YOI.
Ihe Crocked Poot—A Masonic
Incident.
BY JEFFERSON.
‘•Tliink not the jtood,
The gentle deeds of merev lliou Imst done,
SlmJl die forgotten all ; the poor, the pris’ner,
I he fatlH.'i’less the friendless, and the widow,
A\^ho own Ihe bounty of thy kindly hand,
tv ill cry to heaven and pulldown blessings
on thee.”
Grissy Weimer, of Maples, is the young
daiiohter of a poor widow, and the or
phan child of a Master Mason. Since
the death of her lather her mother has
had to struggle hard to raise her large
laraily of children ; and to add to her
afflictions the youngest, Grissy, was da"
formed with a terrible crooked or reel
foot. Well and beautifully developed
every other way, and full of the promis
ing spirit of a noble womanhood, this
blight, this deformity weighed upon the
mother’s heart with the threatened pres
sure of a lifelong misfortune. 'Wh.at to
do she knew not. Poverty forbade ex
penditure, and the only alternative seem
ed an humble submission to the order
nature had forced upon her child.
Some few months over a year ago,
Mrs. Weimer and her little daughter
were seen by a Brother of the Fraternity
on the train of the Pittsburg and Fort
Wayne Piailroad. pie noticed the reel
foot of the little unfortunate. The sight
of such a deformity on the limb of a little
girl of nine summers made him feel sad.
“Poor child,” said he, ‘‘that foot is too
badly deformed. It should be straight
ened.”
■‘How? Where?” queried the mother
with evident feeling, for she loved the
ehild as a mother only loves her latest
born. It.s father was dead, and she was
left on the battle side of life without
means. '‘How, and where ?” she re
peated, with a despairing tone.
‘‘At the Surgical Institute, in Indian
apolis,” (there is also a Branch in Phila-
delpliia), responded the Masonic Broth
er.
‘•That might be,” said the good wo
man, solemnly, “if I had the means to
pay for it.”
Alas ! how often it is that misfortunes
like this befall the poor. Nature seems
not to recognize the differences of wealth
and poverty, and oftentimes the inmates
of the cottage are made to drink of the
cup of suffering, while the palaces of
luxury are without a single affliction.
Philosophers tell us that “time makes
all things even,” and it may be so; but
then we know that “the mills of the gods
grind slowly,” and the orders of nature,
even then, are not always clearly seen.
“Yes,” said the Brother of mystic sym-
ipathy, “at the Surgical Institute that foot
can be made straight, and then that
child can grow up to the beauty and
strength and life of womanhood without
a-khadow over her.”
“I would give my life, almost, if it
could be done,” responded the poor wo-
.maja, “but I have uo means- I am poor.
“That’s enough,” said the mystic
stranger ; “I’ll see that the foot is made
straight.”
Returning to Indianapolis he called at
the Inntitute, where he saw Doctors Al
len, Johnson and Minnick, and told them
the story of the poor v?idow and her
daughter.
“Tell her to come, and bring her child,”
said they ; “we’ll do up the job without
the charge of a dollar.”
He then called upoii that solid r-ail-
road philosopher. Superintendent 0. 0.
Gale, of the Bee Line, who without a
word wrote out a pass for Mrs. Weimer
and daughter from Munioe to Indianap
olis and return. He then wrote to W.
W. Worthington, Superintendent of the
Fort Wayne & Munice Railroad, who
gave a like pass over that road. These
passes were sent to Mrs. Weimei with
directions for her journey to the capital,
and the result is now seen in the follow
ing note from her own hand :
Maples, Allen Co., Ind., May 30, 1S76.
To the Masonic Advocate:
I wish to give Dr. Allen’s Surgical Institute
the praise it is worthy of, I went to the lu-
stitiue the first day of la.st Noveinlier witli niy
little daugliter. Avho had a reel foot, and it was
very difficult for her to get about. Her foot
was operated upon, and a brace was placed
upon her limb. lam to-day more than hap
py to say, she is now with two straiglit feet,
going to scl'.ool and enjoying lierself well.
Heaven bless tlie Institute and the good doc
tors, for the lame are made to walk an.’, the
blind to see.
Respectfully, M VVeimek.
We may add, in finishing up this little
story of humanity, that every man who
touched this case is a member of the mys
tic tye—Gale, Worthington, Allen, John
son, Minnick, Carey, McHenry and Ma
ple. Besides all these, the Lodge in 0-
hio, of which her husband was a member
sent Mrs. Weimer a clever sum to bear
her expenses. The little girl might now
be set down as the Masons’ daughter, for
insignificant as the deed of service may
seem, she feels that it was the life boat
that has cairied her over her darkest
river, and her little heart, she says, will
never cease to pray that God may bless
all those good Masons for their kindly
services.—Masonic Advocate.
The following beautiful sentiment was
recently uttered by Judge John L. T.
Sneed, of a Western court:
“The idea that the judicial officer is
supposed to be vested with ermine,
though fabulous and mythical, is yet more
eloquent in its significance. We are told
that the little creature called the ermine
is so sensitive to its own cleanliness that
it becomes paralyzed and powerless at
the touch of defilement on its snow-white
fur. When the hunters are pursuing it
they spread with mire the path leading
to its haunts, to which they draw it,
knowing that it will submit itself to he
captured rather than defile itself
Man may loiter by the wayside but
time flies on the wings of the wind.
Little charges, little a,?sertions, little
oarele.ss things, stinging words in a mo
ment of bitterness and anger,—’.vhat a
world of misery has resulted from them !
