Middletown transcript., 1906-10-20
g | Ross

enlarge upon that. Tel her The
frontof the house looks ont upon
d slope that goes cradle knoliing:
down to the brook Half ways.
up the slope is q clnmp Of pop
pies where The old log house
stood that Salome and | went to.
housekeeping in.
Ill tell her, the elder promised
and rode away thiillxinsg
Expects to win a second wife
With remembrances of Tie Hrst.
Fortunately ] shall see her and
explain matters alittle before he
talks to lief.
Deacon Giyens hopes put q
brightness into his face tllat his.
son noticed as soon as lie drove
into the yard. There! Father
is singing aOrtonvilIe, : The first
time / have heard it f1om his lips
since mother died. exclaimed
William. We used to call fathers
tunes his barometer. II we
heard nOrtonville, Dennis, or
stSilyar StpSnt !, wa lxnaw thar
the mental horizon was clear and
rosy, but when he went around
Wailing, s'Ye sinners, dread the
Judgment day, Z we knew that
the atmosphere was very blue
and dismal.
Don't make fun OF father; he ia
too good to be laughed ut, said
Amelia severely
I know he is, aud / reverence
and respect him, as every one
does who knows him. / believe
he is the most truthful person I
ever knew. / do not believe he
could tell a lie if he tried. I
never knew him to conceal q
truth, 10 exaggerate or wilfully
mislead any one. How often ]
have heard him say to US chill
dren, "A lie isthe warp and tillin
of every kind OF wickedness. I
never knew q sin committed that
hadn't a lie mixed upin it, And
how he punished Us if we told a
lie! / recall one such occasion
distinctly. First, there was d
generous application of the 'ilo'
birch, after which The calprit's
mouth was washed with cayenne
tea; then came solitary hnprison-
ment with a diet of bread and
water; fourth, a sermon and a
prayer. | can remember every
word Of both. Then tears filled
William S eyes, as he added soft
ly: Al last mother came and put
her hand on the wicked ones head
and said Dear boy, lam so sorry.
That was all, but just then re-
peitance, that had been SO far
off during Lie other scenes, walk
ed il and made the sinner $ heart
as warm as the cayenne had his
mouth.
Elder Pingree's been over to
Hyler TO quarterly meeting, and
I'm going to see him; / want to
seei if they adopted any new res
olutions, said the deacon after a
few days after his talk with The
minister.
Evidently the resolutions
were favorable, for the deacon
came home singing, aOll. happy
day that fixed my choice. I The
next morning he came from his |
room dressed iii bis best suit, and
was Fastening from the house
when Amelia exclaimed
Why, father, how spruce you
look. Where are you goings
Oh, I'm just going over TO the /
village.
Let me harness your horse for
you, said William.
! guess ! amt SO decrepit but
what ! can harness a horse for
myself, was the deacon's smiling
res yonse
He had reached the stable be-
fore the last words were spoken,
and as he stepped nimbly about
the horse he seemed far from
decrepit. a strong constitution,
Inherited from generations Of
long lived ancestors, had been
supplemented BY d clean, temper.
ate life Of simple habits. His
II
fignre was erect and slender; his
hair, though snowy white, was
still abundant, and his eyes were
clear, blue and sparkling. Az