Show I 1 acty TT B fl rf rne light laam in the clearing I 1 A tale talc of the north country in the tira time of silas wright by IRVING BACHELL MIR author autho or of icban holden arl irl and nd L 1 dertl darre I 1 of the bleser 1 atlee 1 or up with cisale etc ete etc copyright by irving bachellor Bac bellor CHAP CHAPTER TEFt continued Is 18 ite he had a priceless and unusual talent for avoiding school reader english mid find the arts of deel declamation a tilt tion find for preparing a difficult subject to enter tilt average brain the underlying secret of la his power was soon apparent to me lie stood alway for that great thing in fit america which since then has caller the divine aggregate and seeing clearly how every measure would he be likely to affect its ita welfare he followed the compass it ii had lod led him to n height of power above till nil others and was to lend lead him unto the lie loneliest summit of in ment lit in american history lil story not much in my term of service there Is important to tills this little task ot of mine I 1 did my lily work well if I 1 may belleve believe the senator and grew familiar with ahe gentle und find ungentle arts of the politician one great fact grow in magnitude at and I 1 sullen portent ns as it alie le months passed the alga gigantic title slaveholding slave holding interests of the alio south viewed with growing alarm the spread of abolition sentiment subtly quietly lint and na naturally y they were feeling for the means to 1 defend I c and increase their power straws I 1 were vere coming to the surface to in that session which betrayed tills this deep undercurrent der current of purpose we felt it and the senator was worried I 1 know knew hut but held lila ills pence peace lie knew tiow how t keep his opinions until the hour had truck that summoned them to service the senator never played with tits his lance by and by spencer openly sounded tile the note of conflict ronni ct the most welcome year of my life dawned on the first of january 1844 I 1 remember that I 1 arose before daylight that morning uric and dressed and went out on the street to welcome it I 1 hod had less legs than six months to walt wait tor for that lily day appointed by sally gaily I 1 had no doubt that sit she would he be true to me lue I 1 had hall ray my days of tear fear find and depression but always my lily sublime fulth faith in tier her came back in good time oil oh yes indeed washington was it a fair of beauty and gallantry those days I 1 saw it nil all I 1 have spent many years lu in the ca capital and I 1 tell you the girls of that time had manners aud and knew how flow to wear their liola clothes but again the magic of old memories he kept pt my lily lady hidy on oil tier throne there was one ot of thein just one of those others who I 1 sometimes thought was utmost almost as aa graceful find and and us its sally find and slie she aked me I 1 know but tile the ideal of my youth glowed in the light of the early carly morning so to speak and was as brighter than nil all others ot liers above all I 1 had given my word to sally and well wel you iou know tile old time yankee of good stock was fairly steadfast whatever else may bo be m said lid of ilo him often a little too steadfast as were ken ben Grini grimshaw shaw and squire fullerton l the senator and 1 I went calling that new years day we saw all the groat great people find and some soine of them thein were more cheerful titan than they had a right to be it was a weakness of tile the time I 1 shall not go into details for fear of wondering wandering too far from my lily maln main road let ilet me 1110 step aside n R moment to say I 1 however ION Vever that there were two clouds in thu the sky of tile the washington society 0 of f those days oil one hns strong drink ind the other was aras the crude rough coated aggressive democrat from tile the frontiers of ill lie west the these ge latter ivere often seen lit in the lio holldiay regil lill offard of fann or nt at functions function some of them clia hanged liged slowly sl oly find and by find and by b reatheal rea theil tile stage itule of title lenou and diamond breastpins breast pins pitis and oits oats of figured silk it must be laid coald however hn eer that their me ino tives were mero always above their taste the winter inter wore away any slowly in hard work r von nuren buren cattle down to see tit alio P r ator one tiny from froin ills his country feint i it i tile IIi idson tile ex cs president had been solicited to ti accept file nomination again I 1 know that senator wright strongly favored tile the plan but feared that tile south would hlin him in convention it being well known not vail buren n wag ns opposed to tile annexation of texas IIo Ilo wever eer lie advised film hl friend to make a fight for the lie nomination and tills this tilt tho latter hitter resolved recoiled to to do thenceforward until middle mily 1 I gave eno my time largely to the lodi ting of it letters latter i for the senator in van burens behalf the time appointed for the convention in Bolt linore drew near one tiny day lie senator received rec elied an intimation that lie would aou lo ito 10 put lit in nomination if van vail L kuren uren failed in immediately lit lie wrote to judge fine of ogdensburg chairman of the