The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1893-10-25

down tumultuously through the slulce-
gates, turned the great wheel which set
the machine in motion, escaped and went
on its way though the woods, q little
angry with dam and wheel, but rather
merry withal over its regained freedom.
All night long tie woods had re-echoed
the trili Of the nightingale, and all day
long the SOUND OF the woodman's Ak made
sweet music for the wives at Sagnsuck.
Down dseper in the forest and farthest
from the settlement-so far, in fact. that
the sound of his az could but family be
heard at the edge Of the wood-the man
who had blazed the way and led the colo
nists to their new home was preparing
his winter fuel on this autumn morning.
But no woman's heart would have quick
ened it's beat for moment with
thoughts of the chopper, had one heard
the ring of his Ak. or known II
was his. For Mark Hillary was the
black sheep Of Sagnauck, and up to date
had succeeded in acquiring for himself
reputation for roughness and, if not foi
crime, the near approach to it, which
caused his respectable neighbors to look
upon him as little better than heather,
if n OF worse. The minister said worse. "
and in truth his conduct, and open ridi.
cule of those institutions which our
Puritan forefathers held most dear, gave
ample reason for his low repute among
them. With q strong will-power, aided
by great physical strength, he had all his
life spurned control and resented any,
thing which sa 9ored of compulsion or
restriction upon his rights or freedom of
thought and action. Thus he had come
at once in contact with church and state.
Early in life Mark Hillary had crossed
the ocean and lsat his strength in build
ing up the New England, hoping in her
to find the freedom he had not secured in
old England, so when he encountered
the rigid laws of the Puritan govern
ment, which prescribed not only what he
must believe and do, but what he must
believe and think, his nature rebelled,
and, being called to account once or twice
for some careless remark concerning the
Puritan faith, he abjured religion and
took the position Of open antagonlsm to
the church. Then, being hadgered by
both church and state, both of which had
been founded to allow freedom of belief,
he became cynical and took care to spare
no one, not even The Rev Henry Gran
vile, If opportunity afforded sharp
repartee.
And yet q close observer must have
been able to detect some good In the man.
If he abiured his fellows, he at least
found friends among the lower animals,
and he was thoroughly at home In the
forest. His place was in the front, he
was wont to say, and, in time, he grew
accustomed to add, 4as Tar from the
white man as possible" So, after year
in the settlement, he had built him q
cabin in the woods. half mile west, and
rarely entered the village except on Sun
day and lecture days.
No doubt this seclusion had much to
do with the low repute he fell into, for
the man who despises the smallness OF
his companions is rarely loved by those
he esteems SO poorly, especially II no
takes no pains to conceal his opinion.
Bat out there by himself he communed
with nature in his rough way, was happy,
and would have been q tolerably decent
man had he been left alone. He knew
every bird around his cabin, and watched
over their nests as though they were his
own property.
NV village" he sometimes said to
himself, what more need have I OF
friends2"
He took genuine pleasure also in sit
ting at evening in his cabin door and
watching the tall trees, straight and stiff
in the calm summer, or bowing before
the storm which now and then passed
overhead. Once he was heard to speak
to them as if they had been endowed
with life, which speech, being carried to
the minister, c,used no little concern in
the society, and was carefully fled away
to be brought out ut some later day, when
chance should be given to force this
heather into conversion. or when his
offerses had accumulated sufficiently to
give pretext for driving him away.
On this same morning at nine o'clock
the minister left his sermon unfinished
upon his desk, and, with very severe
look upon his long, slim face, walked
with quick, nervous step down the one
street Of Sagnauck. -.
The Rev. Henry Granville was tall
and well-built man, but his ema clated
body, sunken. sallow cheeks, and the
nervous twitch Of his muscles as he
rested, stood or walked. showed that his
once strong constitution had been broken
either by too lengthy sittings by the study
lamp or by some secret trouble, which,
commencing with the mind, had gradu-
ally spread through his body until the
whole man had become its prey. The tall
frame was now little more than skeleton
and he hsbitually bowed his head-not in
self-depreciation, but through weakness
and nervousness. The reverend gentle
man would have found it difficult task
to have hidden from Justice had be ever
committed crime. He was at all times
and in all places Henry Granville, and
could no more have changed his charac-
teristics or concealed his peculisrities
than the typical leopard could change his
vari-colored skin. The minister was al
ways recognized as far as he could be
seen. His long black coat, which no one
ever saw him without, unless it might be
his wife, and rumor said that he even
slept in it; the nervous twitching of his
body, raising his shoulders and lowering
his head; his long strides in walking-all
these we're familiar to each person, great
or small, in the settlement, and never yet
had he been able to appear at one end Of
the street but that Dame Frouty, who
lived ct the opposite extreme and was
near-sighted. had not recognized him, if
she chanced to look his way.
On this particular morning the minis
ter was even more nervous than usual,
and deep cloud, portending severe dis
pleasure from some cause or other.
darkened his brow. And as he passed
quickly down the street he scarcely raised
his eyes from the ground to reply to the
respectful palutations rendered him by
those members of his flock whoE he met.
But, hurrying on. he paused net for an
instant until he entered the gate of the
great house of the village, and, after Q
sharp rap with the iron knocker, was ad-
mitted into the Office of the pioneer
Squire.