Jt life-
I HI
VOL. Xlll.
NEW BLOOMFIELE), R.A.., TUESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 1879.
NO. 43.
THE' TIMES.
In Independent Family Newspaper,
IS PUBLISHED EVERT TUESDAY BY
F. MORTIMER & CO.
8UB8CK1PTIOX PltlCK.
(WITHIH THE COUHTY.)
One Year II 25
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(OUT OF THE COUNTY.)
One Year. (Pofttape Included) 1150
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Invariably In Advance I
Advertising rates furnished upon appli
cation. Beledt Poeti'y.
PAYING COMPLIMENTS.
A bashful lover tried to woo
A maiden fair and slender
Bhe trilled at the Interview,
And scorned his accents tender.
Bald he aside, " I will Invent
A little necromancy
I'll launch at her a compliment
, To try and catch her fancy."
Quoth she; with careless unconcern )
"Tour words they may be true,elr j
I wish that I could make return,
And say the same of you, sir."
" O, you can do that very well,
And do It now provided
That you make up your mind to tell .
As big a lie as I did."
The Secrets of Dollys Chair.
MEETING had gone in. Parson
Holbrook was in his seat in the
high, ugly pulpit, with the sounding'
board overheard; the singers, in the
einging seats in the gallery, had taken
their pitch from Uncle Jethuron's tun
ing fork, and were fugulng " And on the
wings of mighty winds came flying all
abroad;" the first families of Pilgrim
Vale were seated in the square pews,
-each furnished according to the taste or
the means of its owners ; and the little
boys, perched upon the high wooden
seats, with no foot-stools near enough
for their little dangling feet to reach,
had begun their two hours' fidget
when the door, just closed by black
Pompey, the sexton, opened slowly, and
Major Catheart walked up the broad
aisle in his usual dignified and deliber
ate manner. Every head was turned to
gaze upon him, every face wore an ex
pression of astonishment and disap
proval ; the singers, finishing their hymn
with hasty quavers of discomfiture,
leaned over the front of the gallery and
gazed down upon him, and even Parson
Holbrook bent his powdered head side
wise to look sternly at the great square
pew where his wealthiest parishioner
was uncomfortably seating himself with
-an attempt at unconscious dignity, j .
A moment of silence fell upon the
place that awful, pregnant silence
which speaks as no words can and then
Martin Merivale, the man whom Pil
grim Vale always sent to General Court
when he would go, and who led public
opinion as he willed in the town where
his honorable, steadfast life had thus far
passed, rose in his place, deliberately put
on bis heavy cloak, took his hat in his
band, cast one meaning glance across
the aisle into the questioning eyes of
Major Catheart, his old associate aud
neighbor, and then walked slowly down
the aisle.
He had not reached the door Jbefore
Dr. Holcom rose to follow his example,
and then 'Squire Vale, and then the
Oldfields, father and son, and finally
every man in the congregation who
counted himself a person of the least
consequence, or able ' to set an example,
' until, wheu black Pompey at last
closed the door, and with a joyous grin
sat down beside it, the church, so lately
filled with the pith and sinew of the
stanch old calony town, was empty,
ave -of women, children, and Major
Reginald Catheart, whose ashen-gray
face bad never moved after the first from
its stern straightforward gaze, or his
dark eyes blanched, or his heavy eye
brows unbent from the frown of defiant
endurance which with some men Is the
only sign of agony.1 .
And agony it could not fail to be ; for
this man, to-day so openly and deliber
ately thrust from their midst by bis fel
low-townsmen, counted himself only
three days earlier their autocrat, claim
ing by birth, wealth, and haughty self
assertion the place yielded to him in vir
tue of these qualities, as that of Martin
Merivale was thrust upon him in rec
ognition of his own personal charac
ter. And why this terrible Insult ? why
this stern intimation that the men of
Pilgrim Vale considered the presence of
one so lately their magnate so great a
pollution that they preferred even to
lose the privilege of publlo worship to
sneering him to join them in it?
Why ? O men of 1870, yours Is not
the temper of your fathers ; but yet you
must thrill with admiration of their
earnestness of (purpose, their mighty
trust, their contempt of their own ad
vantage, or safety, or comfort, when a
Bight full of danger and suffering called
upon them to oppose a tyrannous aud
encroaching Wrong I
It was 1774, and the Governor of Mas
sachusetts, in right of his commission
from King George of England, had Bent
to demand the payment of a tax levied
upon the support of the foreign soldiers,
sent over with the avowed purpose of
holding the mutinous province in sub
jection. Pilgrim Vale considered this
demand of " the man George," argued
upon it, prayed over it, aud finally de
clined to accede to it, but in so mild
and temperate a manner that the Gov
ernor considered their refusal only a
formal protest, and proceeded to enforce
his demand by appointing certain col
lectors of the revenue through the col
ony, and for the town of Pilgrim Vale
commissioning Major Reginald Catheart
to this odious office.
