The Atlanta constitution., 1900-01-01

We nnd the sweetest comfort from
The scenes that time has spun us;
lis tnen we retrospect the way
And find that life's completeness
Is buiit upon us day by day
It's bitter and its sweetness;
what would give. and. reader. you,
if time could backward flow
And scenes restore and joys renew
That now SO well we known
That now We know but never knew
TIL time had onward spun u.s.
To catch the Icy breeze that blew
The grip OF age upon us?
II there ever Is a time when old folks
should be excused for living over again
the years that are lost, It s during the
Christmas holidays-it may be idle, but
there Is comfort in II that they find no.
where else.
Brown and me have been indulging our
selves In study of the years that have
long been passed. and only once ana
awhile has the silence been broken around
our fireside for three nights past We
have Travelled over the roads that we
used to travel. mingled with the folks
that we knew. went TO the parties that
we used to like SO well, and to tho ola
church and the school and the pretty
girls and the good boys that we knew
have been with us just as they used to
appear. And we have rambled over the
old homo place Just as we used to ram
BILE. jumped the ditches climbed the
fences. rolled on the grass. swung on the
coupling pole of the wagon that stuck out
behind and bounced US up and down from
the jolts over the rows. All of this we
have acknowledged to each other as be-
ing our thoughts. but there are some
things that neither one has mentioned
our little sweethearts. l know that
Brown has been with a little frecls-
led-faced. blue-eyed girl some of this
time. and played with her over the doo-
die holes and patted sand upon her feet
70 make frog-houses. and so on, but the
least said about this tho better, perhaps.
but so It is. and what love is sweeter
than this little childhood love?
Perhaps we old folks carried this mood
of silence and study over the past too
far. at least tho young people thought
so. and stirred up up after supper last
night They would have it that we
should give them the benefit of our
thoughts and this led to some good ola
songs that have long been out of use ana
forgot. perhaps. by many who used to
sing them and thought them fine at the
time. That Is one thing that Brown can
do. lie can sing. and his wife can sing.
and my old lady Is not slow on this IA
you can get her started. And SO we sang
for the benefit OF the youngsters and to
show them the popular songs of the long
ago. Brown led:
"An the merry month Of May
When the green buds were swelling.
Young Jimmie on his deathbed lay
For the love of Bobry Allen.
Young Jimmie died on Saturday,
And Bobry died on Sunday.
The mother died for the love OF both.
She died on Easter Monday.
Sweet Jimmie was buried IN one church
yard,
And Bobry in another,
And out of his there grew a rose
And out OF hers a brier.'
! doubr II we get this exactly right.
but If you want to hear a good old-fash-
toned song ask most any old person ana
they will sing 1t for you. But we soon
saw that this was too solemn for our
crowd. and went off on livelier tune.
but just as old:
"oh, where have you been. Billie. boy.
oh. where have you been my charming
BjllieT'
IT have been 20 seek wife; she's the
joy OF my life.
But she's a young thing-too young 10
leave her mamma"
Ibid she ask you in, Billie. boy. Billie
Did she ask you In. my darling. Bllie?'
"She asked me in with a dimple in her
chin.
But she's young thing-too young 10
leave her mamma
Can she make a cherry pie, Billie. boy
Billie, boy.
Can she mako cherry pie. my charming
Billie?"
cat can wink her eye.
But she's young thing-too young 10
leave her mamma"
That's the biggest fool song ] ever
heard" whispered a youngster, as he
skipped out to the water bucket. singing:
20. Bonnie Annie Laurie. or any other
man.
Nelly BLY, stuck her foot In her
HooD-te-do-dem-do."
leave II to the reader TO say which
Is the biggest fool song.
] am inclined 10 think that the young
sters got enough OF our sort OF songs, or
else they got enough of Browns voice
for they changed the subject by asking us
what We had been studying over II
turned out that a little grave we left be-
hind us in Pike had been upperYnost IN
the women's thoughts and this brought
on the story os that grave
Away back yonder, when we were vounc
wife decided TO go across the creek TO
spend tho highland It was the night
before New Year OF 1915 Just as we
went out OF our yard . lot OF movers
stopped in the wood grove by the GIN
house.
I'VE are going to use water from your
spring tonight" said one OF the movers
as we approached their camping place.
IL was al, right. of course. but it start
ed conversation which Informed us
that they We're from down in Monroe
county and were bound for Texas. over
to one side by a fire Just started IA young
mother had taken seat on a box, with
as pretty babe in her arms as you ever
laid eyes upon. When Mrs Brown
walked near the little thing, it almost
jumped out of its mothers arms, laugh
ing and Growing as sweet babies 90.
THAT Is not grandma, honey" said the
young mother, as she caught a better
hold of the child and brushed tear from
her eye, for II was hard for young moth
ers to move to Texas I'm those days. We
tarried there with the campers long
enough for US all to fall in love with the
babe and the mother. but when we left
them there was no thought but that we
had heard the last of them
1t was some two or three days before
We returned from over the creek. Tho
movers were gone, some scattered fodder
and corn and the ashes of the camp
fire was all we saw at first. and was ali
we expected, but latter. over in the cor
ner of the fence we found "A little grave
rounded up and upon II was note in
forming us that the little thing had died
OF Group upon the night We left them.