The cases are very numerous where the
smallest matters have made impressions
upon selfish people, such as could not
have been imagined or foreseen.
A rich banker, who w'as known to be
of a sordid disposition, and careless us to
ordinary civilities, wrote to his nephew,
whom he intended to make his heir. The
answer came on a half sheet with jagged
edges, soiled, and folded slovenly. The
banker took a mortal offence at this in
dignity, as he chose to call it, and made
a new will, by which his property was
given to another person,
A man recently dmd, about wdiom the
following is told : There were two broth
ers, who apparently loved each other
very much. They had grown to man
hood together. At the respective age of
fifty and sixty, both of them retired from
business ■with a competency. The young.-
er man soon lost his money by specula
tions ; but his brother gave him pecunia
ry assistance, and at once made his will
in the other’s favor,
One night, at some festive gathering,
George, the younger, thoughtlessly pull
ed the chair in which his brother was
abont to seat himself from under him, so
that William, a man of exceptional digni
ty of demeanoi, fell floundering upon
the floor. The consequence was a lame
ness for life, and from that unhappy mo
ment, William never spoke to his brother
till the day of his death, and left all his
fortune to a stranger.
On the other hand, the smallest offices
of kindness, given, no doubt, from pure
benevolence, or love of assistance, have
been the means of leading to happy re
suits. They seem like the fairy story of
the beautiful girl, who met an aged wo
man of many infirmities, and on being
asked a question, repulsed her. Then
the malison of the old woman, a power
ful spirit i.n a fairy land, changed the
young girl to a fright. But when a poor,
homely, tired child ofi’ered the miserable
dame her arm, because she was so old
and sorrowful, down came the fairy gifts
and kefore her stood a dazzling queen,
who endowed the child with wealth and
glorious beauty. The spirit of this myth
is still acted out by humanity. A soft
word at the right time proves the guer
don of power and grace. A foolish ac
tion, or a reckless one seals a man’s fate
with the direct misfort'jne.
Equity.—An eternal rule of right,
implanted in the heart. What it asks
for itself it is willing to grant to others.
It not only forbids us to do wrong to the
meanest of God’s creatures, but it teaches
Us to observe the golden rule, “All things
whatsoever ye would that men should
do unto yon, do ye even so to them.”
There is no greater injunction—no better
rule to practice.
.... Hot.
.... Di'j- weather.
.... Yellow fever in Xew York.
Outs 10 cents a bushel in Kansas.
.... Cpniiecticut’s tobacco crop is good.
.... PoCn,liontas was the only good Indian.
Oil, for a lodge in some vast wilder
ness.
.... The innocent seldom find an uneasy
pillow.
.... Impure water is exciting Baltimore
people.
.... Sea m'ussels are oonsidered dainties in
New York.
.... Sitting Bull indignantly denies that lie
is related to Ole, of the same name.
.... Ci'oquct sets are now sold under the
name of “matrimonial enconragers.”
.... Grasslioiipers are flying thick in some
parts of the West.
If money is not your servant, it will
be your master.
.... Street cars were introdiiced in Naides
last month.
.... If an organ grinder''cannot be strictly
called a musician, it must be allowed that he
has a ‘■tunV’ foi' music.
Taxidermy for parents: If you want
to preserve your children do not-sttiff them.
A New York bird cle.aler dyes pigeons
any color desired; colors warranted not to
run.
Mr. J. G. Lawton, of Ninety-Six, Ga.,
lost 650 shocks of oats and 144 sheep -by the
late flood.
The peaks of the Rocky Mountains
impress one with an awful sense of loneliness.
Marriage is described by a French-
cynic as a tii'esome book witli a very line pre
face.
.... Mr. Peter Cooper has a barrel of iii-on-
ey, but he won’t open the bung-hole.
.... Newport, Vt., on the Fourth, had mu
sic by a clriiin cccrirs, e:icli member of -which
was over ninety years of age.
... The gloi'ious times are coming when ;i
fellow can go out androll in the'lmj’—and roll
all over a hidden nest of eggs.
.... An Austrian officer. Captain Alilstrom,
swam From Vienna to Pesth, in the Danube,
160caiiles, in 89 hours.
Niagara Falls has been recommended
by Archbishop Lynch of Toronto, a-s a place
of religious pilgrimage.
A Bridgep rt b.iby was bni'ucd to death
in its cradle, a brother setting the clothing on
lire with a match.
.... The Sultan gets $3,50,000 a month; but
he is liable to be the victim of an unprovoked
and cold-blooded suicide before the month is
up.
.... The F.mperor Willi.am received 41,371
presents from his suhjefcts last year. They
Included books, charts, works of art table deli
cacies and other things.
.... John Wynne, of Ilawkinsville, Ga., ran
nine sturgeon out of the c-eek and captured
them with dog.s. They weighed nine luindrcd
pounds-.
....A hotel waiters’ convention is to be
held at New H:iven. They wish to settle the
great question whether a waiter lias a right to
wipe his nose on a table napkin.
.... It is singular that a woman will faint
away at the sight of a cut finger. It is also
singular that she will flatten her nose against
the window' of a drugstore to see a man who
has been crushed to pieces by the cars.
Hereafter when a person dies of scarlet
fever, small-pox, whooping cough, or other
contagious disease, in New York, there will
be no chmeh or public funeral, the Board of
Health of that city deeming sUoh case s dan
gerous to those who attend.