acle delegation gatlon from tile the northern L rn district of new york forbidding such puch use of his name on the ground that hn acquiescence would involve to his friend the ex cx president lie ile rave fam wo role leave to go to in the convention on my way home to meet sally I 1 had confided to mrs wright the do details tails nf f my rn little love loc affair altair I 1 lad had to and sho had n tinder tender sympathetic int interest crest lit in the story fetor tilt the senator had said to lie ino ono one day with a gentle smile hart you vou havo in canton I 1 believe with which timing frilling matters like the choice of it president pr and tile tho mexican question cannot bo be permitted to interfere you must take time little to spend it i ot daiy diy ay or two tu tit nt tho the convention lit in baltimore on oil your oui vity MI it report to our friend rim flop who will look after your our comfort there the experience ought to ile bo useful to n young moll man who vilo I 1 hope will mill inive work to do ira in future conventions I 1 took tile 1110 stage to lo baltimore next daa da the twenty tv sixth of may ma ahe the convention thrilled ine tho the flaps flags tho the great grat e crowd tile binds bands the songs the sp bak tilt alio cheering 1 I see ond mid huir hear it till nil in iny atalic alk tile tho uproar lusted lasted for twenty minutes iliin van burens name was put lit in nomination then tile undercurrent I 1 the south was against him ti wryght lint foreseen tile ilio deep current ol of its power had dundei mined certain of the northern nil and western mst rn ostin osten for vim van buren find stubbornly casting their balits ball ts for ailin they alic had fiat orld for the i j rule lind ind accomplished ill lili s defeat before the balloting bewail began it continued contin ved for two to ani lays without lt hout n choice the enemy stood firm after adjournment that cienying ninny many of the yan cluren delegates were to n conference I 1 attended it avith judge rine fine the ex president had withdrawn and requested ills his friends in the convention to vote ote for silas wright my lily emotions con be more readily imagined linn described when lien I 1 heard the shouts of which greeted nii lily friends naine tears begun began to roll down don ray ia checks judge line lifted ll 11 hh n hand when order was as tit at last restored lie he bagart gentlemen as R n friend of the learned senator and asi a resident of tile the county which Is the proud possessor of ills his bonic your enthus lasin lifts lias it welcome sound to me file but I 1 happen to know that senator wryght will vill not allow lua 1118 to go before tho the colive convention nuon ile he read the letter of which I 1 knew mr benjamin P F butler then said when that letter was written senator wright was not aware that mr vill ann burens nomination atlon could not be nor was lie he aware that ills own nomination would be the tit nl most unanimous wish ol of this convention I 1 have talked with tile lending leading delegates from missouri find virginia today they say that lie he can be nominated by acclamation Is it possible that he it a strong party ninn man can resist tills unanimous cull call of the party with whose help lie lias has won immortal fume no it Is not so it cannot be so we must dispatch a messenger to him by horse tit nt once who take to litin him from ills his friend judge fine a rank frank statement of tile imperious demand of tills convention find a request that lie he telegraph a withdrawal of ills his letter in the morning the suggestion was us unanimously approved and within an hour mounted or one of the best horses la in Al maryland aryland so ills his groom informed inci inc me I 1 M was mas as on my ro way to washington with the ille message of judge fine in my pocket yes I 1 had two lays days to spore spare on my schedule of travel and reckoned that by returning to baltimore next day I 1 should i reach each contort canton in good time it was tire the kind of thing that only a little lithe supple bapple strong hi artud lad ind such as I 1 was lit in the days dass of luy lily you youth th could roll relish sli speed ing over a dark rond road by tho the light of the lie stars ana a liala with avith a horse that loved to kick up a wind 11 mi brain was in a fever for the notion lind lad ome collie to me that I 1 was mal making fig history the lure of fame and high place hurried file iii on with the senator in the preside nUal chair I 1 should be well started lit in tho the highway of great sue suc cess then mr if AT dunkelberg might think me better than the legacy of benjamin 01 1111 shaw A relay avral ted ine twant tario mills iloie tit alio road well I 1 reached ve very ry sore lut but otherwise lu in good fortu ori so boon oil after daybreak I 1 lyus trembling with excitement when I 1 put roy my torso borse in the stable and rang tilt boll bell tit nt our loor it seemed tl to nic me that I 1 was cro isling the lie divide between big and little A few steps nore more und and I 1 s s le be tool look ing down into the great valley of the future yet now flow that I 1 was there 1 1 I begun began to lose colin confidence defice the butler opened the door yes the senator was up and had jut ju t returned from a walk and was in ills tudy I 1 found