Newspapers / Masonic Journal (Greensboro, N.C.) / March 24, 1876, edition 1 / Page 2
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f w 1v=‘ » . *r ■•. Bj»‘ i/ IV r 1" f -, if- |vS'S¥.V "Kow I iJo despise Iliut old man !” said ^rs. Wlieeler. addressing Mrs. Wilson, • und looking after Judge Withrow, who had just passed along the sidwalk under ithe window. “Despise him !” .said Mrs. Wilson, giv ing a peruliar emphasis to the pronoun him. “Yes. him. Wh_v not ?” “Rather let me ask why, Mrs. Wheel er.’' •'Well,'' returned Mrs. Wheeler, “I can scarcely say why ; 'nut the other day, when the sewing circle was held at my house, he became the .subject of the con versation. by pa.ssing along the sidewalk, he has just this minute done, with that siame straight, haughty dignity, unbend- ang self-pride so peculiar to him. ami we •*11 agreed that he was a gouty, proud olil «ristoor.»t, and that he careil for no one bet him.self.'' “©f oo'.’.r.-e you could read his thoughts And tell who he careil for, and for whom he did not," said Mrs. Wilson, ironically. “But pray tell me,” continued she, "did »ny one know a .single thing that could ■detract from his character a.s a moral, a noble-minded, and a human man i’’' “Well, yes.” replied Mrs, Wheeler, “Harriet Smith said she had called upon him one day, last winter, with a subscrip tion soliciting a little aid to oiir sewing circle, and he evasively cold her that when he wished to dispense benefits he would prefer not to sound a trumpet be fore him. Now chmt voii think that was ■very iinpndent, to sav the least of it?' “I wish,” replied Mr.«. Wil.soii, her voice itremhling with emotion, “I had been ithere to defend the good old man.'' “Why, what do you mean?" inquired JH rs. Wheeler in surprise. “I mean to give honor wliere honor is •due, and to rebuke such injustice to one ■of the best and noblest of men. I can well bear witness that he does not sound a trumpet before him when he goes to do ,good.” “You surprise me still mi,re. He is ■not certain.y in any way connected with your hnshaiid's family ?" Mrs. Wheeler Jiaid, dropping her crochet work into her Jap, and looking inquiringly inio Mis. Wilson's face. “No; he is no lamily connection of his, inor mine ” “When •and where, then, did yon be- .come acquainted with him? I did not suppose that you had even spoken to him much less did I suppose he was an inti- imate personal friend.'’ “Nor is he. He has never spoken to me. nor I to him.” '■Do yon know that he is a Freemason, Mrs. Wilson '?” “Yes, I do,” “How is it possible, then, that you can ispeak well of him, knowiiig him to he a J'reemasOH ? Why defend a black-heart ed Mason ?'’ "Mrs. Wheelei.I well Ul! you why, and after 1 have told you, if yon do not love the dear old man, you are not as good a woman .as J have always given you cred it for being.” "hmuehiml Mrs. Wilson? No, I shall never even respect a Freemason, much less 9ove one'' "I think none the less of him on that acooaut, though I can remember when my blood rcn cold at th» name of Free mason; but it is different now; I love the very word. To Judge Withrow I and, to crown all, for one of the best, the noblest of hushaiids ” "Mrs. Wilson,'' said Mrs. Wheeler, “pray do explain yourself. ’ “I will. You know that Mr. Clark my first husband, was without means, and, in fact, very poor. He bought a lot in the suburbs of the village,and hiiill asmall house on it, which was not, yet finished when he died. He had no nieati.s except such as resulted from his daily lab.ir, which, through the most scrupulou.« econ omy, eraahled him to nay for the lot and building, as far a- it was completed. Af ter his death 1 fully realized the respou- sihility of my position. An inexperienced widow, with two little children to pro vide for, the elder but five years old, the winter apjiroaching, and no provision for onr siibsistence. The only resource left me to provide my children with bread was to take in sewing and washing. There Was so much competition in this line of business in our little village that I could n'lt get employment for one-half of my time. The conseqi/ence was that the first December storm caiight me without fuel or food, T had not a friend or an acqiiaut- ance in the country . We bad been but a short time in the Stale, and had made no acqnaiiilancea, I had not a relative in the world but tlie uticie who had reared me, and he was very old and indigent, and was not within a thousand milesof me, “On the 10th day of December I had beet, two days without fooii, I had hus banded a tew ['Otaloes, the [ roduc s of onr little ganlen, for my starving child ren. Oh, Mr.s. Wheeler!” continued Mrs Wilson, ■') on do not know the pangs of hunger, nor do you know the .still deeper ]'aiigs and withering anguish that the cry of one's oifspr tig sends to the heart of right This is your money, and there is more in store for the widow and the fatherless in the hour of need,” “I could scarcely believe my own sei ses, I wept with joy and laughed like a maniac, until I startled my children with the vehemence of my joy. "A little longer, and this munificence would have been too late, for ] was near the fami.shirig i'oint. I had hegnii to writhe itiiuei the 'hunger pain 1 had heard ol as indicating the last sutf'eriiig of fainting mortality among the ‘famiabiDg paiip.jrs cf Ireland.’ “Ah! Mrs. Wheeler, fancy a scorpion gnawing at the hearl-atiings ; fancy coals of fire applieJ to the naked flesh! No, no, you cannot. It is only those who have felt Death’s cold fingers stealing along their pulses, and hi« chill, damp breath faiiiiing their cheeks, that can know the jiangs of starvatiou. "Of the source of fhi.« gratuity, and the kind, the comforting, the blessed words wLicn the letter contained, I coii.d not form the remotest apprehengion. But there they were. I was happy. “From that day forwanl, the same blessed handwriting, accompanied by a like donation and a lew brief words of encouragement, periodically found its way through the broken pane of my win dow ; but the kind hand that fed the widow and orphans was still ui known to me 1'rom that day neither I nor my little one.s wanted atiylhing. “'Ihespruig came, and the price of flower aro.ie to eleven dollars oer barrel, anil wai: very scarce in the market. I would not, in tact I could nol,iiiilnlge in the luxury of wheat bread at such a jirice and used Irulian meal instead of flour, altogether. "Utie day my little girl c/nit running the mother when she has no bread to giv , through thegate, shouting at the too of A 1t I M . n .J - r . _ ^ r “For what do you owe him gratitude ?” upright life. The virtuous have’nothino “For peace of mind, for a home, for bread for my orphan children, for plenty, A las lido; to ' well do I ■'On the moiniiig of the 10th of Decern, tier I divided the last mor.sel I had left between my two little ones, and put tbe last chips on Ihefire, of a boxful which I had gathered the day before when the .siiow commenced to fail. Without hav ing eaten anythir.g for two days I went out through thes. ow-.storm to the grove, where I I'ound some .stii k.s and hrnsh ; with these I started homeward. I had not gone far till i saw Judge Withrow at a distance behind me making hi.s wav to the village. I then regarded him as a proud old man, who cared for no one but himself. Enibarrai-.sed at my .siiuatioii, I hid behind an olil barn till ne passed. I had every reason to believe 'that, if he knew me at all, he must di.ilike me, tor my husband had ahu.se-1 him. My hus band Was a warm anti-Mason. His Zeai had led him, on one occasion, and tliat, too. but a short time before hi.s deoea.se. tier voice, ’0. ma, I've got a piece of wheat bread, I've got a jdece of wneat brea.l !' Jii.st as she entered the gate Judge With row passed along I was overwlielmed with mortifualion, for I knew lie must have heard what the child said. “llie uiglit following, aliont twelve o’clock. I wa.s alarmed by a noise at llie gate I stole to my cliamber window, and i coiicealitig myself behind tlie curtains, looked out. The moon «as at the f.ill and lier pure silver light rendered ob jects alinosl asdistinit as the iiooikIhv ante Wliat was my .snrpr se on seeing old Judge Withrow at tlie gate, .-training every nerve to ease down a barrel from a wlieelbarrow ! What could it mean? At last, blit with considerable noise, he succeeded in letting the barrel down to the groniid, whicli from tlie manmr in which he liandled it, appeared to be filled with same iieavy .sulistance. Pant’-g ■ with the exertion, the old man hared his to ridicule the institution of Masonry in i.ea.l, and fanning nimself with hi.s hat the p eseiice O' Judge Withiow. This ; turned his face in the dir-ction of the had no othsr effect than to produce a , window where I st.od concealed Tliere smile from the old man. My hnshaiid, : he stood, the good Samarilan, for nearly as he informed me, became exasperaie.l ' aiiiinnre, Hie moonligb: falling upon his at his ooolne,s8, and reproached the good luoad torehead and flushed face and niv- old man as a Mason. He treated him ing a silver brilliancy to his wliite hair very unkindly, and, from what he in-: a-it yielded in fitful flutterings to the' formed me, must have allowed hi.s feel- I motions of his hat, will, which he fanned mgs to betray him into very imprudent ' fresh cmr. ents of air into h,s face Lav and abusive language, to which the poor ing