The Wellington enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 1867-188?, 1883-03-14
Finding q Father.

Abou' thirty yeTrs ago there resided
upon arm, lew miles northeast OF
the ci Y OF Oakland, a an named
Thomas A. Fairbanks, who. if not in
a uent circums ances was, as the saw
ing is, comfortably fixed" with good
home, a happy am | +, consisting of a
wife and two children. He was proud
in the trength OF his manhood, and
had panorama O. his life for the twen-
ty years come been spread out be-
fore him he would have scoffed at the
picture. Sickness came, and af er
years of unavail ng ca e, in 1857 he
in the grave. The long illness N bis
i; advisable for him to dispose of his
homestead, and his children, then quite
sma !, were taken in charge by sister
o his deceased wi e, who shortly re-
turned with them to her home in Mas
saehusetts. Fairbanks came to this
valley soon after to make new home
| full V expect n in little time to again
be able to gather his children under his
own root. bu man pro oses and God
disposes. S. on ter his arril al here,
while eng aged in his vocat on as farm
er, his team ran away and he was
thrown under wagon and hal one of
1 his sides literal y crushed. His woun s
were very painful. and trouble hime en-
yet. During this long illness physicians
sought to alleviate his agonies
by the use of ,pium, and with the
usual result. became an opium
the habit, which he knew was
deaden ng both body and mind. He
m ght still have recovered had he not
aga n been the Wet m of misfort ne.
| But again he was crushed and his limbs
were mangled-this time by the caving
o well VIII ch he was d gging. Then
his courage le t him, and he abandoned
himself to the use of the baleful- weed,
and or the past twelve or b teen years
he has been most of his time an inma g
the ounty infirmary, and constantly
so for the past six Years, until ten
months ago. when DIR. Kelly, one of the
visit ng ! hysicians became interested
in the Iuiet, patient old man. and de-
term ned to give him better home.
Since then Fairbanks, now upward of
seventy years of Pge, has been thorough
/. content and has earnestly striven to
make all possible returns IN the way of
light chores. for the kindness o. the
doctor, whom he regards in the light of
bene actor. A week ago he received
not received letter from any one in q
half score of years. and id not up
pose that outside of this valley there
" as friend an, where who remembered
him. His memory was weakened by
the drug which b d been his sole luxury
| Tor years. and he scar ely remembered
that he had ch ldren somewhere in the
W rid. The letter VS. opened with
trembling hands. 1t was signed with
q name which he had never heard, but
! it contained quer es which agitated him
greatly, although it was very brief 1t
merely asked if he ha ever lived at
Fruitvale. in slameda County. and if he
was the father OF daughter named
Albertina
He recognized the name of his daugh-
ter, of whom he had not heard for many
years. but Fruitva.e he knew n thing O..
/ He showed his etter to his bes fr end.
and described to him the location of his
former home, which is where Fruitvale
! Station now is. By the advice of the
d ctor he answered the etter. giving as
full an account OF his own and the his
tory OF his family as he could recall. A
few GAYS ago he received an ther letter
from the same m n, stating that he was
the husband OF Albert ma Fairbanks. for
whose father thev ad pent ten years
in una all n search, and that they be-
lieved him to be the man. He will be
sent to Oakland in lew davs for an n
terview, hut the circumstances are such
as to leave no room to oubt tnat the
old man has found home for his de
cl ming ca 8. and thai the ew wears re-
main ng to him wi be made as happy
as oss BILE. Dr. Kelly speaks him as
honest, in us'ricus and aithful, having
but one vice, and that the result of his
injuries. es.-SGn = ose (Cat) Mercury.
1t is cruel to keep checking boys
Little Frank was astride the sofa-
cushion, and was making his steed APP
parently ia sc 10 pace, with kicks
and lashes of his whip, and yelling at
the top of his lungs. His poor mother
bore it awhile. and then said, sternly:
a. raDkie stop making noise! Drive
your horse if you want to. but be
STILL 1t was verv quiet or a while,
and rankie's mother looked around to
see her bo tting astr de the so a
cushion, but e tears rolling down his
cheeks. "Why, frankie what is the
matter?" frankie so1bed out: 81 can't
make him go, mamma, unless / holler
to him. It's all ins de of e, and if it
DON come out / shall burstr -C.icd %
Netos.
"A Western editor speaks of Her
bert Cpencer as thinker from Think