him there well 41 Vell hart bart how does this happen lie asked its important business 1 I said ns as I 1 pret tentA the letter something it in ills look and manner us 1 h calmly adjusted tits ins glasses and read the lie letter of judge iane brought tile alic blood to my face it to puncture my lily balloon bal L illo loov ou so BO to speak nud and I 1 ws falling toward the earth find and so swiftly lily licad gwyla uc ile laid tile the letter on oil his fits desk it sic find and without looking up anil and ng as coolly as if lie he were asking for tho the change of a dollar queried well hart wont what to do you thin think we had better do about it 1 I I 1 was hoping you jou would take it I 1 stammered flit its W because cull se the excitement ot 0 tile the convention Is on you hn he answered let us 1001 lit at mo compass they have refused to mr van buren because tie he lg Is opposed to the annexation of texas teras on that subject the will of tile lie convention Is b now clear it Is possible that they hoy would nominate me we dont know about that we never shall know af K they did and I 1 accepted what would be expected of me ino la Is also clear they would e act we me to abandon in mj prin and that course of conduct which I 1 conceive to be best for fa th we 0 country therefore There toro I 1 should have to accept it under false pretenses and take their yoke upon ine inc would you think tile needle pointed blat way ny no I 1 ansiN answered cred immediately lio lie turned tin mil to ills his desk and wrote the telegram which fixed liln ills place in history it mild fuld no into tile lio lives of few nun men lifts ims such a moment fallen I 1 looked nt at liliu film with alth a of awe ae what sub lIalo calmi ress ind iid serenity avas ais lu in tits ills pico I 1 As it if it were ro n more mere detail lit in the work ork of tin tho day and without it moments faltering lie had declined it crown for ho would surely lime have been nominated find and elected ile ho roso rose and hmood looking out of the open window always I 1 think of if him standing there avith ath the sunlight falling full liiK upon ills face and shoulders should cis lie ile had observed lily viti otton and I 1 think it luid lind touched blin ailin a little there was us a moin elit of A curious illusion come to me file then for it seemed peril led as if 11 I 1 heard the me sound round of distant music looking thoughtfully out of the shidow lie ho asked uklid hart do you know when ahti our first fathers turned out of tile trall trail ot of the hrast beast tin and found tile tho long road of humanity ty I 1 think it was as allen they dlf dia covered the com complies lit in their so now tit nt last wo Q huo have como collie to that high and lonely mace lichu where we vio inny inay look hack back upon the tl toilsome adventurous yay ay we have traveled with tho the old of tile candle tind the compass now lot us stop a moment to rest find it to think ilow how ae t tile air Is 18 lichel the llight Is fulling falling I 1 see BLO the stars in the sly sky just below me ino Is the valley of val nal silence you will understand my lily taste now I 1 have sought only lily to to do 10 justice to my lily friend and to give my country it a name naine long neglected lint hut equal lit in glory to those of washington and lincoln come lot us ua take one last look together down the road we ve have if i 11 1 1 1 s 11 took the stage to Balt baltimore imort next day aled now dim tn in the evening shadows scattered along it are the little houses of the poor of which I 1 have written see the lights lit in the windows ln the lights that tire arc shining shifting into tile souls of tilt the young oung the enger ovell open expectant welcoming souls soula of tile the young aind the lie light carries many things lings ti hut lit best of nil all a leaped for tile the old unchanging way ay of the lie compass after till all that is the he end and alai nam of the whole matter belleve lelle me inc my life tills has lengthened into these lays dais when most of our tusks are tie ac hy by machinery we try to cirile men by the lie thousand in vast educational machines and iio no longer by tile one as 18 kc old it wils was the lie lov 1119 forgiving forbearing pat patient lent ceaseless toll of mother and father on the tender soui bul of childhood which quickened that sense e of ro to god find man inn lit in thes I 1 how lenvi tu to alle judgment of my 1 have 11 lived veil to pee fee the indent ancient plan ilan ot of kinge raft for self protection coniing coming bark back into the lie world it demands that hint the lio will nn an conscience of every individual shall be regulated and controlled by some soine prince nicked by nn an army it cannot fall I 1 foresee to accomplish such devaston alon in the human spirit its as shall imperil tile dearest possession of titan it if one la Is to follow the compass lie he can have but one king ills his god I 1 mil am near the end I 1 rode back to baltimore that forenoon they lind had I 1 nominated mr iolli ilola of tenne tennesse for pr president e aident find and silas wright for vice president pr aident the latter fitter by acclamation I 1 knew knew that wright would decline the honor hollor as lie ho lid did I 1 hurried flurried northward to keep my tip nent with sally |