tiis l,at upon the wlieeihaarow he old man made no reply. ^ softlv opened the gate. He rolled' the I went home with my .sticks and limbs barrel to the gate, and then comuierioed borrowed a loaf o bread from Mr.s. Lisle, another struggle to raise it over the threa and, after a day ofgnefaiid despair went hold, H.s effort was nr.snccesafiil the barrel rolled back. After 1 he next morning, upon rising, I found spent m vain, the poor old upon the floor, under a broken pane in, fromhislal.or.andwipingthepersnira- owe . the window, a sealed letter. It contained tion from his forehead with hi some time m,\n arose a debt of gratitude that nothing short of ; a twenty dollar bank note, and ran thus • love can cancel.” ' 19 pocket- p , , handkerchief, he again stood some time Poor woman, keep a stout heart, and an A f.er several fruitless efforts,' Z atZlt to fear, though they may’be poor.”' ^"h! gr^y dot7at,7til'? he" poor have nothing to fear if they are up. ^ sight. Shortly a’fter I heaTd it^i"llrngTa the floor of the little stoop i„ the rear of the house He souii re-appeared, and taking a paper from hi.s pocket, he stole softly up to the window, and threw it ig althebiokenpane. He then shut the gate, and, taking his wlieeliiarrow, start ed toward home. I watched him as h" retired, till his form in the moonlight, I* seen through the tears that fiilerl my evee seemed todbsoive into a halo of .sparklinj, gems of light. * ‘ I could sleep no more that night. Af. ter some time I went below and found the note under the broken jiane. It, wa« m the.same plain handwriting, a„d ran thus : -There is bread," for the widow ami theoiphans They shall not want. Be of good clieer.’ “In the morning I found a barrel of fiouron my poa’cb. The secret wasoi.t as to whose wa.s tbe kind hand that had been supporting me and my hahes, when there was no eve to hear witiipas save that Ail Seeing-Eye which is ever awake to take note cf.snch goo*ine.ss. "But, Mrs Wheeler," coiilinued Mri. Wilson, “you can never know theangniih of my mind on discovering my benefactor I reproached myself severely as I reflect* ed, and calief'to my mind with what hit ter feeling, almost anjounting to hatred I had regarded tlie dear old man While such feelings were r-nkling in my hrpast nodonht lie was lievising plansto supply tlieor(dian willi bread in secret in ohedi- en-retothat divine coininaod : ' Let not tb .- left haml now wliat thy right hand doeth." ' “My dear Mrs. Wilson.” said Mrs. Wheeler, her eves siiffiised with tears, "I shall never forgive invself for thus havin/; niis)ndged tliis good old man. Indeed, bow fienple will talk ' f those whose nieritj they cannot know.” "Tiiiiik of it, only tliink ofit. Mrs. Wheeler," continued Mrs Wilson, “oidy think of my childten i>ping fed hv tlis mati wlio had lieen called "jiroiid old aii.s* tocrat. Idack i'earted hreemason,' hv their fatlier. He liad ),ern told hv itiy liiishand. the parent of luv little ones, tliat ho Was no heller than a murderer—that lie would not lielieve him or anv ether ^fason on oath ; still lie had motiev for tae wife, and bread for the offspring of the man who liad thus insnlted him. “It was nolde in liim. Many a nan liaving seen you gathering sticks, WMild never have given yon a second thought," said Mis. Wheeier. "li es, and wiien my child came scream ing witli joy that she got a piece of wheat bread, how readily his iienevoient soul interpreted lier joy, ami traced it toils true caii.se. With what a thrill itmiist liave appealed to liis great heart to have led liim to penetrate my situation from so slight a circumstance ! This shows how diligently ids heart keeps vigi for suffering hitmaiiit.y while on hi.s mission of mercy. I could stoop down .and kisetfi* ilnst off ills feet. Mrs. Wlieeler, tell tlis Sewing circle tliat God will 'bless Jndge Wit brow, notw ithstandiiig their deeisioB to tlie contrary. “TIu.s was I supplied till Mr. Wilson and I were in,trrieii. Since thi n I have been a rich man’s wife. I am proud to own that mv present husband is a Free mason When lie sued for my hand I toil! liim I would remain a widow or marry a Freemason, and that, until he became a member of tiie order, his suit must prove unavailing. He tnen told that he had long been a Mason, and that he was indebted to that circumstance for his acquaintance with me, as it was in the Lodge he haii first beard my name mentioned by Jndge Wi'hrow, whose elo quent pleadings lor tho widow had direct ed his attention, and ultimately, his affec*- (Conrluded ou next page.)
Masonic Journal (Greensboro, N.C.)
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March 24, 1876, edition 1
2
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