2
THE TORCH OF REASON, SILVERTON, OREGON, DECEMBER, I. 1898.
The Christian Plan.
feel if anything happened to him — style, and gave the preference to
very w hite dress he admired above
if he should die, for instance.
Ri-vi»ed for the Torch of Reason.
hanging. There was such a nice all her other dresses.
\\ ould the sight of his face, cold place for the business in a little un-
W O U LD N ’T read those journals
Sally Miller was present—so was
th a t Infidels put forth
Fora'ifthriddV
odrilV erthls
lhe «»>ad«iw, finwhed chamber which adjoined Walter Clare.
blessed p la n e t’s n o rth .
* 1 “ coinn, wring from her a tear his cabinet of shells and mineral«
— I Sally had a letter in her hand,
As sure as I should read it my eyes of affection—a kiss warm with the ‘ *
A large ’ hook • ■
had - - been driven into and had evidently been reading it
would open he,
• . j .
„
,
J u s t like the eyes of A dam when he ate O d ove
Would she wish, when a warn, and for what purpose he to W alter,and all three were laugh-
of th a t there tree—
she saw him thus, that she had tak-
nevtr could imagine, but now he merrily. With a thrill of fierce in-
To see ju st w hat he oughtn t, w hat he .
•
, ,
should n e ’e r a know n,
en more pains to w’ear blue, his fa
h
,
dignation Alpheus saw that it was
The dam ning, devilish knowledge he vorite color, and that she had fried
He fixed upon Friday as the fa- his farewell note to his wifel And
should a let alone.
My faith in holy Jesus is firm as any rock him griddle cakes every morning? tai day. Everything was prepar- they, evidently, were making fun
__ ii
.
So long’s T
I keep __
my eyelids
d i o se under
Day by day he grew more mor ed. He wrote Annie a pathetic
□
ft
<
*
I
«
•
»
•
x
1
j|
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X
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1
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•
seal am i lock ;
of it!
But, ah ! I know full surely should I ope bid on the subject, until be was so note, telling her that as her love for
my eyes to see,
W hat have you to sell, my good
unhappy that he hardly cared him had decayed, he desired no
My soul would roast forever in th e pit of
woman?” asked Annie, at length,
m is e ry :
whether
. he lived or died
, longer to dwell in this cold vale of
B u t if I keep ’eni blinded, as my te a c h
It is curious how we are always tears, and he had determined to cut and Alpheus managed to stammer
ers bid m e to,
out a lame inventory of his wares.
I 11 m ount a t last to glory and th e re sinu distressing ourselves with imagin- in twain the thread of existence,
H a llilo o !
“ Walter, dear, come and see if
ary woes! and it is quite certain j and to launch himself into the deep
there is anything worth buying,”
4<So I ’ll not read the papers of th a t god that full half of our troubles are voids of extremity!
less, w icked clan
He did not mention the exact said Annie, very tenderly, and the
W ho carry w ith them ever th e c h u rc h ’s imaginary ones. Those afflictions
h itte r ban.
which never come to us are much method by which he contemplated young man obeyed, putting his arm
I want no carnal knowledge to m ake me
around her waist as he did so.
worse than those that do come.
accomplishing the launching; he
fear and d o u b t;
“The deuce!” exclaimed Alpheus
W hy, if my eyes are peering ones, by
At
last
matters
reached
such
a
considered
it
unnecessarv.
If
Annie
God, I ’ll pluck them o u t !
as he saw the caress.
For t h a t ’s th e gospel teaching, C h ris t’s pass that Annie did not get up knew he had destroyed himself, of
“ W hat did you say, m a’am?”
own delighttul way,
from
her
work
to
kiss
Alpheus
course
she
would
search
every
inch
To lead us all in blindness up to his
asked Walter.
when he came into the house, and | of ground in the town until he was
glorious day.
“ Nothing,” growled Alpheus,
And though the skeptic laughs so and sh e did not cry when he announced I discovered.
trea ts it all as fun,
drawing lnt0
into 1118
his bonnet»
bonnet, and
and resist-
resist-
Prirlnv
. .
Iurawing
To blind or pluck your eyes o u t’s the bis intention of going to New York
or
a
couple
of
days
on
business
\
.
AnDle
went
to
t
h
e
^
g
,
with
great
effort,
the
inclina-
way to see the s u n .”
—L iberator.
She packed h i s s h i r t « « 1 i •
I n°Xt tOWn shoPPing> and there was i tion he felt to smash something
o a i r X t o c k ^ .1
’ u F ? n,a nobody at home but the 8« v a „ t
“Oh, by «-e way, Annie aren’t
Mr. Hain’s Suicide.
wet his feet she e a id ^ n d a ? ¡7
a " d Sa,ile M i|ler, Annie’s cousin; j you going to have the river drag-
vowed she was heartless if she could I S w a l k to lo in T a U i’ 8 T ’th
h l^ ”
“ He ” ay
BY CLARA AUGUSTA.
think of wet feet when lie was to be 1 , 7 7
i
u
7 there bave 1rowned himself, you know.”
V eri? t’ h T ?
Wterfer‘ ' ‘
° Wn faUlt ' f *‘e
te*
R. ALPHEUS MAIN had away from her for two whole days! Z
H e was wretched all the time he dons.