When the news come down to Pil
grim Vale, its men smiled after the slow
and solemn fashion of their kind, aud
said :
" The Governor does not know the
mind of Pilgrim Vale even yet, it
seems."
But the next day a rumor pervaded
the town a rumor of dismay and in
credulity, yet deepening hour by hour
to certainty. Yes, Major Catheart had
accepted the commission,and announced
his intention of carrying out its instruc
tions. This was on the Saturday, and
we have seen the result upon the Sun
day. As the door closed Parson Holbrook
rose and played long and earnestly for
the welfare of his native land, and the
safety of those whose fathers had been
led to those shores, even as the children
of Israel were led out of Egypt to find
safety and freedom in the land their
Lord had promised them, and he closed
with a petition for protection against all
enemies, both without and within the
foreign foe and those of their own house
hold who had turned against them and
whose evil counsels might, he prayed,
be turned to foolishness and dishonor.
Then came the sermon ; and, laying
aside his carefully written discourse
upon the Urim and Thummlm, Parson
Holbrook preached extemporaneously
and mightily from the text, "Put not
, your faith iu princes," diverging finally
into the story of Judas, and the high
crime of domestlo or social treachery.
' When all was over, and the choir had
sung, " See where the hoary sinner
stands." black Pompey threw open the
doors, and stood aside, as usual, to meet
and return the kindly greetings of the
congregation ; but as Major Catheart
strode down the aisle, his head erect, but
his face white and withered, as if be had
just arisen from a bed of torture, even
Pompey turned his back and stood star
ing Intently out of the open door as the
stricken man passed by. But Major
Catheart looked neither to the right nor
the left ; and if others besides Pompey
had intended to show their disapproval
of his presence, they found no opportu
nity, for the king's collector passed
quickly through the little throng out
side the door, and down the main street
until he reached the grave, handsome,
middle aged house so strongly resem
bling iu master, and quietly opening
the front-door, passed directly up stairs,
and was hastening to the shelter of a
room at the back, known as " the ma
jor's study," when the open door of one
of the principal bedrooms came a gentle
yet eager call, " Reginald do come in
here." -..-i ...
The husband paused reluctantly, and
turning his head toward the door, but
without showing his face at it, re
plied :
"What is It, Hepzibahy I am going
to my study."
" Not first, dear. Please come aud see
me for a moment. I am all alone."
Without, replying, the major obeyed,
and passing into the handsome shadowy
room, stood beside the bed, where lay a
woman whose fair and delicate face bore
the patient, almost angelic, look of one
who had suffered very long and very
cruelly, but whose pains, meekly borue,
are consciously drawing to a final close.
She was Major Catheart's wife, and the
only being the cold proud man had ever
loved, and she was dying.
He stooped aud kissed her tenderly,
asking :
"How have you been this morning,
dear?"
" As well as usual. But you, Reg
inald ? how has' It been with you ? I
knew by your step upon the stair that
you were suffering, and your face tells
the story. Oh, my darling husband,
they have insulted you, as we feared.
Is it not so V"
" Yes, Hepzlbah, they have insulted
me, and so cruelly that I will no longer
live among them. I have resolved that
we will go to the northern provinces. We
have good friends at Halifax, good and
loyal to the king whom these anarchists
are preparing to defy."
"Even the parson and the doctor,
reasonable aud law-abiding men'as they
are, say that the colony should be free,"
said the invalid, timidly, and stealing
her thin hand into her husband's. But
he frowned impatiently.
" This is not talk for women or chll
dren," said he, coldly. "And you are
of those who conversation should be on
heaven. It would better become Parson
Holbrook to tell you so, instead of dis
turbing your mind with matters so un
fit for it at any time."
The wife remained meekly silent for a
moment, and then, softly pressing her
husband's finger, eaid :
"My love, you will wait until I am
gone, will you not, before you leave Pil
grim Vale ?"
"Gone, Hepzlbah! gone where?"
The wife looked up with tearful eyes,
but her reply was prevented by the sud
den entrance of a young girl, her cheeks
flushed and her eyes bright with anger
and excitement.
" Father, John Belknap has been in,
aud told me of the insult they have offer
ed you," exclaimed she. " It is a shame,
a burning shame, find I hope you will
show them"
" Dolly, I am not very strong to-day,
dear, and you are speaking loudly and
unadvisedly."
