The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-07-19

turn. One night siIas took the night watch, which was to last till o'clock in the morning. when he was to be re- iieved by William.
 When Silas sat down by his bedside the old man was breathing peacefully. The next conscious knowledge that came to the young weaver was that he was staring down at dead man whose limbs had already become rigid. He looked at his watch. It was o'clock In the morning. How was 1t that William had not arrived. He has, tened to summon the clergyman and some friends and went home to rest. But he was summoned to the chapel soon after daylight. He found the which he was led. There he waited, puzzled, with the eyes of those who to him represented Gods people. fixed sol- emniy upon him.
 The clergyman held up Silas Mar ner's pocketknife and asked him where he had left 1t. siias could not remem- Der that he had left 1t anywhere. He was exhorted to repent and confess. The knife had been found in the bu- In the place where the bag of church money had been. Some hand had re- moved that bag, and whose hand could 1t be If not the hand of the man to whom the knife belonged7
 For some time silas was mute with astonishment. Then he said: God will clear me. Search ms and my dwelling"
 The search was made. It ended in William Dane finding the empty bag tucked behind the chest of drawers in Silas Marner's chamb Der. On this Will liam exhorted his friend to confess. Si- las turned look of keen reproach on him and said: William, for nine years that you have known me. have you ever known me to tell lie? But God will clear me-"
 know what you may have done in the secret chambers of your heart to give satsn an advantage over youT
 Silas looked flxedly at William. Sud- denly he said:
 ' remember now. The knife wasn't in my pocket"
 The others inquired what he meant. but he replied only: T am sore strick- en. can say nothing. God will clear me."
 On the return to the vestry 1t was decided that as resort to law was against the principles of the chapel they would do justice by praying and drawing lots. passing the latter method on their construction of Biblical au- thoriry.
 The lots declared that he was guilty. He was suspended at once from church membership and solcmniy adjured to render up the stolen money. He lis- tened in silence. Then he stepped to- ward William Dane and said brokenly:
 The last time l remember using my knife was when l cut a strap for you. don't remember putting 1t into my pocket again. You stole the money and you have woven plot to lay the sin at nay door. But you may prosper for all that. There is no just God that governs the earth righteously. hut a God.of lies that bears witness against the Innocent"
 There was a general shudder at thIs blasphemy, and Silas Marner went out with despair in his soui--that shaken trust in God and man which is little short of madness to a loving nature. In the bitterness of hIs wounded spirit he said to himself: She will cast me of, too" When the clergyman and a deacon came to him to inform him that the girl held her engagement at an end he received the messengers mutely and turned his back on them silently to work at his loon
 In little more than month the girl was married to William Dane. The next day Silas Marner departed from the town.
 He left his northern hilisides and wandered south to the rich central plain of England till he came to Rave Toe. Raweloe lay in snug, well-wood- ed hollow, an hours Journey on horse back from any turnpike, and was never startled by the vibrations of the coach horn or of public opinioA. There was no great park or manor house In it's vicinity. Instead, there were several chiefs in Raveloe who could farm bad ly quite at their ease, drawing enough money from their bad farming in those war times to live in rollicking fash ion and keep a jolly, roaring Christ mas, Whirsun and Eastertide
 When Marner appeared among them the country folks were not quite sure that his trade of weaving, indispensable though 1t was, could be carried on .en- tirely without the help of the Evil one. To these primitive diggers and delivers any process by which dexterity in any thing was acquired was so mysteri- ous that 1t partook Of the nature of conjuring. Manners large. proturbent eyes and his shyness, added to the sus- pician with which they looked on his trade. combined to make them not on- ly avoid but fear him. Thus he fell naturally into a condition of absolute loneliness. even had he not sought it himself.
 He rented a little stone house which
 
 shed being close to some stone pits long since abandoned. There he sat up his loom and began to weave. with of a spinning insect. He provided his own meals, fetched his. water from the well. and having fulfilled these simple pronptings of hunger and thirst sat
 Though the people kept aloof from him, they were glad to have him in those days when spinning wheels hum med In each farm house and even great sas5 of aaa tss sk Sy Work Ras Sgntf %as: and 1t was better paid than in his mea- gre north where. in addition, a large part of his earnings had zoe to objects of piety. He had guineas put into his hand of which no man expected a share He had seemed to love It little in the years gone by, Now when thought was arrested by utter bewinderment and all the gold gave him pleasure.
 Gradually the guineas. the crowns and the half crowns grew to a heap and Marner used less and less for his wants, trying to solve the problem of keeping himself strong enough to work sixteen hours day on the small. est possible outlay.
 He took some bricks from the floor under his loom and there he deposited the coins, Tn the night when he was too weary to work longer. he drew them out to enjoy their companion. them till tn cir form and color were like the satisfaction of a thirst to him.
 Year after year he lived in his solt- tude hls guineas rising in his iron itself more and mare into a more pull sation. The same sort of a process has been undergone by wiser men when they have been cut on from faith and heap of guineas they have had some erudite research or some ingenius prof.