Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-12-21
NT. WiG8ate'S CHi tnaS Dinner.
~ cosLE DOUGLAS.


crowd. and rl1 frosty atmosphere was
lss1raut with gay voices ana laughter as
1l-- Wingafa turned from it into the more
Exclusive and quiet quarter wherein he
lad his residence. He paused a moment
with bis key in tie lock. and the big.
GRASSY letters, 81. Alien Wingate," on the
door plate Staring him 0ut Of countenance.
10 glance back a. the twinkling lights of
t11 avenue and Tie softer foods that
15urcI through lace-eurt4Ined and frosted
window panes along the street. Every
household seemed 90 be gathered at its
own iireside. and vet tue streets over
1OWed @ltn moving life. for n lacked but
2 Jay Or two Of Christmas. and the pulses
vi tne universe were quIrkened.
a small house opposite, sitting close to
--e sidewalk, had IFS parior curtains
drawn back; the room vas ruddy with
ire.ight. ana in the generous blaze a
young girl romped ana fr0lcbed with
l9vy % children tie whole group resem-
8lin- family ci playful kittens.
The dark aui massive mansion. which
.3-e The name oi j. Allen Wineate. was
Llt "a cheerful aalirE iOn 10 enter on
Crisp winter night. &c was so s0mbre as
% De- q blot on the general hIi htness of
me neigl10rlo-d, uo kindly human iace
tr voice greeted tle ineomer; nos even "a
-senCiy cur snapped him "a welcome.
iI-.. there was % lu-e stag dog on the
reIll7 s., di-alE=d. pamDous animal.
li-F ported DIS Lis owner FROM France
~ immense expense. who felt HE
cUu Importance, VINO could bark
-uen-.y in French. but WnO scorned
sI-l triridlitias rs barking home COM
l- - tbs master. inat master had but
sA IS. upa.lis- W.,u his kind: be- was at
4 "a s. er saee o. "a
ais luus keeper. Mrs. Flanagan was a
hilarious sou.. f1ud Ol - BIT - com
1ary.' and Lsuch given 90 gathering ler
enormous tri1e of relatives about her.
THESE relatives, according rO Mrs. Flan-
1l9au, consisted almost entirely Of cOus-
ms. -Hr tu. ~. -t part Invisible, ard eX-
I-1i'ed SOME Of Lbe most remarkable and
any large family on record. When they
Ti-i- t ler. gLie1 was anna .ngiv often,
hey appeared 30 be chi Az engaged i'm
--a- rius the furniture about and rolling
A. Hrvu stairs, AND Dr. TOOK :t' iirs. Fiauni-
aa' s F0cuerating strength apparently 10
ll-2y Che paudemJuium. ON one occasion.
vrH-ll Iue LU4Dar iu lut rear REGIONS was
specially terrific, lr Nil-ate started To
af stl-ata and ll iui his noussSeeper iy-
-l- ID heap no tho tuut of the back
stairs. ~lG picked herself up, very red
ll'ggi-in". "N1u scc- sir, no was me
lusiu, am nos qUeCr-iiSe an be always
uIa-r me, iuGad. lie dnes. an SCI he,
Mary flanagan SEE he, IN lay you
.In'c get down stairs as fast as can
-sz he. an with that he gave me a bit Of
push am Z feii-lhat's III, sir, indaGe."
here was aC atmosphere about her sus-
/ .ciCusiv suggestive of his hest brandy,
bat SIZE vowed by all the saints in the
sn.H al 1r.tH 81 IN
llint." when size tUok for her rheumatism
and declared this new remedy did her "a
w-lrrUld of GOOD" so the master of the
house was fam to shut of the food gates
OF her explanations and return 10 bis
SON are aud solitary musings.
lie Cilssu .ue street t,OOr reluctantly
= . Il t ard fingered about the vast halls
aud looked INTO the great, dark unused
vLrlors and reception rooms. Inc! were
ike splendid mausOleumS and he with
dew. shuGdering, and CROPPED bis way TO
the little study on the other side OF the
house. where he was accustomed to hold
his lOuely night watches and ponder ms
bitter thoughts. 10 was unllghted and
cherries. and the fire in the CRATE showed
only titful CLEAN among the ashes. He
withdrew the curtain from the window
and looked again, long and almost enVl-
ouslY at the bright room across the way,
IS though both to relinquish the happy
rieture: the children hyd drawn about the
hearth now and were listening eagerly to
a story from the lips Of the elder girl.
