The Morristown gazette. [volume] (Morristown, Tenn.) 1867-1920, 1881-11-16

eyes, aunt, the Savior said Martha
was aareful and troubled about many
! thi1t@4 and suppose it may well be said
! ! thas am"
The old lady now yawned, and the
l conversation ceased.
Three weeks from that day, however,
it became more animated than ever, for
Burt Ramsay had Just been arrested for
forgery. A Sheriff seized him Just as he
had seated himself in railway car and
was about to make his escape. In de-
fault of $4,000 bail he was lodged In
jail. His forgeries amounted to over
500, 900, and on this and other money
he had borrowed he and his wife had
been living in a style to suit them.
Over this disclosure the little town of
DraytOn was thrown into a state of excite
ment heretofore unequaled. Old Mrs.
Collins declared she did not feel the least
bit sorry for Mrs. Ramsay, and Miss
Sterling, her niece, was posted off to her
house to reprove her for the course she
had taken. She found the lady in tears
and apparently in the depths of humilia-
ton, which was rather gratifying to her.
And to further harrow up her feelings
she said, "Mrs. Ramsay, everybody Is
blaming you for your extravaganza. and
say that is the cause Of your husbands
downfall" " This brought on a violent
fit of weeping, which was what her per
secutOr wanted, but after a while the af-
flicted lady wiped her eyes and said
" Although [ wish to share equal blame
with my poor husband | viii say knew
no more about the state of his finances
! than either Of my little chill
| dren. I supposed he was somewhat in
! debt, bat thought his business 50 flour
ishing there was no danger of failure
| He never mentioned any OF his troubles
! to me. Never denied me money; IN
| fact, seemed hardly content with the
smallness of my expenditures If he
! had only told me how his matters stood,
! l would have curtailed my expenses to
! the narToWest extent. But, as he gave
me no hint of his embarrassment, 1
foolishly went on in the way [ did. And
now he, my generous, indulgent hus-
band, Is IN prison. Oh, how l wish l
had never lived to see this day"
Well, the way Of the transgressOr is
hard, and he must now suffer for his
misdoings, but his punishment here is
nothing compared with the tOriures he
must undergo III his life to come, unless
he repents and seeks forgiveness from an
offended God. Then let it be your bust
ness to exhort him daily to lament and
bewai N penitence and prayer over the |
sinfulness of his former course. No |
matter what the world may think of him |
so God looks down i'll pity and forgive |
ness upon him. And may God grant |
that you, too, find comfort from the |
same course. Now, good morning, Mrs. |
Ramsay; l have striven to do my duty |
to you, by giving you this advice"
The sOrrOwlnG woman made no reply, |
and, the moment she was alone, threw |
herself face downward. upon the cush-
IONS a. the sofa, near the chair II which /
she h@U been sitting. moaning and atriv-
ing t0 give utterance to q prayer, n
thing she hGd seldom, if ever, done
nut, in few moments, fei into
troubled sluInbrf from which she was not
awakened in the course Of an hour,
when the nurse brought her yeaT-old
child to her, saying, "Here, ma'anl,
suppose | shall have to look up another
place, now that [ can expect no further
pay, and the master already owing me
$l00. But [ must have that if [ take
the carpet from under yOurfeet, ma'am "
"Dont, don't distress me any more
Just now, Ellen, l will try to have you
paid. and, If you leave me now, what
will become Of the child?" asked the
helpless woman.
'FIt is hard for the likes of We to come
to it, marm but they do say you will,
making no doubt, have it to look arter
yerseP, God bless its little sOwl. All,
many's the night [ have had to sit by
and watch with the little craythur to
keep breath of life in its little body
while the rest of ye were slaring in yer
beds, thank God !"
"Well, Ellen, if you leave it now, it
will surely die, for [ know nothing
about taking care of children. Oh, stay,
and will sell some of my jewels to pay
you, if there Is no other way "
"I will stay the wake out, marin"
replied Ellen and no sooner had she
gone to the nursery than the cook put
in her appearance, bOnneted and shawled
for her departure.
"Good-by, marm; ye have been
good mistress but by the holy Saint
Peter I cannot work any longer with
out pay; ye're owing me for the last six
months worruk," said Bridget; "and
how I can get it is thing I'm after go
ing to see the praste about"
eff you will stay with me few days
longer will see that you are paid, for 1
|
as I know nothing about cooking so
don't leave me, Bridget"
"True for ye, then, I may come back
FOR few days. but doubt if I'll be let"
SAID the girl, emerging from the door.
A few minutes later the chambermald
took her departure and as the house
keeper was away on visit, Mrs. Ram
say, with her three children and nurse
ha h11S cd !
house, which only the day previous was
so full of life and merriment. Now the
very house dog went around with an
look and quiet tread, as if even
he had been committing some Offense
for which it were well to hang his head.
The usual dinner hour arrived, but no
had been made for the
meal the mistress still lay on the sofa,
more dead than alive, while
the nurse fidgeted over the children In
the nursery, and at last, declaring she
would not be both nurse and cook, took
the children to their mother and imme-
lately left the house. After O while
heir noise and need of care finally
aroused the despairing mother, and she
went with them to the empty kitchen
where she found cold lunch for them
Ill.
The following day an inventory was
aiken of the criminals property, but, as
t was all mortgaged, his creditors. who
lad no security, were losers to the full
mount of his Indebtedness, and they
we're by no means few. Mrs. Ramsay
vas obliged to leave her splendid home
md find quarters in a small tenement
house, which she once would not have
leigned to enter. Some pitied her, 9th
rs were glad to see her thus humbled- {
lmong the latter were Miss Sterling and
Ter aunt-not that they owed her any {
malice or felt the least envy after all that
he had suffered, but for her own good, s
md as an example for others, SO they c
aid, they were reioiced to see her step
lown from the heights of such vanity as J
nee possessed her soul i