Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1885-09-11
CHAPTER XVIII.
DRIVEN TO THE MOUNTAINS.

bhiNhN ~ MotNIfhNS.
For half hour Martha Parsons re-
mained kneeling by the side of her Grip
plea child.
When she arose she was calm again,
but neither the boy nor herself spoke,
and finally sleep came and closed the
lad's eyelids, and he lay quietly resting
while his mother sat by his side as silent
and motionless as lie.
Her thoughts had gone back to the
days of her childhood and one by one
she recalled all the incidents of her past
life. She remembered the old church
where she had been christened and
near where she was born. In imagina-
ton she sat again in the strai ght-backed
pew in company with the homely, old
fashioned congregation and listened TO
the preaching of the venerable, gray
haired minister whose words she had
been taught were those of one commits
stoned to speak for God and Christ.
Again she heard the sermon in
which all men were commanded to &C.
cept their lot, whatever it might be, as
from the hand of the Most High, who
gave to each of His creatures, as to
Him seemed best, of the goods of this
world; heard, mingled with much of SYM
pathy for the impoverished and the out
east and the sinful, the poor hidden to
be content with the condition in life to
which it had pleased God in His wisdom
to call them:' and was dlmbly con-
scious of feeling surprised at herself,
and, may be, n triie frightened at dar-
ing to wonder for the first time in her
life il God ever authorized anybody to
say such things in His name; if, indeed,
it was not blasphemy 10 tell the poor,
who were made poor by being robbed,
and the rich, who were made rich by
the robbery, that such was Gods will,
and bidding them to be content i'll the
condition in which they We're thus
placed.
She recalled the talks which she and
John had during the days of their
courtship and after their marriage.
! What plans they had laid how hopeful
they had been of the future; how pros
perolS they had meant to be; and how
much pleasure they had taken in think
ing of the good they would do, and of
the quiet old age they were to spend
| together after the hurry of life was over
and their children settled comfortably
near them, receiving and entitled to the
respect and esteem of their neighbors.
| They had worked hard: they had
| been honest; they had reared their chill
! dren to be worthy members of society;
they had done all they knew how to elo
to make the world better for their hay
| ing lived in it; and now, their home
| lost, their children scattered, she sat by
the bedside OF her crippled child at mid
night, waiting for the return of her hus-
band, with n great fear at her heart that
he, too, had been swallowed up by the
terrible flood.
The moan which involuntarily es-
capped her lips as her mind returned to
the present awoke Johnny; but seeing
his mother sitting by his side he did moi
cry or speak, but lay quietly gazing into
her face for n time and then his quick
hearing caught n sound which had es.
capped the duller ear of his mother, and
a look, half of inquiry, half of fear,
passed over his face, but still he did moi
speak,
Again the sound, and now his mother
hears it, too-the neighing Of n horse
upon the winding bluff road back of the
house; then an answering neigh from
the hill pasture, and both know that the
| husband and father has returned.
Hurrying to the door, Mrs. Parsons
heard the pasture bars let down; heard
the short whinny of recognition and
welcome which the horses exchanged
| as the home-comer entered the field,
then heard the barn door open as the
rider went to hang up his saddle; then
the footsteps turned towards the house,
and moment later John Parsons
weary and covered with mud, but sound
of limb, entered and bending down
kissed wife and child
II s'pose you an Johnny hey been
worried most to death about me-
Marty" he said, "but | couldn't very
well help it, leastwise thought it besi
to do as done"
''Yes. dear, we have been fearful thai
something had happened you. Did you
meet with an accident. or what was the
matterp know you must be tired and
hungry, whatever it was, and I'll have
a cup of tea for you just as soon as the
kettle boils again. 1t won't take but q
moment; it was boiling only little Bit
ago."
"Wall, you see when / got to town ]
concluded 10 ask around an see If
could hear of place for rent or to sell
on time, an aftor inquirln' q spell
heard OF claim, mostly wo' thless. bui
with enough good land 10 mako u llYin'
/ mn that NOsa fnp fnla nn fnndQ uttaAn