The Eastman times. (Eastman, Dodge County, Ga.) 1873-1888, October 03, 1878, Image 1

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VOLUME VI. MISCELLANY. A MYSTERIOUS PORTRAIT. in u small but handsomely furnished i sitting-room in a London hotel a young lady was sitting in an easy diair, before a blazing fire, one dreary November afternoon. Her hat and cloak lay up" on the table beside her, and from her eager, impatient glances she turned to ward the door at every sound of afoot step on the stair-case outside, it was evident that she expected a vis itor. At last the door opened, and a tall, aristocratic-looking young man enter" ed the room. ‘Harry, what a long time you have been!' she exclaimed, springing up from her seat. ‘What news have you brought ? ’What does your father say üboutour—our marriage V hesitating with the shyness ot a - bride at the last words. ‘Lead for yourself, Helen/ replied her husband, handing her an open let" ter, and standing opposite her, lean" ,n o against the marble mantle piece, watching intently the expression of her young face as she read—• ‘ln marrying as you have done, you have acted in direct, deliberate oppO" sition to my wishes. From this day you are no longer my son, and I wash my hands of you forever. ‘Harry, why did you not tell me of this before ?’ exclaimed Helen as she read the hard, cruel words looking up through her tears into her husband’s face. ‘My darling, what was there to tell? llow could I know that my father would act in this cold hearted manner? I knew that they wished me to marry the daughter of a nobleman living near Maiston Hall, and so unite the two estates ; but I had no idea lie would cast me off for disobeying his wishes. And even if Ih id known it,’ he added, fondly clasping his young bride to his heart, and kissing away tin: tears from her eyes, ‘I should not have acted differently. My Helen is worth fifty estates, and as long as she loves me I shall never regret the loss of Mar ston Ilall and its fair acres lint ny love/ he continued, more seriously, ‘there is an end to your promised shopping expedition into Bond street. You shall have to do without diamonds, now that your husband is a penniless outcast, instead of heir to fifteen thou sand a year/ 'Hush, Harry !• Please don’t talk like that./ she said, hurt at his bitter tone. ‘You know that it was not of the diamonds and dress I was think ing. But what are you going to do, Harry V she continued laying her hand upon his arm, and looking up sadly in Ins pale, sail face. 'You cannot work lor a livi'-g/ ‘And why not work for a living V lie exclaimed, in a determined voice. ‘Because I happen to be the son of a baionetj brought up and educated without any idea or knowledge of bus iness ? But I will work for my living and show my little wife that I am not quite unworthy of the trust and con" fidcuce she reposed in me when she placed this little hand in mine/ he added, stooping to kiss the small white hand that routed confidingly upon his arm. It was while pursuing his favoiite study of oil paintings among the fa mous galleries of Romo that Harry Marstou woed and won Helen Tracy, a governess in an English famly residing in Ita y, ui and ; n orphan daughter of an officer in the army. Before he had known her a month, Harry, who had been in love—or fancied himself in love—with at least half a dozen differ" ent young ladies in as many different months, felt that he had at last met his fate. Delighted at the idea of being loved for himself alone, he had not told her of his real position, and it was not until after the marriage ceremony that Helen discovered she had married the eldest son ot a baronet and the heir to an estate producing fifteen thousand a year* It was not without some inward mis givings that Harry wr to to his father tellin g him ofhis marriage which was ni re than realized by the result, as we have seen by the letter from Sir Philip' Marston, which awaited him at his club on h : s return from England with his bride. But full of confidence in his ability to maintain himself and his young wife by his own exertions, and thinking that surely his father would releut and he reconciled to him after a short time, Harry troubled himself very little about his inheritance ; and, though their ne w home, consisting of three small pooily furnished rooms in aback sticct, was very different from the grand old mansion to which he had hoped to take his bride, he set to work cheerfully at his favorite art, and tried to earn