St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1893-12-24

on the other hand, he Is restless like
Hamlet's father, and reyjsits Ills old
familiar Ways, day Or night, Re mist
have strange, incoRmupicable thoughts
wnen ne muses. on ali the energies. eli-
thnsiasm and mony he lavished In build
ing home for the unmarried mothers
of shameless young Vikings, whose
5wailing hot nights of the late summer
might make him wish. were he not dis
embodied. that he too. like the royal
Dane had lead in the porches of his ear
yea in both.
Benevolent women give generously to
the home, but 1t is doubtful whether
sone among them would be willing to
give sleep night after night during the
heated term.
: Tired natures sweet restorer had a
struggle In sleeping the senses in for
getfulness within sound of the vigorous
AND almost vengeful crying of the lusty
infant, who, in half the July nights,
seemed to concentrate the lamentations
of his kind from the time of Ishmael.
Thomas de Quincy, the greatest mas
tersof eloquent and majestic English
diction, wrote of childhood as "a mighty
sorrow without voice." But this pa
thetlc assertion must be taken with
illimitable grains of opium instead of
the ordinary corrective salt.
The man, who. in the famous Edin-
boro' Noctes is set down with some ex-
aggeratiOn, of course) as calling for a
''tumbler OF laudanum, hot and strong"
when Glenlivat made the other convives
happy, was, fortunately for himself, in
this particular away off from such
bowling fact to the average human
being, conventionally given to the
drinks that, alas, neither cheer nor in
ebriate, but put wire edge on wakeful-
ness. HIS senses were so enWrapt by
clouds of opium, and his mind so re-
mote in those wondrous flights of the
solemn Confessions, that doubtless the
concerted crying of the biggest Amer
lean baby show would probably seem to
De Quincy like the buZzing of belated
and enfeebled mosquito tagging on the
scene when his victims blood was chill
in early autumn.
HoWsoever the sounds may affect the
ghoStly erstwhile owner of this sadly
perverted home of his, they and the
sights must constitute sort OF Wal
purgls night phantasma to him. Above
the cracked ammo domini panel over the
front entrance the broken windows Of
the attic are stopped with parts of paste
board boxes or other haphaZard make
shifts. On the north side rags have
done Haunting duty to keep the wind
away. During the summer the whilom
carefully kept lawn was a common for
mau and beast. and happy stamping
ground for boys.
EJAs early as a. m. nondescript old
man wearing the most time-battered
straw hat. the top of the crown wholly
gone, showing bald head like an egg
i'll nest. led in cow who beloved
plaintively every few minutes after he
tethered ana left her. TO the wretched
insomnolent worn with the nights re-
luctant vigil, it seemed the transmlgra-
ton of the baby pro tenn into the bovine
basSo. The attention the old man gave
that cow was edifying. With branch
he kept the flies away, and he moved
her from place to place when the grass
was eaten too close for her enjoyment.
He brought water two or three times
a day. and stood by her most
of the time. Occasionally he read
a paper-perhaps for her ben
eft as she Illuminated In the
shade during the afternoon sultrness.
Vainly did the home protest against the
beastly intrusion, but the aged tres
paSSer was never once moved from the
belief that the whole place was common
property. In one sense he was justified
in his presumption. Appearances GER
tainly seemed to bear him out in pre-
empting claim. The once precious
grass was trodden by every vagrant and
lazy foot preferring short cut TO the
regular walk. One trail permanently
worn down by the inmates of the home
furnishes a perennial study in blondes
of every varying shade Of yellOw-but
of one style of looks, hardly Titan
esQue.
David danced and sung psalms, sim
ner though he was, while to the bal
anced and retributive standard, his
levlty was unseemly at any time, before
or after his frailties. Gloom and the
Scarlet Letter was the lifelong sentence
of Hester Prynne. No joyous rehaDili-
tation was possible to her, and as for
psalm-singing-let alone dancing-why,
jusl think of it! A tolerant age has
changed all that. There is no telling
the penitents by outward signs now.
Blithe unconcern has replaced the old
outward manifestations and restrictions
of repentance.
The home women carry their babies
in and out with jocund Indifference to
their sole and sorrowful ownership of
them.
Maybe it is just as we'll that it should
be SO. after all the ages that SO much
misery, punishment and expiration have
been meted to such offenders.
Yet, once in while there is an unre-
generate longing for one hour of the old
times of Scarlet Letter and Guilty stool
as for provocation. when the sing-as-
you-please, hit-or-miss attack on kew
and note of Sunday psaImody, to a bag
pipey organ, floats out on the summer
quiet in such atrocious and composite
discOrd that it is actiOnable.
You remember the story told of John
Randolph'S death bed in Philadelphia,
where he was run down in the street
by porter carrying a trunk which fell
upon Randolph, causing mortal hurt.
A Methodist minister was called in to
pray for and with him. Before he had
spoken two sentences the choleric,
half-mad Virginian said, peremptorily,
Pray dramatically, sir, or must be
compelled to say q. d-mn you"
o what would his testy soul be i'm
PEELED to calculate were he forced to
hear the devotional singing in the For
saken Home of the st. Paul man whose
solace it was in the last years of his
earthly existence?