The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1883-05-17
VOLUME XVIII.---NO. "a.
Honor Thy Mother.

was out of town he seemed disappointed
and anxious. On being questioned as to
his business. he replied II have lost nv
mother, and as this place used to be her
home, and rs my father lies here, we have
come here to lay her beside him"
! Our heart arose in sympathy, and we
said, You have met with a great loss. ."
"Well-yes," replied the strong man,
with some hesitancy, ii mother is great
loss in general, but our mother had out.
lived her usefulness. She was in her
second childhood, and her mind had
grown rs weak rs her body, so that she
was no comfort to herself and was bur-
den to everybody. There were seven of
us, sons and daughters, and as we could
not find any one who would board her,
we agreed to keep her among us a year
about. But had more than my share of
her, for she was too feeble to be moved
when my time was OUT. and that was
more than three months before her death.
But then she was n good mother in her
day. and toiled hard to briug us up"
Without looking at the face Of the
naiShbor;ng pastor and returned to our
nursery. We gazct oil the merry li,,le
faces which smiled or grew sad in imita.
tiou Of ours those little ones to whose
ear no word III our language is half so
sweet as mother" and wondered if that
day would ever como when they would
say to us, "She has outived her useful.
ness-she is no comfort to herself snd n
burden TO everybody else" and We hop.
ed that before such day would dawn
we might he taken to our rest God for
bid that we should outlive the love of
our children" Rather let us die while
our hearts are part Of their own, that
our grave may be watercd with their
tears and our love linked with their hopes
of heaven
When the bell toled for the mot hers
burial, We went TO tho sanctuary to pay
our only token of respect TO the aged
stranger for we felt that we could give
her memory tear, even though her own
children had none to shed.
"She was good mother in her day
snd toled hard to bring us all up-she
was no comfort to herself and burden
TO everybody elsen These cruel, heart
less words rang in our ears as we raw the
coffin borne up the aisle. The bell toll
ed long and loud, until its iron tongue
had chronicled the years of toll. worn
mother. One-two-three-fo
How clearly and almost merrily each
stroke told of her once peaceful slumber
in her mothers bosom. and Of her seat
at nightfall on her fathers knee. Six
seven -eight-ninc-ton, rang out the
tale OF her sports on the green sward, in
the meadow and beside the brook. Elev.
en-twelve - thirteen = fourteen, spoke
more graveiy of school days and little
household cares and joys. Fifteen-six.
,een-seventeen-eig eighteen. sounded out
np,fn rnI ,,;. &c
and the stream Of early love. Nineteen
brought before us the happy bride.
Twenty spoke of tho young mother
whose heart was full to bursting with the
new strong love which God had awakened
in her bosom. And then stroke after
stroke told of her early womluhood-of
the loves. and cares and hopes and fears,
and tolls through which she passed during
these long years, till fifty rang out harsh
and loud. From that to sixty, each
stroke told of the warm-hearted mother
and grandmother, living over again her
own joys and sorrows in those Of her
children and chi!dren's children.
Every family of all the group wanted
grandmother then, and the only strife was
who should win the prize; but bark, the
bell tolls on! Seventy-s seventy one
two-three-four. She begins TO grow
feeble, requires sonic care, is not always
patient or satisfied she goes from one
child's house to another, 80 that no one
place seems like home She murmurs in
plaintive tones, and after all her tolls
and weariness, it is hard she cannot be
allowed place to die in; that she must
be sent, rather than invited, from house
to house. Eighty-eighty. onc--two-
thiee-iour., AN, size IS iio~ 6 second
child-now "she has outlived her useful.
ness, she has now ceased to be q comfort
to herself or anybody" that is, she has
ceased to be profitable to ner earth. crav-
ing, money -grusping children.
Now sounds out, reverberating through
our lovely forest and echoing back from
our "hill of the dead" eighty. nine.
There she lies now in the coffin cold and
still-she makes no trouble now, de.
mands no love, no soft word, no tender
little Offices. A look of patient endu.
rance, we fancied also look Of grief for
unrequited love, sat on her marble fea.
lures. Her children were clad in weeds
of woe, and in an irony we remembered
the strong mans words, "She was good
mother in her day."
When the tell ceased tolIing the
strange minister rose in the pulpit. His
form was very erect, and his voice strong,
but his hair was silvery white. He read
several passages Of scripture expressive
of Gods compassion to feeble man, and
especially OF his tenderness when gray
hairs are on him, and his strength faileth
him. He then made some touching re-.
marks on human frailty, and of depend.
ence on God, urging all present to make
their peace with their Maker while in.
health, that they might claim His prom
ises when heart and flesh failed them.
"Then," he said, "the eternal God shall
be thy refuge, and beneath thee shall be
everlasting arms" Leaning over the
desk and gazing intently on the coffined
form before him, he then said reverently:
''From child have honored the aged
but never till gray hairs covered my own
head, did truly know how much love
and sympathy this class have right to
demand of their fellow creatures. Now
feel it," "Our mother" he added
most tenderly, "who now lies in death
before us was stranger to me, as all of
these her descendants. All I know of
her is what her son told me to.day-that
she was brought to this town from afar,
sixty.nine years ago, happy bride
that here she has PASSED most of her
life, toiling as only mothers ever have
strength to toll, until she reared large
family of sons and daughters-that she
left home here clad in the weeds of wild.
cwhood, to dwell among her children
and that till health and strength left her.
she had never ceased in her devoted
kindness to those she loved. God forbid
fhok nct e,,1l