a living by painting pictures and portraits. But he found it was not so easy as he thought. It was all very well when lie was heir to Marston Hall and studied paint ng metely from love of art ; but pic ture! dealers, who ill those days had been all flattery and obsequ'ousness toward the young heir, now that he really want and to sell his pictures and sketches, shook their heads and polite ly but tii inly declined to purchase. At last, one dreary afternoon, when Harry was sitting in the little room he called his studio, trying to devise some new scheme to replenish hiss’en der purse, the servant opened the door and ushered a white-haired gentleman into the room. Placing a chair near the tiro for him, Harry inquired his business. ‘You are a portrait painter, I sir?' said the old gentleman look ing at him through his gold specta cles. ‘That is my profession, sir,’ replied Harry, much delighted at the thought of having found a commission at last. ‘Well, sir, 1 want you to pamt the portrait of my daughter/ ‘With pleasure, sir,’ said Harry ea gerly. ‘When can the lady give me the first sitting V ‘AI as ! sir, she is dead—dead to me twenty years, and I killed her—broke her heart with my harshness and cruel ty !’ cxclamed the old man in excited, trembling voice. A strange thrill came over Harry, as the idea that his mysterious visitor must be an escaped lunatic crossed his mind ; but mastering with an extra effort, his emotion, the stranger con tinued : ‘Pardon me, young sir. This is of no interest to you. My daughter is dead and I want yon paint her portrait from my description, as I perfectly well re mem tar her twenty years ago. ‘I will do my best, sir, but it will be no easy task, and you must be prepar ed for many disappointments/ said Harry, when having given a long de scription of the form and matures ol liis long lost daughter, the man rose to depart, ami for weeks he worked in cessantly upon the mysterious por trait of the dead girl, miking sketch after sketch, each of which was rejected by the remorse stricken father unt 1 the work began to exercise a strange kind of fascination over him, and he sketched face after face, as if I under the influence of a spell. A last, one evening, wear’ed with a fru this exertion he was fitting over the fire watching his >vife, who sat op posite busy upon some needlework, when an idea suddenly flashed upon him. 'Tall, fair, with golden hair and dark blue eyes ! Why, Helen, it is the very picture of yourself !' lie ex" claimed, springing to ids feet, taking bis wife*s face between his two hands, and gazing intently into her eyes. Without losing a moment he eat down and commenced to sketch Hel en’s face, and when his strange patron called the next morning, Harry was so busily engaged putting the finishing touches to his portrait, he did not hear him enter the room, and worked on for some moments unconscious of hispr. s ence, until, with a cry of ‘Helen, my daughterP tho old man hurried him aside and stood entranced over the portrait. Alter gazing for some minutes in silence, broken only by his half-sup. pressed cries of remorse, the old man slowly turned around to Harry and asked in an eager voice where he had obtained the original of the picture. ‘lt is tiie portrait of my wife/ he said. ‘Your wife, sir? Who was she? Pardon me for asking the question/ ho added, ‘but. I have heard lately that my poor Helen left an orphan daughter and for the last six months I have been vainly trying to find the child of my lost daughter, so that by kindness and devotion to 1113' grandchild I might, in part at least, atone for my harshness toward her mother/ Harry was beginning to tell him the story of his meeting with Helen at Home, and their subsequent marriage, when the door opened, and IPs wife entered the room. Perceiving that her husband was en gaged, she was about to retreat, when the old gentleman stopped her, and after looking earnestly into her face, exclaimed, ‘Pardon me. madam—can you tell me your mother’s maiden name ?’ ‘Helen Traherne/ replied Helen wo: - deringly. ‘I knew it—l knew it \* exclaimed the old man in an excited voice. At last I have found the child of my poor lost daughter/ Iti a few words Mr. Trehcrne ex plained how he had cast off his only child on account of her maniage with a poor officer, and refused even to open her letters when she wrote asking for forgiveness. 