This girl was about the only one OF his
ueighEOrs with whom he was On any
terms of kindly intimacy. She was
music teacher, an orphan girl or perhaps
twenty. whom her landlady loved like
daughter, and for whom the children
would cheeTfullY have land down their
lives. Every morning as he left his door
she started on the rounds of her busy day,
for she had a gOOdly list Of scholars and
Gang in the choir of fashionable church,
and was altogether as brave and DlIthe,
as sunshinY and comforting little wo-
man as one could find in years travel.
The gray-haired man and the blooming
girl usually met at the crossing, at first
with a hall smile and afterward with a
cherry "gOOd morning" on her part and
occasionally a hand-shake from him, and
hy-and-bY, as their ways would lie in the
same direction, they walked block or so
together. He was drawn toward her at
first because she looked so like the little
daughter he had lost so long ago, his dead
Lily, for whom the fathers heart had
never ceased its smOthered aching. She
had the same sweet name, the same full
dark eyes and sunny smile; her hair was
1rOTner, for the dead Lily's bright head
had never lost its hue of baby gold when
il Law in the coffin. His own child, too,
would be now about the same age, were
she in life. he tTembled to think Of her
facing the hard world like this patient
little Lily Sterling. How the memory of
that little grave filed his heart tonight.
There was another close beside it, white
under the winter SHOWS, for the dear
mother had not waited long from her
ri oh
one mOre-yes, thOre was one far out on
the Mexican plains, in that horror Of
loneliness, with the quiet stars shining on
forever over it. That was something that
drove him mad to remember.
Allen Wingate was a stern and an
exact man. Tight" and ''clOse'' his bu-
siness associates called him, but he locked
some tOrturing spirits in his own bosom
securely from the world, and let them
feed upon his heart in silence and apart.
once it had not been so-he had been blest
with such lot as falls to few mortals.
But he had not called his blessing by its
name nor lifted thankful prayer as his
daily Offering. He took il as bis due. z
thing to be expected, ana rejOiced IL IL.
He knew the world around him was full
of graves, and each upheaval Of the sod
tore some human heartstrings in helpless
agony; Dut he was careless OF sympathy,
his own cup of happiness seemed so full
he could never drain il dry. At last the
Christening hand was laid upon him; his
little daughter was taken and his heart
and soul refused to be cOmforted. He could
not be resigned; he chafed and rebeled
and turned from gentler thoughts to his
own deep despair. Then the dear, sweet
mother closed her eyes in death, and he
was alone, save one. This was his first
born, his high-spirited, passionate, head
strong bOy-full Of the quick impulses of
youth, rash and self-wIlled, but with q
waFm and loving heart withal, which the
father had never entirely understood.
While the little mother lived he had never
needed curbing other than her loving
couneels: she gathered heF little brood
under her wings and there was never q
Earring discord in the household music.
hut with her death came a change; parent
= and child were not In unison: they could
nos understand each others desires and
purposes, and they grew apart day
by day. He revolted from the
h drHdgeFy Of his fathers counting
house and pleaded for the univer.
sity. Once fitted TO its routine his way
ward impulses sought some diversion
from "grubbing among Greek rOOts;" he
was arraigned for some wild college
prank growing out of his mischief loving
spirit, and Immediately returned 10 bis
home. His father, impatient and irri.
tated, upbraided him harslly; the boy
stunG with n sense Of wrong, retOrted in
tbe hot temper of youth, but knocked in
vain at the doors Of his parents blinded
Judgment.
Father, you are unjust-yes, more