Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1918-06-07
CHAPTER V.
(Continued.)

The work Of the day ended, the
candles were grouped near INC
edge of the table and my aunt )
armchair was placed BESIDE theHi'
Then | sat on Uncle Peabodys l3p
by the fire, or, as time went on. IA
my small chair beside him, "nlle
Aunt Deel adjusted her spectacIcS
and began to read.
At last those of wearied bones
and muscles had sat down 10 look
abroad with the minds eye. Their
reason began to concern itself WIN
problems beyond the narrow limits
of the house and farm; their mag
nations took the wings OF the poet
and rose above all their humble
tasks.
l recall how. when the candles
were lighted, story-teller, states-
man, explorer, poet and preacher
came from the war ends OF the
earth and poured their souls INTO
ours. It was a dim light-that OF
tn candles - but even today II
shines through the long alley OF
these many years upon my pain
way. 1 see now what 1 saw not
then in the candle-Iight, a race
marching out of darkness, ignor-
ance and poverty with our little
party in the caravan. Crowding on,
they widened the narrow way Of
their stern religion.
At first we had only THE Horse
Farrier, - "The Cattle Book" THE
Story of the Indian Wars"-a book
which had been presented TO Aunt
Deel by her grandmother, ana
which in it's shroud OF white linen
lay buried in her trunk most OF the
time for fear harm would come TO
it, as it did, indeed, when in a no
ment Of generosity she had loaned
it to me. The Bible and the st.
Lawrence Republican were always
with us.
Many night, when speech Of
Daniel Webster or Henry Clay or
Dewitt Clinton had pushed me to
the edge of Inconsistencies while
I resisted by counting the steel
links in the watch chain Of Uncle
Peabody-ny rosary in every time
of trOuble-I had been bowled over
the brink by some account of horse
collie and it's remedy, or of the prop
Ter treatment of hoof disease in
sheep / suffered keenly from the
horse collie and like troubles and
from the many hopes and perils Of
democracy in my childhood. I
found the Bible, however. the most
jOyless book of all, Samson being.
as l thought the only man in it who
amounted to much. A shadow lay
across its pages which came,
think, from the awful sOlemnity OF
my aunt when she opened them. 1t
reminded me of a dark day made
feaful by thunder and lightning. 1t
was not the cheerful things, illum-
mated by the immortal faith of man
which, since then, 1 have found il
to be. The box of books changed
the whole current of our lives.
l remember wildly that evening
when we took out the books and
tenderly felt their covers and read
their titles. There were "Crutk-
shanks Comic Almanac and Hood
Comic Annual, tales by Washing
ton Irving and James K. Paulding
and Nathaniel Hawthorne and Miss
Milford and Miss Austin; the poems
of John Milton and Felicia He
mans. Of the treasures in the box
l have now in my possession: A
Life of Washington, The Life
and Writings of Doctor Duck
worth, " THE Stolen Child" by John
Gait, Esq; "Roslne Lavel," by Mr..
Smith; Sermons and Essays" by
William Ellery Charming. We found
in the box, also, 80 numbers of the
United States Magazine and Dem
Ocratic Review" and sundry copies
of the New York Mirror"
Ayes! l declare! What do You
think O this. Peabody Baynes!"
Aunt Deel exclaimed as she sat
turning the pages of a novel. Eye
know Aunt Minervy used to say
that novel was a fast horse on
the road to perdition-ayes."
Well she wasn't" Uncle Pea
body began and stopped suddenly.
What he meant to say about her
will never de definitely known. In
half moment he added:
Il guess If Sile Wright recon-
mends 'em they won't hurt us any,"
Ayes! | amt afrair-we'll wade