'But thank Ilcavon !' said he, when he had finished his sad story, ‘I can atone in some measure for my harsh" ness toward my Helen by taking her Helen to my heart and making her my daughter!' It is needless to add that when Sir Philip Marston heard that his son had married the heiress of one of the finest estates in the country, ho at once wrote a letter of reconciliation to Har ry and after all, Helen event ua'ly be cune mistress of Marston Hall, in the picture gallery of which no painting is ipore valued and treasured than the “Mysterious Portrait." Tire Newspaper Business. Many people think the newspaper men are persitent duns, but let a far" mer place himself in a simlar position and see if he wouldn't do the same. Suppose he raised one thousand bush els of wheat, and his neighbor should come and buy a bushel, and the price was a small matter of two dollars Gi- and the neighbor says, ‘I will hand you the money in few days/ As thefarmer did not like to’be small about the matter, he says, ‘AH right/ and the man leaves with the wheat. Others come in the same way unld the whole one thousand bushels are trusted out to one thousand different persons, and not one of the purchasers concerns himself about it, (or it is a small amount he owes the firmer, and of course its payment wouldn't help him any. He does not realize that the farmer frittered away all his large crop of wheat, and that its value is due him in a thousand little driblets and he is especially embarrased be cause his d< btors treat is as a small matter. But if they would pay prompt ly, which they could do as well as not, it would he a very large sum to the farmer, and would enable him to car" ry on his business without difficulty. This comparison is too true of the dif ficulties with which newspaper nen have to contend. Now, it you owe for your paper, however small the amount, pay it im mediately. Over in Europe they have Swede girl graduates. EASTMAN, GEORGIA, THURSDAY, OCTORER 3, IS7S. Make Home Attractive. From the Chicago Ledger. t hail with joy another “Home/’— Mid let us all try to make it an hos pitable one, that it may spread its ten der embrace all over the land, from north to south, from east to west, car rying with it cheerful words to the lonely homes, and encouragement to the sad, weary hearts. Let it be so delightful that it will lighten their pathway and make their burdens easy to bear. And will we not be doubly repaid when we hear a silent “God bless you“ drop from their lips ? Let us not weary them with our petty troubles and annoyances. “It is God's will' that we should have them/’ so let us bear them bravely without a murmur. Is it not more cheerful to ene cou" fined to the sick-bed to read of beauti ful things than murders and such wick edness ? So let us write for the sick something that will gladden their hearts and make them happy. As we think of the pocr yellow fever sufferers, docs it not recall to cun- minds how selfish and discontented we very often are ; when we ought to be so thankful that God has so far spared us such a. fate. If our husbands do only earn half as mneh as they did in former limes, ought we not to be satisfied, and not discourage them more with a “desire to have anew dress because Mrs. Grundy has one ?“ Let us have pa tience arid forethought. Let us think that they too need new things. Let us try to cultivate a loving kind and unselfish disposition, and remember the rule : “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,“ and then happiness will reign supreme.—- Let us put faith and confidence in each other, and not think every one we meet ‘not fit associates for us.' We shou’d always ju'lge others by ouK s fives. We should feel very bad in deed if people did not trust us. So imagine the feelings then, of a servant when she enters into a strange house and finds that she is watched, and sus pected of being capable of doing the meanest thing. Wo know there are some who require watching. But e m nut there boa rule, so that “those" who are ladies in every sense of the word can have their “sensitive feel ings" spared from such insults. Let us all join hands and try to improve the coming generation. We need not go from home to do it, for improve" meet begins at borne. If our husbands delight in a cigar, help them to enjoy it, instead of scolding them because our curtains will get soiled. Is it worse to have them soiled than to have our husband spending his evenings at a gambling bouse ; for, if home is not pleasant, a man will find comf ri in such places. Let us try to make home and ourselves as attractive a.s possible and if we see them