The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1882-11-25
THE WIDOWS FESTIVAL,

Day after day he had lam there, weak,
suffering, patient, enduring all things,
and rewarding all care with look OF
tender gratitude, faint hand-pressure,
now and then word of thanks.
The accident had been dreadful.
Through the carelessness of a switch
tender a fast train had left the track
and plunged over high trestle-work.
Thirty people were killed at once and
at least fifty injured. Among the latter
this man, Judge Seymour, was hurt
worst of all. Others had broken bones
and bruised muscles: some were taken
mp senseless, and, lingering unconscious
for a dav or two, died without returning
to their senses-a II erciful dispensation:
but the physicians in his case pro-
nounced the spine seriously hurt and
feared internal injuries. He might re-
cover, and he might not Time would
show.
He was a vigorous man. of middle ace.
with q lovely, loving wife and three
children, lust elected Governor of his
native State; full of plans for career he
meant to make noble and useful. His
reputation was wide and lofty; his per-
sonal friends numerous and warm: he
had a moderate fortune and a pleasant
home. What more could life offer him?
Yet here he Law, the victim of a man 5
carelessness.
1t seemed to his wife that with him all
she cared for was fading away. Her
children were about her; but they were
young, They leaned on her, and she
had chung to her husband for help to
bear the cares and burdens of living,
till she grew, as vine grows, weak of
stem, unable to stand alone, PROSTATE if
unaided. Now she was wearing out
with a strain of suspense and anxiety;
trying to keep her face calm and her
hands steady; leaving the bedside only
when flesh and spirit could bear the
stress no longer and to stay would have
been dangerous to her husband and
agony uncomfortable to her.
So it went on, day after day. Some
times he was better, or she thought So;
ottener he was worse. The alterations
OF hope and fear tortured her, and,
watching the minute symptoms, the mo-
mentary aspects, the most trivial details,
she lost all power to generalize and COM
prehend the case She did not see that
he gained nothing in reality, that no dav
found him stronger; but that every week
he lost something and suffered some new
pain. But the end came, and to her
came suddenly. She was called from
her troubled sleep to find him uncon-
scious, to see him die, speechless. unrec-
ognizing, blind. Years before. in driy-
ing slowly past little country grave
ward, a new monument erected fo tho
memory of a vouno man killed nv tho
cavinp in of a sand,ouarrv had canobt
her eve. She knew the incident and re-
called the name she saw: hut the fence
hid all but the first line Of the enitanh
which ran:
"witbout ono nor,iro. ,uo,,,
II had toncbed hor doonlv 81 tho +;r,o
and often since. Int now 80 Sno,,, , r'.l
# meant O1or ood o,,o,. = 49," " i ii,'.
ear and movod bor s;Iont i liz ~ LOU" - h iei
;od bor boad =, ~ il;Ii ilP9 20 que pul-
dead and IonooJ 70 hd P dooJ taa p pol
tho ohiI,Ira,, eoII,I go "C''u, W. nuV
chalIonnad hor n,,o,, ~ II % 1 nilc
must not ont l ''i Sn ~ nc Io' uespan[ lhey
ont 70 tbor, and +oiJ 49, ~ ioSe T anu went
ch;ldran Thav nnnld nnt ny Ivy , meie
what doo+b ,,yoe ond ~, ,o ,.., nv"
their incrad,l;tT thai, m,an+ 4 oe .;as
that was i@nora1co instooI " az 1870 on sLlci'
ness st,,n2 bor 70 tho n,o;oi, NS CT "a, 'ioos-