire and slipped
spiced wine, and told each other horrible
tales of things their fathers and fore
fathers had done or known, with many
"He says, says he," occurring in theil
narratives.
Keziah sat up by the bedside of Rob
and Ray; Rob slept, but Ray lay wide
awake, and ever and again he, shivered
and moaned:
Papa wouldn't help the birds-he
wouldn't-and l know God was angry"
The long night wore away, the winds
never ceasing to howl, the SNOW never
ceasing to fall. AT day-break the men
returned, having found nothing. They
said they had searched all the moor for
eight miles, but in real truth, though
they did not know it, they had scarcely
been mile from home, having gone
round and round in circle, not seeing
where they were in the darkness. The
morning broke gray and drcary; the snow
still fell, but the winds dropped. Keziah
chose the youngest and strongest OF the
men and bade him strive to get across to
Tamsleigh. 1t was hard to do, and an
errand of danger, for the paths were all
obliterated and communication stopped,
but the man was bold young fellow
and promised to do his best.
Though as for that" he muttered,
'this Reverence is dead man if he's out
this freezn' night"
The other men went up to the church
tower and set the bells tolling; the wind
had fallen, and it was possible that in
the more distant houses they might be
heard and some help or some news
come
1t was now eleven o'clock in the morn
ing, the hour at which the service of
Christmas Day should have begun. The
church was little, dark, dismal place;
here and there it had been frightened
with Bit of holly, or a branch Of bar
berry tree; the Vicar did not approve
such follies, and there was little done to
relieve the bare stone walls, the square
box of q pulpit, the little chancel, dis
NAL and damp as any dungeon. AS the
weather cleared little the women
dropped in, in their red cloaks, and made
a glow in the darkness, but they did not
stay, for the church was very cold, and
it seemed more cold and horrible having
to pray there oD Christ's morn, and the |
Pastor, maybe, frozen dead in some
ynowdrift. |
At the vicarage Keziah tried in vain
to read the morning service to the chill |
,dren by the kitchen fire; her voice fall
tered and their attention wandered. |
They were all grave and frightened, even
the twin Babies, and Ray sat in the win
dow-seat with his face pressed against
the glass, quite silent. The look Of the
boy frightened his nurse almost more
than the loss Of her master.
"He do take things to heart So" she
said to herself, with sigh.
1t was no use To try and read; she
closed the big black Prayer Book, and let
the startled parishioners come in; some
OF them had plOdded many miles over |
the snow not to miss the blessing of the
Christmas prayer. and the found the
church empty and the Vicar absent. All
were sure he was dead; surer yet, when
a man, at great risk to himself, came
over from Tamsleigh Great House to say
the Squire trusted his Reverence had
reached home safely.
'Didn't / tell ye truth, ye unbelievin'a
Jewsw said the peddler, who enjoyed
his own Importance as sharer in this
terrible history.
There could be no doubt now. The
Vicar had left Tamsleigh, refusing all |
the Squire's offers, and set forth to walk
home. BF@ t4Efs
Every one there knew that he must
have LOST his way, and in all likelihood
had perished. .& @ I |
"It do come like a judgment" whis-
pered Keziah to friend out of the chill
dren's hearing. SAY, it do. He scolded
and punished them dear little souls Just
for feeding the frozen-out birds! And
now--now be knows himself what it is