Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1882-04-10
And Sam doubted utterly at first

chllls and fevers which shook his
frame, Sam fell asleep. Instead of
his lone, dark room, the load winding
from the mountain to the village rose
before his eyes. The road, usually
so tortuous and long, was straight,
and bathed in light. He traversed
it. At the end a palace gate, and at
the gate white-winged angel stood,
his pension in her shining hand.
Sam gazed. Above those peaceful
wings was Marys face. She smiled
as she had smiled upon him long ago.
He woke, and slept no more that
night.
| With the morning he put on his
wedding clothes. No doubt or hesi-
tation possessed him now. There
was terrible exultation in his ewes.
This time he did not stop, as was his
wont, at Miss Mary's house. The
road down the mountain-side was
tortuous and long. There was no
palace gate at the end no pension.
Those who watched Sans face in
this last instance of his ever-recur-
ring disappointment, say that look
came over it which had never been
seen there before. He rested on the
counter and drowsed. and almost
tainted, but he would not drink.
This provoked unbounded astonish-
ment. Sans dying flesh craved the
cup with an awful thirst, but Mary's
eyes were stronger, and Mary's eyes
seemed to be upon him, and he would
not drink.
at would choke me, boys,' he
tried to say, turning weakly away.
He manifested a desire to make
his will. 1t was a rare occasion at
the Bloomington grocery.
"lt's all to 60 to Mary" he ex-
claimed, excitedly, pension, back
pay and ALL" The last fame of the
fever was Pickering and wasting in
his eyes. He rested and dozed
again. At noon he started for home;
at four O'Clock he had traversed only
half of the lonely winter road; at the
foot of the mountain-it was sunset
he staggered and fell down. We
shink from the records of fates so
sad. We need not fear. One great
er than we, and more companssion-
ate by far, comforts the death of His
lambs when they fall in the desolate
places. The pain in Sans body
ceased. Across his mind fitted q
II Wish Mary could KNOW" he
said, ''that I wouldn't touch it-for
her sake" And later and more SOL
emnly: Il wish Mary could know
that seem now-to understand. /
| seem-now-tO see
An old story tells of the prodigal
who wandered, and who came back
to his fathers house; of the purpose
running through all the weakness
and sin, of the wonder and suffering
of our human lives, to make us hun
CRY and to bring us home. So over
Sans wasting face there crept first
the infinite, unbearable hunger of the
soul, and then the quiet look of one
whom God leads home and the blue
eyes, piercing now beyond the light
of sun or moon, met unshrinkingly
the shadows of the deepening night,
and unskrinkingly the clear gaze of
the solemn stars.
And Mary knew. When they
brought Sam home to her in his we'd
ding garments, she looked upon his
face, and she knew that the bride
groom had indeed come back, cloth
ed and joyful, to the bride; the lost
spirit to the strength and beauty OF
his first estate. And she kissed the
dead lips in that last act of perfect
love and conservation, and knelt and
thanked God.
A few days after Sans death, Ned
Hemingway entered Mary's house
either from curiosity or worthier mo-
tives, with a stammered apology, anC
the words: ''Of course it amt O NJ
account, but thought ye might like
to keep it, handed Mary the will il
which Sam had devised to her hi
pension. AS he did this, the mirth
full grocer cast down his eyes an(
blushed to the roots of his hair. Mar,
took the little parchment, read i
quietly, and just the shadow of
smile played about the beautiful ten
derness of her lips. Then she turn
ed to the grocer, and unconscious.
, transfxed him with her clear, thought
7 full, half -inattentive gaze.
Il think Sam owed you some
:, thing she said.
'.Oh, no, no" .stammered the gre
, Ger. .sThat's all right. The boy
will see to that
Il should prefer to have you Civ
me the bill," Mary said; and sti
!. transfxed by that courteously con
pelling gaze, the abashed and relu'
tant grocer complied.
! Mary keeps the will in which Sal
: gave her his pension, with lock
= hair that was always golden and bo.
ish, and the green-covered spelling
book. Sometimes in the pauses {
:. her toll, she can smile her tend'
smile over these; she can weep bles
~ ed tears over them.
er But if any one should say that hel
t. had been a famished heart-famishe
,s for all the joyful possibilities, IL
,;eobood +bo motherhood that miol