ページの画像
PDF
ePub

the dance was over, those who had engaged in it were served with the refreshment which had been preparing in the large kettles."

This was the end of the ceremony; and my young friends were all disposed to conclude with me, that it might possibly be connected with the ancient rites of the true religion, and might well excite us to labour, and

pray that

"the poor Indian, whose untutored mind Sees God in clouds, and hears him in the wind,”

may be brought to the knowledge of the truth as it is in Jesus Christ.

THE DRUNKEN MOTHER'S CHILD.

A TENDER infant-girl

Lay in her shroud and coffin:
Her cheeks were like the pearl,

For tears had washed them often.
Ah me! her lot was sad and wild,—
She was a drunken mother's child.

Some children seem, when dead,
As though they were but sleeping;
But her eyes, in her head

Were sunk, as if much weeping
Had emptied out the fount of life
In streams of agony and strife.

Her fingers were as thin

As starving want could make themMere bones encased in skin

The feeblest strain might break them; That wasted form her sorrows told,

As she lay there so pale and cold.

Her time was short;-who'd wept
Had time with her been shorter?
God's love on her was kept-

He claimed his suffering daughter,—
His goodness bade the child to die,
His mercy took her to the sky.

So delicate a flower

Should have a kindly keeper :-
Say, who-had he the power—
Would wake the little sleeper,-

Recall her from her home above,
To live where she had none to love?

Oh! quietly she rests,

In heaven sweetly singing;
Those hands with joy are pressed

That, yesterday, were wringing

In helplessness and utter woe,
Beneath a mother's cruel blow.

No more she'll shed a tear

Of bitterness and sorrow,

Nor tremble with the fear

Of suffering to-morrow;

The anguish past that throbbed her breast, weary soul is now at rest.

Her

THE PUMP.

THE village of Tiverton is far from the great roads, and is, therefore, little known by travellers. But all who have seen it are agreed that it is one of the pleasantest places in the country. It is an old settlement, and, therefore, differs greatly from many of the pretty towns which have grown up within a few years. The houses are ancient, but many of them are snug and convenient. The street is very wide and very clean, and lined with fine old trees, which make a delightful shade in summer-time. The little river, which runs through Tiverton, turns several mill-wheels, but is not large enough for vessels of any size.

One of the most remarkable objects in the village, and one which seizes the attention of strangers, is the old town-pump, which stands at the west end of the street, near the minister's house. It is an old-fashioned affair, almost worn out in the service of the good people of Tiverton, who have drank of

its delightful water ever since the town was settled. It is kept in repair by the villagers, and is as much a favourite with them, as their famous chestnuttree, or the steeple of their church. It is pleasant, on a summer morning, just as the sun is peeping, to watch the little clusters which gather, one after another, around the pump. And from that hour until noon, and sometimes till night, you may look out a hundred times, and never see the pump deserted. I have often thought it must be fed by a living spring, and from a capacious reservoir in the neighbouring mountains.

So many people gather around the pump on warm days that it is a favourite talking-place for the villagers. It is to them what a coffee-house is to the people of a town. There they come with pitchers, pails, tubs and buckets, and there they often stay long after they have filled their vessels. The pump is visited by many who have springs of wells in their own yards. They fancy the water is better, and they get a little chat, and hear the news much more freely at the town-pump. The very near neighbours even make free to conduct some of their household operations there, just as if they were in their own areas.

One of the nearest neighbours to the pump, and one of the best women in Tiverton, was Ann

« 前へ次へ »