discouraged or dis appointed with their day's work it is our place to read or sing to them that they ma}- f orget th> ir troubles. And great will be your reward. Georgina. A New Life-Preserver. A few- years ago a shrewd hunter in the western country set about disco\- ering why the deer, an animal not es pecially adapted by nature for lite in the water, could swim longer and keep afloat longer than any other quadru" ped. The result of his investigation was the discovery that the hair of the deer differ from the capillary covering of other animals in being remarkably secular and extremely well adapted to retain air. Experiments with deer hair proved that it was wonderfully buoyant A Yankee named Peck was the first to utilize the discovery, and after tak ng out the patent for the in vention, he sold it to Col. M. A. BO - son, of St. Louis, who, associated with Mr. Thomas Knight, is applying the material to practical use. The “Deer II dr Manufacturing Com pany' have their factory at 307 West street, where they make various arti" cles intendad to keep mankind from drowning. Their life buoy, in use in ti e U. S. Navy, weighs only two and a hall pounds, but it will sustain the weight of two men. Their life corset, weigh ingonly a half pound, will support the heaviest man, and their mattress, only weighing eight pounds with two pil_ Pws weighing a pound and a quartet each, will sustain the weight of five persons. Die mattresses are supplied with life lines at the sides, ind by unit ing a number ot these, a little raft can be provided in a few moments. All these appliances are made of duck, well packed with deer hair. The life-jacket fastens without straps, and can be worn under the coat without inconven ience.—New York Times. Facts Concerning 1 the Use of Alcohol. 1. The healthy man, with a full anti varied supply of foot], needs absolute ly uo alcohol. Wine with food some times assists digestion, blit the diges tion which needs the aid is either en feebled or over-burdened. The most severe and continued labor cun be carried on better without alcohol than with it. This is ? in most cases, espe cially true of mental labor. 2. In the few cases in which this is not true, and where a small quantity of alcohol suffices merely to restoi-o the normal vigor without excitement, the previous condition is probably one ol somewhat impaired vitality, perhaps more especially affecting the heart. As an addition to a diet already suffi cient, alcohol Is, to say the least, use less in perfect health. 3. An occasional use of light wine or beer is a luxury and not a necessity. Experience shows that such a use can' not be regarded as seriously detrimen tal either to bodily or to mental vigor. 4. After a fatiguing day’s work, as a relaxation and agreeable change, or as a prelude and assistance to the di gestion of more appropriate food, al cohol may be looked upon as approach ing more nearly to a true.stimulant or restorative action, than under any oth er circumstances in health. We thus expect from it neither intoxication nor reaction. 5. An habitual overdose of alcohol leads to degeneration of important or gans, and undermines the vital powers. 6. There may be more reasons for total abstinence entirely distinct from the physiological. 7. The introduction of the use of light wine and beer, though not desir able in a community already in a state of ideal physical and moral perfection is highly desirable as a subslitue for strong liquor.— Dr. Ede.s. How to Calculate Interest and What It Will I>o. The following mbs are so simple and so true, according to all business usages; that every banker, broker, merchant or clerk, should post them up for reference. There bring no such thing as a fraction m it, there is scarce ly any liability to error or mistake By no other arithmetical process can the desired information be obtained by so few figures: Six Per Cent.—Multiply any given number of dollars by the number of days of interest desired; separate the right hand figure and divide by six; the result is the true interest on such sum for such number of days at six per cent. Eight Per Cent.—Multiply an y given amount for tiie number of days upon which it is desired to ascertain the in terest for such sum for the time re quired, at eight per cent. Jen Per Cent.