The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1894-07-07
A SILENT TRAGEDY.
HEROlSM OF MOTHER IN THE
CUMBERLAND MOUNTAINS.

want Her Daughters to Learn OF Bright
or Things beyond Their Reach.
There are tragedies in nearly all peo-
pies lives, though some may never know
them by that name. We find them. too.
In most unexpected places, which re-
minds mo that one day stopped for
dinner at house in the Cumberland
mountains so deep in the businesses that
had to employ guido to show me the
way to the first road that would take mo
out to the county road. The family con-
sisted of Il man and wife, with six dauah-
ters, and more ignorant lot of people
think mover saw. After the dinner
OF bacon, beans and corn bread, the man
and girls went back to the field, and I
talked awhile to the woman before re-
Stunning my journey. She was typical
but there was CLEAN Of intelligence In
her face. quite unlike the lack lusterness
or the usual woman of tho mountains.
Don't you get very lonely, away off
here to yourselfp' asked her as she
busted about the table.
II reckon I mought, of had time
she replied. "but 1 don't give myself
no time to think about things like that"
land what about your girls, Don't
they want to get out among peopleT'
mot ez over heerd em say"
"Do they go to school in winterY'
"No."
"Have they never beenr'
Not yit," this half apologetically.
do they have anything to readr'
''They can't read"
Cant readT' repeated in surprise,
for even though the older mountaineers
cannot read and write, as rule, the
younger ones, under moro modern civ
ilization, con.
mo, they can't" she said rs If irri-
tated by my tone.
"Are you SO far from tho schoolhousc
that you can't send themf" was my next
venture.
Its two miles, and they could go, but
won't let EN-"
This was Il new phase, and the matter
became moro interesting.
''Why not:' l asked, with persist
ence that was risky.
She stopped her work and turned her
face to me.
'Them gals" she said, don't know
nothin but these here mountains and
that thar river down thar; they don't
know what is goin on in the world out
side; they never seen no steam cars ner
boats ner telegrafts ncr telephones ner
fine houses ner beautiful clos her gen
tlemen ner Indies; they don't hardly
know thar's such, but do, fer I've saw
people ez hez seen 'cm, and they've told
me. Mnny's the night I've gone to bed
and cried myself to sleep in the loft that
wuz my bedroom, thinkin about what
thar wuz In the world that couldn't
even hope to git look at got so 1
could read, and then I read about 'em
all. and that made it wuss- Thar wuz
nothin but mountains and loneliness and
silence fer me, and l couldn't help nv
self nohow.
Then / married Jim, and we come
here. Jim can't read ner write, and the
pore Teller is satisfied, fer he don't know
no more than the gals does and they're
company fer each other. The gals
might git like wuz Of they larnt readin
and writin, and how could they ever git
away frum this place and go among SIGH
different things? They couldn't, list tho
same ez ! couldn't, and eff kin keep 'en
frum KNOWN whut's away off whar the
mountains amt, ner the lonesomeness,
ner the silence I'm goin ter do it and let
'em live and die right here whar they
air heap better satisfied than Their
mother has ever been, though they never
heered her say nothin about it, one way
ner tother, and they never will"
The hard lines of determination had
come into her face when she began
speaking, and l could see they were
pressing back the tears of disappoint-
ment as she talked to me, and when she
turned to her work again she brushed
her eyes hastily, while sat there think
ing OK the silent heroism and uncomplain-
ing sacrifice of this woman, longing in
the solitude of the mountains for the
breadth and the beauty of the world be-
You'd them, yet never voicing her wish;
walking straight through the darkness
of ignorance, knowing of the light above
it, standing fast with her family about
her, as the millions rushed on toward
the higher attainments of life, crushing
her soul down into its narrow confines
and keeping it there, because she realized
that for her and for hers this was tho
earth and the fullness thereof.-Detroit
Free Press.
ElIenborough's Sarcasm.
Lord Peterborough was famous for
sarcastic sDcecheS to counsel who con-