Semi-weekly south Kentuckian., 1885-05-05
AN EASTER MEMORIAL.
A Charity Which Grew Out OF
Great Tribulation.

Faster is n particularly impressive fes-
tival in one of the charitable institutions Of
u great Western city. Besides its religious
significance, the day has very joyful asso'
Citations FOR the founders of the establish
nIent. From that center many blessings
III late to the very poor-substantial gifts
Us well as flowers, pictures and trifling
articles OF ndornment, that give them
gimpses of the innocent pleasures of life,
anl help to maintain something of its
grnces in the desolate homes.
This charity probably differs from every
other institution in the world. 1t is man
agel by two women, born to entirely diff
irrent stations of life, and it is the result OF
hitter humiliation and afiliction from which
each had suffered in her respective sphere.
This establishment has no specially; 1t
is hospital, an orphan asylum, found
lings' home, refuge for working girls out
pmplOvment. ANYTHING that comforts
and uplitts the sick, the despairing, the err
ring. Ii any preference be shown it is for
those who, by some reverse of fortune,
h I'VE been degra led from a position in
which they had the means of enjoying the
, com -orts and luxurics Of life. This strange
Ncharity has Il stranger history, dating back
me years to seemingly irrelevant events.
Any reminder Of Il ,ath is startlingly in
con rupus cl SLY following wedding festiv-
ii.s. 1t was with 1nse of bewilderment,
almost of injury. that Fred Vernon read
the telegram which recalled him from his
wedding tour to his uncle's funeral. There
was no bond of ar ,ction between him and
the dead man. onl the tie of relationship
aud common business interests.
The bride, enjoying the regal supremacy
f.n N, Lot Of Htrf
once in lifetime, was very unreasonable
in her objections to the proposed journey
when it was decided that she could not
accompany her husband, and she quoted
sO3re inpracticable promises.
1T is only n week since you told me that
we would never again be separated for
more than u single day, and now you are
y"ing to leave me in this dreadful western
civ while you rush back to New York
alone. You must remember what you said
to me in the carriage when we were driving
away from Trinity"
The recollection is too much for Gertrude.
Tears fill her pretty brown eyes, sobs sup
press her voice, but even this first outburst
OF -rief is powerless to induce the husband
to waver in n matter of duty, and the
bi e at length yields reluctant consent
10 The inevitable.
The return journey was a dreary con-
trast to the one that had so lately preceded
it. For the first few hours it was devoid
o. all interest to the traveller, who had not
the piIt Of prophecy to foresce that the
ev'nts of that day would determine his
dies my and that of hundreds of other peo-
pl' in years of the distant future.
No uncommon incident marked the pass
i1Iyy hours of the morning. The train-boy
placed his most alluring wares beside the
passenger, whom he mentally designated
MS the "glum feller," but no sales resulted
Mr.. Vernon read nothing except letter
from his most intimate friend, a man
who lived in more raritied atmosphere
than himself-in world of dreams
anl speculations little above the
comprehension of the prosperous New
York merchant, who had, however,
the rare faculty of tolerating fancies which
he coull not quite understand. The letter
contained this significant paragraph;
40 you ever speculate upon the people
who are coming to meet you from every di
rcction, aud through al the years of the
future-thoSe whose influence Will have grea
weight in shaping your destiny, and upor
whom yolr individuality will react2 ] wa'
interested recently in seeing an idea OF thi,
X nd in Il book, which read quite through
without finding anything of value to me eX
cupt tn paragraph:
"'when two friends happen to meet in tn,
rtreet do they look back along the process
son of small circumstances which has LEI
them forth from the starting point of thel
own houses to the same spot ut the SAINT
timer Not ona man In ten thousand eve
thinks of max ny such fantastic inquiry Il
this. and consequently not one man in tel
Thousand living In the midst of reality ha
discovered that he is also living in the mids
OF romance.
The gloomy traveller laid the letter aside
when his attention was attracted by
cliild's cry. lie was never SO self-absorbe,
Esto stight an appeal to his sympathy
4 lie had probably been victimiZed by NOR
= New York impUstnrs than any one els
who hrl tived for twenty five years in tn
Ertut city, where the majority of peopl
soon became Indifferent to the sight @
poverty and sulr r.ng. There was no de
eeption in this child's wailing protes
against the discomforts of travel and tn
mother was glad to intrust it to stranger
care. The little one slept some hours on
bed improvised from Mr.. Vernon's over
coat. Meantime he noticed that the mothe
looked so disconsolate that he could not re
frain from Offering to be of service. Iii
overtures were declined in a tone of d,
spairing resi- snation.
"No, thank you, nobody can help me,
However she told her pathetic story yer
simply and briefly:
"We're like thousands of others-th
war ruined us, though it came about in
stranye way. Jim an me had our prett
home on til outskirts OF Detroit. He's
carpenter ana had made everything hit
for mo. wouldn't let him 20 TO the wa
and there's folks that thinks what happent
was a punslm,nt on me, though I'm SUI
he has th4 wJrSJ Of il.
"'rher. was La.'racis near us all throua