It was the mother's gentle voice, and
Dolly, who would have joyfully taken
the part of Joan of Arc, or even
Boadicea, fell upon her knees directly
beside her mother's pillow, soothing the
Invalid, and accusing herself of all man
ner of evil in forgetting even for a mo
ment the consideration and tenderness
owing to her.
Major Catheart stood looking at the
two for a few moments, then quietly left
the room, and a little later dispatched a
servant with a note requesting the im
mediate attendance of Dr. Holcom. The
worthy physician was one of those who
had left the church so pointedly a few
hours earlier, and the proud man, thus
insulted, by no means forgot or forgave
the insult, but the feelings of the hus
band were stronger than all others at
that moment,and Hepzibah's words had
.startled him with a new and terrible
idea. .
The doctor came, was closeted for
half an hour with the major, made a
short call upon his patient, and left the
house. A little later Major Catheart
summoned his daughter to his private
room, and addressed her, briefly and al
most sternly :
" Dolly, Dr. Holcom does not disguise
from me the cruel truth known for some
time to him aud to your mother. She Is
dying, m rely and swiftly. Did you
know it?"
' The girl hid her pale face between her
hands. '
' " Mamma has said it, but I hoped"
Her voice died away, and her father's
filled the space.
"Hope no longer. He says two or
three months are as much as we may
look for, and even that brief respite de
pends upon quiet and her acoustomed
comforts. She must on no account be
removed from the room where she now
lies. But this people about us will not
wait two or three months before they
carry out in act the treason they already
talk, and I, the avowed friend of the
king, and ready and willing to execute
his will In this rebellious province, will
very probably fall one of their first vlo,
tints ; or If not personally, I shall surely
sufl'er in property, and be stripped of
land and house and even personal be
longings. Were your mother able, we
should all migrate at once to the still
loyal northern provinces; butasitls,
you shall go alone, carrying such valu
ables as we can collect, and remain with
your uncle in Halifax until Perhaps
God's goodness is without limit per
haps I may bring her with me."
"Must I leave my mother ?" cried
Dolly, In dismay. " What matter for
our possessions, compared with the com
fort of her last hours ! And how can
she spare me ? and, oh 1 bow could I
spare her?"
" Girl, there are perils in a time of
anarchy and war of which you know
naught perils for a young and comely
woman of which I may not speak.
Your mother will be cared for, since it
will be the one duty of my life to care
for her, and it will removea weight from
my mind to know that you are safe and
shielded from the possibilities of evii.
Say no more ; it is decided."
Dolly, stout-hearted as she was, dared
say no more, for the girl of a century
ago was trained to obedience as the first
duty of her sex, and to silence and re
spect for the authority of man as the
next ; nor was Dolly's father a man to
soften the stern and unquestioned rule
every head of a household felt bound to
exercise in every particular. So the
preparations for the young girl's de
parture went quietly and silently for
ward, and the schooner Dolphin, small
coasting craft owned by Major Catheart,
received a cargo so various in its charac
ter that neither master, mate, nor the at
tentive loungers who Inspected the pro
cess of loading could possibly determine
her destination.
Not until the very last days before the
Dolphin's sailing did any one outside' the
major's own family surmise that his
daughter was to be a passenger, and so
rapidly, even secretly, was her luggage
carried aboard that very few persons saw
It at all. Among the rest was one arti
cle singular enough as part of a young
lady's outfit, especially so healthy, ac
tive, and blithe a girl as Dorothea
Catheart ; it was one of those large
square, stuffed easy-chairs still to be
found in old country houses, sometimes
dishonored in the lumber-loft, sometimes
carefully preserved in cover of white
dimity or gay old-fashioned chintz in
the chamber of the grandmamma. This
one was covered iu green moreen, and
had stood in Mrs. Catheart's own bed
room, although that dear old lady had
not been able to occupy it for many a
day. A short time after the decision
with regard to his daughter, Major
Catheart had removed this chair to bis
own study; and both he and Dolly had
occupied themselves over it for many
hours, until at last the girl deftly sewed
a wrapper of tow-cloth . over all, and
said to her father, who stood watching
the operation :
"There, father, it will stand in the
cabin, and I shall-say that is covered
lest any but my dear mother should use
It, and I am taking it to her invalid sis
ter in Halifax, whom I am about to
visit."
" I doubt not your shrewd wit will
suggest many a quip and turn," replied
the major, with a grim smile; "but
take care that you do not pass the
bounds of truth and discretion."
