Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1882-08-24
The Sturp Seller.
JOHN GEDNEY's CHILD.

They were taking down the gallows in the
Jail yard of old Henehley, one gray October
eyening--the evening of Friday, which, has
been set apart for executions from time inn
memorial. ..,..
That morning there had been the strange
and awful procession from the Jail; the last
good-byes of jai1ers and keepers; the last
words of the condemned man the clergy
mans prayer the terrible end. Amidst 1t
no woman's sobs, no terrible parting from
shrieking wife, as happens often in such cases.
Nobody knew whether John Gedney's wife
was dead or not. He never spoke OF her. But
he had said, just before they put the black
cap on his head:
ssMay God raise up friend for my little
Ruth Poor little Ruth! And let her always
feel that die innocent"
Now q coffin lay in the prison dead-house,
and the murderer, with peaceful white face
and peaceful crossed hands, awaited burial
and the clergyman, going home across the
fields, thought what a sad, bad, cruel world
this is, and remembered, too, the dead man 8
last words.
ssPoor little Ruth I think I'll stop and
speak to her before I 60 home," he said.
1.-The child knows nothing Of what has hap
pened to her, but it has happened neverthe-
less"
And with this the good man turned down
a certain street, passed certain neglected COT
taaes. where ducks and dirty children padded
together in the puddles before the doors, and
paused at one near which group OF slattern-
ly gossips had gathered.
They looked at him as he approached, ana
there was little smoothing Of aprons and
twisting UP of hair The tongues ceased to
wap for a moment, and the minister heard
from within the voice of a child, lifted IN
loud, sharp cry, and then the words, "4ou
tell a story ~ in the same voice. Ina minute
more little girl, With her bright hair all
about her face, rushed out of the door, follow
ed by woman, who looked half angry and
half terrified.
ssSuch temper - she said but no Won
der. What else can you expect %
"Oh Mr.. Martin, she said papa was wicked
man bad man," cried the child. 'She
said-I don't know what she said about my
papa. Has papa done anything like-lke-
Oh knew it's wicked story"
"What have you been saying to this child,
Mrs. Chalmers ?" asked the minister.
sWell, sir,' said Mrs. Chalmers, ''she shows
her temper and thought it was my duty to
warn her"
Against temper' Very proper, Mrs. Cllal-
mers," said the minister. "There IS nothlng
more dangerous"
The woman flushed little and was silent.
"Ten them my papa is good" cried the
child. 'sYou said you would see him every
day, where he had to 60 and live. Tell them.
Oh Mr.. Martin, when is papa coming back ~
my child" said the minister, ''your father
viii, not come back, but you shall one DAY go
to him. Not yet, but in God'stime. "A httle
while ago was with him.
He looked around upon the group OF woman.
"We were alone. He knelt beside me and
prayed as child might. When we parted
this was what he said:
'ssMay God raise up a friendf for little kuth.
Poor little Ruth ="
"God has answered his prayer. Mrs. Chal-
mers, get the child's hat and such clothes as
she may have. 1 will take her home with me
and keep her there"
.sShe ought to be very thankful, Pm sure,
SIR said Mrs. Chalmers, with very red race :;
ssfor otherwise, as she has no kin, she'd 60 to
the poor-house and little Andy shall bring
the clothes to your house, after her. It's not
much parcel though have cut up two old
gowns to make her aprons, and given her
cape of my little Sally's to keep her warm. y
And Mrs. Chalmers looked around at her
neighbors for praise of her benevolence, which
they gave in mods and hand-liftings; and IN a
moment more the little Shaker hood was on
the child's head, and she was walking over
the field with her new protector.
The minister's good, kind wife welcomed
the child heartily, and under their roof she
grew to be healthy and strong and pretty,
her principles were formed, her faults correc-
ted She was at sixteen as fine and Well-man-
nered young girl as could be seen in years
Journey.
She loved her adopted father and mother,
and honored them, and she was friendly and
kind to all. But malice and ignorance are
never to be trusted. Although the best peo-
ple in Henchley called Ruth lovely girl, the
gossps down in the hollow, envious of the
fact that her education and dress were better
than their own children's, and that she walk
ed up the aisle and sat in the minister's pew
every Sunday, was called ''my child'' by his
wife and Miss" by his servants were always
speaking to each other of the fact that her
father was hung, and taught the story to the
younger ones, with the additional precept
that such folks children never came to good
that the minister would be sorry some day,
and that Ruth Gedney never would turn out
well in the end. Unconscious Of this, good
Mrs. Martin often sent the young girl into
that quarter of the town with glasses of jelly
or loaves of nice bread for the poor old women,
little tea and sugar, and with a charge to
read a chapter before she came back. Ruth
Gedney accomplished the task, but sometimes
with repugnance. More than once cruel
things were said to her, and once when she
was reading to old Aunty Markham, who had
drunken son and a miserable puny grandson
who was not quite full witted, the latter
danced on the floor before her, calling out:
s'Your father was hung, and you'll come
to be hung too, Miss Ruth everybody says
sO.''
Mrs. Chalmers, the very person who had
'ssaid So" boxed the boys ears and said some
thing apologetic but Ruth was too angry to
stay she went home forgetting to give old
Aunty Markham her medicine, and her flushed
face and red eyes attracted the minister's at
tention. The good wife could not explain it,
On Rpth was unestioned She told the truth.