The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1884-03-28
ing that PRESENCE maue maniIesU,
In light instead OF sound,

L
draws as nigh into his Creator as human
being may.
| Nothing moves but the dawn, whose
outgoing breath is that wan pellucid
blue that overruns the heavens-whose
footsteps fall in hyacinth and gold on
the edge of the sky, and who climbs
| with measureless calm, q grand aus
terity that O. times lifts 10 its own peace
the soul Of him who lonely worships
from below.
So will you see the skylark, as though
caught out Of herself by this moment
so solemnly sweet, so divinely still,
break suddenly away from earth, and
| springing sheer up to Heavens gate,
pour her exalted song in at it-then,
| that thrObbing rapture over. sink heavi-
| ly to earth. the music in her quenched
| for sorrow that she must return to the
haunts of men, nor make her home in
that cold, pure spleniOr which for a
moment her eager heart and wing have
touched. That mage voice breaks the
charm; slowly above the horizon shows
the blood-red disk of the sun, whose
beams, arrOws-straight, pierce to the
very heart of Nature-and 10! there is
| life in the air, there is color in the land
scape; like choir led by an invisible
hand uprise the million subtle sounds
and scents of the morning; day has
come, and with it unrest, joy, sorrow;
and we look to the fading jasper in you
| far-off sky with a dim mysterious pain
stirring at the heart, and the peans of
praise around us ring in our ears like
rude echoes of the worship that but now
| lay like an unuttered word 'twixt God
and the soul Of His creatures.
At such moment Mr.. Eyre, check
| ing his horse on the brow of hill that
overlooked his home, sent his glance in
search of the rugged pile that crouched
at the foot of the rock whence it sprung,
its summit clothed with gorse that at
sunset flung blOod-red banner above
the ancient house, so that far and wide
it was known as the Red Hall. But in
the smile of the morning one thought
less of the grim battements than of the
little flowers that crept between, and
peeped over to those brighter sisters
below, that blOOmed in the old court
yard that had once trembled to the
thunder of a thousand feet; and even as
a Sound-the most Joyous note surely in
the whole gamut of earthly sound, so
pure, so silvery-the laughter of a very
young child. 1t came as sudden, as
clear, as dropped notes of the skyark's
song-a moment, and something fitted
across the open
Moving light, as all young things,
As young birds and early wheat
When the wind blows over it
something that battered barefooted
over the stones as uncOncernedly as
rose-leaves sinking on moss; that held
a nightgown up in one dimpled hand,
and chuckled wisely to itself as it went,
never pausing till the garden was reach
ed, where its tiny feet left print of
fairies footsteps all along the silvered
grass.
Business was clearly in its mind, but,
to truant of three or whereabouts,
there are fifty things abroad at this
hour of the morning calculated to make
him forget why he got up thus early;
and it was not long before he fell in
with lame blackbird before whom he
went down on his hands and knees, the
two exchanging condolences without q
trace of shyness on either side; and
then there was squirrel to be assisted
in the fascinating duty of washing her
face, and birds to be peeped in
to-thOugh to be sure, he was soon
scared away from that by the fierce,
wistful eyes of the mother-bird; and
two field.m to be put back into a
hole: and altogether he wasted much
own head the fate that presently over
took him.
He was just trying to coax butter
fly to perch on his forefnger, when a
slight sound in the distance made his
heart sink like lead to where his shoes
ought to have been. He set off run
ming in the direction of a certain rose
bush, but too late; the next moment
something flashed past him, and the
coveted flower for which he had risen
so early, was snatched from him by his
pursuer's hand.
"And me got up to yerly," said Dody,
too detected even to hold his night
gown up, as he approached his brother.
Me opted the door all alone, and every
"You couldn't expect to beat me, you
know, Dody," said Do1ne, with some
contempt; land it's pity you can't
dress YOURSELF can"
You is not dressed proper" objected
Dody; ''yOur strings is hanging out"
20! that's nothing; Josephine often
does that when she's in hurry. say,
Dody, I know something that you
don't"
"Iss," said Dody, too Inundated by
his recent failure to hazard even guess
at the secret.
Nov what would you say to going
cowsliping this morning with mother?"
Dody clasped his hands in momentary
ecstasy, then his face fell.
Daddy won't let us, he said grave
ly; we've never been cowsiping wiz
mummy all our lives-not never"
''All our lives" said Doune, with i'm
mense contempt; ''why you're only four;
Pm five, and went cowsliping when
you were baby, eating pap and all
that"
you was baby once" said Dody,
with dignity; $50 was daddy. Wonder
if anybody ever 'macked daddy, eh,
DOonyp"
Nobody 'ud dare" said Doune; ''he
Furnishes everybody. l heard Josephine
tell Molly last night he was away pun
ishing poor woman, and that's why
we're going to have a treat"
"Poor 'ooman!" said Dody, shaking
his head with much concern; "rather
not go cowsiping than hurt her, Doony.
Wonder if he whipped her very hard?"
80! he doesn't whip her." said Doune.
II don't quite understand what he does,
but he won't be back till breakfast
time"