" I will take heed, father. The bar
rels are all ready, are they not ?"
" Yes, and shipped. Here Is the bill
of lading ;" and Major Catheart took
from his pocket-book and handed to his
daughter a slip of paper worded thus :
" Shipped by the Grace of GOD, in
good order and well conditioned, by
Reginald Catheart, in and upon the
good Schooner called the Dolphin,
whereof is Master under GOD for this
present voyage William Peters, and now
riding at anchor iu the Harbour of Pil
grim Vale, and by GOD'S Grace bound
for Halifax, to say, Twenty barrels and
boxes of sundries on Acct. and Risque
of the Shipper, and consigned to
Catheart and Kingsbury, Halifax. Be
ing marked and numbered as in the
Margent, and are to be delivered In the
good Order and well Conditioned at the
aforesaid Port of Halifax (the Dangers
of the Sea only excepted) until said
Catheart and Kingsbury or their As
signs, he or they paying Freight, for
the said Goods, Sixpence per cw., Eng
lish Curreancy, with Primage aud
Average accustomed. It witness where
of the Master or Purser of the said
Schooner'hath affirmed to two Bills of
Lading, all of this Tenor and Date, one
of which two bills being accomplished,
the other to Btand void.
" And so GOD send the good Schooner
to her destined Port in safety. AMEN.
" Dated in Pilgrim Vale, October the
15th, 1774.
" William Peteus.,'
(The above Is an exact copy of n old bill of lading.
Dolly rapidly ran her eyes over the
familiar form, for part of her busy life
had been to play the occasional part of
confidential clerk in her father's busi
ness, and she smiled as she returned it
to him, saying;
"'Barrels and boxes of sundries?'
Well, and so they are. China and nooks
and household gear are sundries, no
doubt, although I dare eay your partners
think it is mackerel or "
" It does not concern the other owners
of the schooners, since I ship my freight
at my own charge and purely as a pri
vate venture," interrupted Major Cath-.
cart, hastily. " But be careful, Dolly,
that you say not a word either here or
upon your voyage as to ths nature of
these same sundries, for William Peters
is a fanatic as bitter as the worst, and if
he got wind of the matter here, nothing
would be more likely than that he
should persuade Merivale and the rest
to throw off the mask at once, and con
fiscate my goods to the republio they
talk of founding. Even at sea you must
be careful, for this man is quite capable
even in the harbor of Halifax of giving
the order to 'bout ship, and bring you
and the easy-chair and the barrels of
sundries all back to Pilgrim Vale. It is
a large errand for so young a woman as
you, Dolly, and you will need to be wily
aa the serpent, though innocent as the
dove."
" I think I can do it, father," said
Dolly, quietly ; and as the major looked
in his daughter's face, he thought she
could.
The morning that the Dolphin was to
sail, Captain Peters found that Thomas
Wilson, his first mate, had fallen down
the steep ladder leading from his house
to the shore, sprained an ancle and
broken a wrist, and was obviously unfit
for a voyage. As he grimly meditated
over this reverse, he encountered a
flushed and breathless young man, who
thus accosted him :
"Splendid weather, captain. I've a
mind to make the cruise with you up to ,
Halifax."
"Cabin's all engaged and paid for,
John Belknap," replied the skipper,
gruffly. " That old Tory Catheart is
sending his daughter up there to bring
down troops upon us, or something of
that color, I'll warrant. I wonder the
owners don't see throughit and refuse ;
but he's paid for the cabin and both
state-rooms, so that madam should not
be spied upon, I suppose."
" Oh, never mind ; I'll go as clerk,
or purser, or stewart, or even as a fore
mast hand. I can hand-reef and steer
with any man, you know, and hard
work, or hard fare either, don't frighten
me." Concluded next week.
635" An infidel passing through the
shadows that hang around the close of
life, and finding himself adrift amid the
surges of doubt and uncertainty with
out anchor or harbor in view, was urg
ed by his friends to " hold on." He an
swered :
" I have no objections to holding on,
but will you tell me what to hold on
by ?"
Here is a question which men do well
to consider before they reach the closing
scene. If they are t hold on what are
they to hold on by ? Where is their
trust? Where is their confidence?
What crtalnty have they in going
down into the shadows ? Surely a man
who comes to his dying hour needs
something better than infidelity can give
him; he needs the guiding hand of
Him who is the resurrection and the
life, who baa conquered death and tri
umphed over the grave, and who is able
to bring us safely off at last. He needs
that hope which is " as an anchor to the
soul, both sure and steadfast, and which
entereth into that wlthlu the vail."