Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1886-02-17
OLD DAME URSULA.
Strange Meeting Of Mother and
Son Under the Castle Walls.

The sun of an October afternoon
shone in at the open door, the kettle
sang merrily upon the hearth, old
Peter, the cat, was brushing up his
black coat in front of the blazing fire,
as the little old woman took down a
wooden dipper from shelf in the cor
ner of the room. and threw a ragged
shawl over her shoulders to go out and
milk the goats.
She was poor, weak old woman
who lived all alone with only her cat
and her goats. 1t was rude, miser-
able howell that she lived in. with a
leaky, straw-thatched roof. The walls
were cracked and broken, aud there
was only one Window quaint.
square easement with latticed bars
across il in checkers. The fireplace
was of stone, in the middle of the
room, the smoke passing out from a
hole in the roof. There were no stoves
in those days, and even chimneys were
rare.
1t was long. long ago, in the rude,
gloomy days of the Middle Ages. War
was the principal employment of
the time, and Il very savage war was
going on in the very country where the
Little old woman lived. 1t seemed as
if fighting was about all they cared for
in those days. At least the little old
woman thought SO.
Her name was Ursula, and she was q
widow. Her husband had been killed
in one of the many battles of the war,
and her son, fine strong lad of egh-
teen, had gone away with one of the
great lords of the country, and she
did not know but that he was killed.
too. She had neither seen nor heard
from him for a number of years. You
must know she felt very sad and DESC
late at being thus left alone in her old
age. But she was brave, pious old
soul, and managed TO subsist quite
comfortably upon the milk of her two
goats, and the few vegetables she
raised on the little plat of ground at
the rear of the cottage.
| This season, however, had been I'M
usually severe. 1t was dry summer,
with very little rain, and the grass was
getting short and brown in front of
the little cottage. The whole moor
land for miles around was parched and
withered by the summer drought. The
poor goats grew thinner day by day,
and every night the widow found less
milk in her wooden dipper. Tonight,
rs she glanced at the very small guam
tity, sho uttered sigh, and q weary,
detected look came over the old wrin-
killed. face.
1t was good face, though withered
and wrinkled. The lines were all
kindly ones, and the brown, weather.
beaten face, lighted up by the dark,
honest eyes that had not lost their lus-
ter, and with the silver hair creeping
from the scarlet Golf. was eminently
prepossessing. Dame Ursula was a
praying Christian woman, and the
manner of her life had stamped itself
upon her countenance.
She stood in the doorway of her
hovel rs the sun went down, shading
her aged eyes with one hand, and gaz.
ing down into the valley of tho Till.
There the intervales spread broad and
fair, and the grass grew rich and
green. There was pasturage for her
goats If only they were there. But
| uOW was oHNs "a WAN Olu MOluuu, u
drive them that distance, to go so fat
from home. that too, when bands OF
fierce soldiery were riding over the
country, pillaging and numbering
wherever they went, 1t was only q few
days before that troop of marauders
drove of the best COW of one Of hei
ncighbors, boldly excusng themselves
because Earl Percy stood in need Of
provisions.
But the meadows looked SO fair in
the sunset radiance, and her half
starved animals were so thin and
bleated so piteously, that the induce.
ment was too strong TO resist. She
could drive them down in tho night
time, and before the morning light
dawncd she could be back ut her cot
tage again. Ii would be no easy task
for her old limbs. but she could do il,
and she could almost see the looks OF
gratitude in the eyes of the gentle
creatures, thanking her for her trouble.
Oh. If Giles was only at homo. she
thought, what Joy aud q consolation
he would be To her The tear-drop.
glistened in her Dyes us she thought OF
the absent one, who for all she knew
might have found his grave beyond the
eaas by this time,