—Multiply the same as above, and divide by thirty-six, and the result will be the amount of inter est at ten per cent. What It Will Do. —It a mechanic or clei k saves o.dy 2£ cents per day, from the time he is twenty-one unt’l lie is ti rec-score and ten, the ngorc gate' with interest, will amount to $2,900; and a daily savings of 271; cents reaches the important sum of $29,000. A sixpence saved daily will provide a fund of s7,ooo—sufficient to purchase a good farm. There are few employees who cannot save daily, bv abstaining from the use of cigars, tobae. eo, liquors, etc., twice or ten times the amount of the six cent piece. Ev ery person should provide tor old age, and the man in business who can lav by a dollar a day will eventually find himself possessed of over SIOO,OOO. — American Grocer. A Few Facts About tine Bible. The Bible was translated into Old English about 1370, by Wyck.ifie. The New Testament was rendered b - to modern English by Tyndale in 152.3, and the Old Testament by Bishop Coverdale in 1535. The verses were nut numbered until the year 1650, in an edition called the “Geneva Bible.* King James I (1603-1625) ordered a new English translation, which, how ever, is but a thorough revision of the former editions. This was published in the year 1611, and lias been the on ly and standard edition of the Holy Scriptures in the English language ever since. — A Ridgefield man has invented a chair which can be adjusted to 8,000 different p isitions. It is designed for a boy to sit in when having IPs bait cut. The Brave Southern Howards. The following well-deserved compli ment to the “Howard Association, w from the New York Tribune, will find a response in every Southern heart, and especially in the west, where the fever plague is raging just now, and where the Howards are rendering such val iant service to the suffering, aud also sacrificing their own lives : ‘We want cur readers to stop just for one moment and look at this matter. These nurses have gone out ol the pure air of their homes to the plague stricken towns, to handle and tenderly care for dead and dying men who are utter strangers to them, need a higher courage than any soldiers marching into the thick of Battle. They gain nothing, neither pay nor glory. Their victories are not watched by a proud country, for whose honor they gave their lives. If they die, no weeping nation will, year by year, hang laurels on their graves. The Howard nurse is only mentioned in the papers as “ one of the twenty-five” arriving on such a date, or “one of twenty*’ who are dead. His name nobody knows. If lie fulls, his friends only learn of it because he fails to return. There is no battle-cry or martial music to cheer his soul in its last struggle with death; in the future there is no roll-call of a victorious army, with the proud an swer to his name, “Died upon the field of honor/’ He gives his lilo for some poor plague-stricken wretch, probably of less value to the world than himself, in the poisoned air of a solitary cham ber, where there is no otic but God to know, lie is buried hastily in a nameless grave, with shuddering and fear, and quicklime is thrown upon the body. The sacrifice he makes out of pure iove to God and humanity, and this sacrifice is now making, not by one man, but by every one of the hun dreds of nurses sent out by the How ard Association. Every one of them carries his life in hands as he goes. Value of a Timely Word. A great deal of harm is done through forgetfulness. A little thoughtfulness and care with respect to others would often save them from a great deal of suffering, and aid them in their work. is discouraged in consequence of the difficulties he meets with. An encouraging word may be al l that is necessary to revive his energies, and to cause him to persevere. That word was easily spoken. There aic those who are perfectly willing to speak it, but they do not think of it. They are busy with their own work. The dis couraged one sinks into deeper des pondency, not through their heartless ness, but their want of thoughtfulness. A young man is exposed to tempta tion. He is about to take a step from which a little influence of the right kind vviM save him, 7here are num bers among bis acquaintances who could exert that influence. But they do not sec his danger, or are so busy that the}' must leave him to the care of his other friends. He takes the step and it leads to his ruin. A lit tie effort rightly put forth would have saved him. Homely Beatitudes. Blessed are they that are blind; for they shall not see ghosts. Blessed are they that are deaf; for they never need lend money, nor listen to tedious stories. Blessed are they that are afraid of thunder; for