The Middleburgh post. [volume] (Middleburgh, Snyder Co., Pa.) 1883-1916, 1893-06-15

been working he sighed often, and
there came TO him the memory Of .
young man in the springtime Of youth.
and in the spring time Of the year GO
ing home TO claim . happy bride. II
was fall now, leaves decaying, frost
soon to come. When he looked at the
carriage turning into the driveway, he
thought:
"Wbat poor man or woman is this,
who, like myself at the end of life's
journey, comes here TO the poorhouse,
to be taken care Of by the town."
He did not see who alighted, nor
hear the kind voice of the overseer's
wife ask an old woman IL the journey
had been hard. For this was the first
journey Molly had taken in the train.
strangely enough.
The overseer's wife, Mrs. White,
made her comfortable and then going
to Mr.. White, said:
'How shall we tell old EbenP"
ooh, her husband answered easily,
1--WE will wait, and it will work abou,
itself"
The great bell rang for dinner.
Those OF the inmates who were able to
work in the field left their labor and
after washing themselves, sat down to
the midday meal. Those who still pre-.
served any interest or curiosity con.
cerning what passed on about them
eyed the new conner curiously. Eben
particularly felt himself looking again
and again. Not that he knew OF ever
having seen her, but he felt pity that
had never before been experienced
when others had come. Presently Mr..
White said:
"Eben, how did the potatoes seem
in that patch this morning?"
At the name the woman gave n start
and looked Mt the old man addressed,
but as the man answered she turned
away again with q sigh, and the mo.
mentary CLEAN of interest in her eyes
passed away.
As the dinner ended, Mrs. White
said to the old woman.
"Molly, if You are ready now, you
may pare those apples for sauce"
Eben went out saying to himself,
''Molly, Molly" and all the afternoon
one could hear him muttering, "Molly,
Molly"
During the afternoon Mrs. White
took the occasion to say:
"Molly, wasn't your first husbands
name Eben Eames?"
As Molly answered eyes, il was
he has been dead these many years, I"
one caught something of the old sweet.
ness of tone, though il did quaver and
crack.
"Did you notice Mr.. White spoke
to a man, calling him Eben?"
'Yes," answered Molly, without
much interest.
"This man once lived in Kinhope
many years ago, when he was young"
Molly gave her whole attention now.
"And," continued Mrs. White, "af.
ter living here several years, he went
away, went to California, where il was
afterwards reported he was dying. He
did not die. After recovering, the
luck he had been striving for did not
come immediately, and determined not
to return to his home and wife until
he was rich, he remained until his am.
bition was attained. In all this time
he had not sent any news of himself
but once, to his home, and that was
Immediately after his recovery from
the illness. This news never reached
his wife. He returned to Kinhope full
of the thought of the bright future, to
find his wife had left Kinhope, married
again. We have often heard him say
"How could have stayed away 80
long for money. money; l was blind. :"
But Molly had not heard the last
sentence. With one gasp she had laid
her head back and for the first time in
her seventy-eight years of life, tainted.
II had grown colder. Near the fire
sat two old people at dusk. The man
was saying:
"When l found We had married again,
! felt that was receivin' my judgment
from God Almighty for not bein' con.
tented with my lot when we was so
happy together, and then L keered no
more for the money had made an
gave it away. Yes, and threw it away,
an when the war broke out, listed
hoping to die, but thank the Lord he
KEEP me for this last happiness. Some
time after the war grew SO feeble, an
my money had nearly been lost in some
spekelation, so l had to come here"
And Molly, drawing her chair little
closer, laying her hand in his said lust
one word softly, full Of quiet thankful
ness: ''Eben. Yankee Blade.