I "d
^n n ie indifferently. ‘-No-
an extremely small bump
«, h
,
J,’
ed hlm to- And> dear
of self-esteem; and doubt was gone, but tried to solace him-
self to
with the hope th at the warmth L Alf he“8 braced blm8elf for the " »lter, Jou know we at least ought
less it is all very fine for a man
of her greeting on his return would
, ¿ rt
He fixed the roPe ?°
hi” f° r~ ” Here ehe be6-
he modest, and not thrust himself
confused. Wal-
forward too much under the im amply’atone for everything. E a|. ar° Un< b' S 8rm and tried its j ltated and looked
.strength by sundry jumps and j ter finished the
sentence: ‘‘For
pression that he is a person of con lacious hopel
When he reached home old M iss!8prings-
Oul came the hig hook, . Ieavin8 us free to love each other.”
sequence, but really it is about as
bad to think too little of oneself as Mills was there with her kl,itiini; Iand over went AlPh«uson his back, I Alpheus grew hot with anger,
it is to think too much.
and old Miss Baker with her net- BP' “ " ng h‘8 best COat completely I Here wa8 a new revelation. He had
Annie only
shook hands
hands i ™
T , 0"8 a " d knockirig the wind o u t, a*way8 thought Mr. Clare’s visits at
“ Respect yourself, or nobody will ting,
ting, and
and Annie
only shook
n n J o r fn iic
I hu house were meant for Sally,and
told him piivately that there I n f f h i m w wonderfuL^
respect you,” says the old adage__ and .....................
and it is qnite correct, as the world were cinders in his ears and he had
“ Blast the hook!” cried he, rub here was evidence enough that the
goes.
better wash before coming to the bing his back. “I don’t try that wretch was in love with his wife!
Alpheus labored constantly un table.
Thank the Lord! ’ he thought,
game again! I t ’s more than it’s j
--------muug
der the impression, or rather the
am not dead ^ t ! I ’ll spite ’ em
But Alpheus scorned to complain worth. I ’ll run away instead of
It will answer Ilhat way' ”
fear, that nobody cared for him. —he told his sorrows to no one,and hanging myself.
He married the woman he loved, no one suspected them. He “let the same purpose. The river is so
“And your husband was such a
and as she chose him from a half- concealment like a worm i’ the hud” near she’ll think I drowned myself! sullen fellow!” said Walter, in a low
dozen other young men who were etc. \ ou know the remainder of fortunately I did not say in my voice, but still distinctly audible to
suitors for her hand, he surely the quotation too well to need that letter what method I would take to the jealous ears of the listener —
ought to ha”e believed that she I should write it out. At length do the deed. And I ’ll get a dis “always doubting you! I ’ll never
preferred him.
Alpheus reached a determination guise, tomorrow, and call at our doubt you, darling.”
But he was full of doubts on the
“You won’t!” shouted Alpheus—
house and see how she feels.”
He would commit suicide!
subject. If at any time Annie was
------------------„
u ,e out
, So
Alpheus made his escape from ' <;VOUWOn’t,eh? r n make you doubt
He would he Uvu,
happier
of the
less talkative than common, or if world than in it, and he felt sure j the Prelnisefl he called home as se- y° Ur ? W? jexistenceI
aHve, I
she did not kiss him so many times his wife would love him after he Cretly afl possible,and crawling into H
7 al° 1 drowned nor hanged!
as usual on his return from busi was dead—most widows did — and the ha? in a neighbor’s stable, lav V ' 1» * W<>Inan 18
wifeI Take
ness, or if she forgot that his par she would have a long obituary af- j there tin morning. Then he cut I L V? and the peddIer w°man lift-
ticular passion was hot griddle ter his name in the Bangville Bui-1 acr°88 ,ots to the house of an old ed her foot ln a very unfeminine
cakes, and neglected to fry him a letin, and a speaking inscription on ^r ’end of his, whom he took into his way and gave W alter a kick.
steak for the morning meal — then his tombstone. He even went so I con^dence*
That young gentleman quickly
Alpheus’ heart grew cold at once, far as to fancy her on sunny days I Said old friend gave him the left the house, and Alpheus felt
and if he had been a woman he
going to strew flowers on his grave clothes of one of his female ser- quite sure th at a look of intelli
would have spent the night in tears — and he was sure she would wear J vants—dirty and shabby enough, gence passed between him and An
but as he was only a man he spent deepest mourning, and never, nev-1 too> they were— and set him up in nie, which was shared in by Sally.
it in sulking.
It was not until after Walter aud
er m a r r y again.
the plaster-of-paris-image business.
He found a sort of delight in self
And to a person of his disposi-
So about the hour of noon next Sally were married th at Alpheus
torture — just as some people who turn the prospect was absolutely day, behold Alpheus, clad like an knew that the lovers had been in
are ill like to make themselves as
g owing. It fascinated him so old woman, ringing the bell of his the cabinet adjoining the room
bad as possible when they tell over
where he had intended to hang
completely that he resolved to die; own house.
their diseases.
himself, and had overheard his
only he could not help wishincr that !
• , j • .
he
c
o
u
ld
<lip
a
n
J
k
p
w
i’n,n8
l
iat
I
he
girl
admitted
him
into
the
He used to lie awake nights long
he could die and be alive too, that parlor, and there was his wife „ v whole soliloquy. And alter that
after Annie was asleep, pondering
he mtght see how Annie ‘‘took it”, and cheerful as he had ever’J e n Walter had watched his move
over what he called the change in
He thought over the C e r e n t’
ments, and all the sweetness be
’ and wonder,ng how she would I methods of self destruction most in her; her hair profusely curled, a tween him and Annie was put on,
scarlet ribbon at her throat and the for the benefit of the old image
I
y
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c n u jr
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