they shalljiesitate about getting married, and keep away from political meetings. Blessed are they that are lean; for they have a chance to grow fat. Blessed are they that are ignorant; for they are happy in thinking they know everything. Blessed is he that is ugly in form and features; for tiieg'rls sha’n’t m >- lest him. Blessed is she that would get mar lied but ean*i; for the consolation of the gospel are hers. B essed are orphan children; fbr they have no mothers to sp ink then.. Bless and are they that expect nothing; for they shall not bo disappointed. A stupid-looking old mule, hitched to a milk wagon stood in a shed in Cambridge the other day, eating oats out ol a grain b >x. A bad boy stole up and threw a handful of to pcdocs in among the grain. The next mouth ful the hungry beast took was followed by an explosion that set him upon his legs. His exit from the shed was so sudden that nothing but a harness buckle or two was left to tell the tale of the dire calamity. A marked change—a silver quarter with a hole in it. A postage stamp is just big enough to borrow, but too small to pay back. A country pap r advertises: 'Board wanted for a man and wife with gas/ The butcher who sell ox-tails for soup, and calves* heads for diuner, un doubtedly makes both ends meat. The most despotic government can not so aDridge free speech as to pre vent men from saying ‘it*s a nice day/ .Tosh Billings says: ‘Doant karry aigs in your cotale pocket. Aigs ain’t good ofier they’ve been sot on awhile/ No doubt the happiest pair of dogs that ever lived were the two taken aboard of Noal/s ark—for they had but one pair of fleas between them. An ngricultuial society offered a pre mium for the best mode of irrigation, which was printed ‘irritation’ by mis t ike. A fanni r sent his wife to claim the prize. This is positively the latest: I would I were a school murm and among tho school maims band, with a small boy stretched across my knee aud a ruler in my hand. An Indianapolis man gave his poor starred horse two miserable nubbins of corn and five or six blades of hay, and remarked as he did so, ‘Thar, now, eat till you bust/ The man who borrows his home pa per instead of subscribing for it, is the man who will try to crawl over tho walls of Heaven instead of passing through St. Peter's gate. ‘Benny,’ said his maiden aunt, ‘you should eat the barley in your soup, or you will never get a man/ Benny looking up, naively inquired, 'ls that what you eat it for, aunty?’ A tipsy fellow, who mistook a globo lamp with letters on it for the queen of night, exclaimed: ‘Well, I’ll be— hie—blest, if somebody haii/t stuck an advertisement on the—hie—moon/ A paper called tho Jeweler asserts that brass earrings are unhealthy.—. Whoever has been in tho habit of eat ing brass ear-rings will do it hereafter ! with bis eyes open—and likowise his mouth. A Sunday school scholar, who being told how God punished the Egyptians by causing the first-born of each house hold to be killed, rejoined with, ‘What would God have done if there had been twins?* At a wedding recently, when tho ! clcigyraan asked tho lady, ‘Wilt thou I have this man t) be thy wedded hus band?’ she with a modesty which lent her beauty and additional grace, rc plied, ‘lf you please.’ Professor—Can you multiply to* gather concrete numbers? (The class are uncertain.) Professor What | would be the product of five apples multiplied by six potatoes? Freshman (triumphantly) Hash! A minister approached a mischiev ous urchin about twelve and laying his hand upon his shoulder, thus | addressed him: ‘My son, I believe tho devil has got hold of you/ ‘I believe i bo has, too,* was the significant reply of the urchin. The time for a man to stand firmly | by Job’s example is when he washes ; his face with home-made soap, and be ; gins to paw around over the chairs witli his eyes shut, and inquiring for a towel, and is told that the towel is iu tiie drawer, but the keys are lost. ‘Ten dimes make one dollar,’ said the schoolmaster; ‘ten dollars make one—what.'* ‘They make one mighty glad these times,’ replied the hoy; and the teacher, who had not got his last month’s salary y#, concluded the boy was about right. Those little brothers! will we never hear the last of them! Qn the con* summation of a recent marriage iu au up-town family, a visitor unwisely ob served to the youngster, ‘you’re a bro ther-in law now, Tommy/ ‘Yes,* said Tommy, puffing out his cheeks effen* sively, ‘out mi says I will be an undo by and by.* NO. 40