Show ti 6 4 J itha of ft superb jko on land once dwelt a peaceful ami industrious dust rious gentleman with n numerous family he had a wife aho vho was virtuous aej comely and they were with many children boys who were courageous and robust girls who were lovely and re fined the father toiled for them in this chosen retreat year after year living in sweet content and hope his wife and children were his pride and they learned to trust his wisdom and love in all things but even while peace was abid ing in their pleasant home a stranger came into the little town he was a dashing man full of worldly knowledge and the catch 1 ing skepticism of ilie age he looked with contemptuous eyes upon the humble people who dwelt together iu such unassuming unity to him the wife and children were but servile fools unworthy to breathe the air of freedom and finally to while away his idle time be approached alic dependent ones and offered to teach them a higher philosophy of life a truer liberty than they had known when with they replied that they needa protector cd no knowledge from the stranger to make them true and happy he scoffed and leered in angry ridicule to the wife he said can you not see that you are but a slave to knavish brutality marriage is degradation the world haa found something freer and better that man ia not your husband but your taskmaster task master he has not made a home for you in love but out of selfish animal instinct and to the sons he called why do you pay reverence to that old villain you stronger than he come to me and I 1 will make you wise if you do not desert your home or seize the control for your beaves you are indeed cowards get to work oust alie hoary headed rascal and I 1 will help bouto manage the property we will have no slow coach old fashioned honest methods and then he smiled upon the daughters and whispered you are bright and beautiful why do you the sunlight here you dwell in dullest toil and quiet while that old wretch your father rules with a hand of iron fly from ignorance and marriage the ways of youir par enta must not satisfy you for the world of freedom awaits you with open arms then the wife and the bons eons and the daughters answered him ath the strongest words of honest scorn but ho was not abashed lie coolly eaid you declare that you are happy that you love and are beloyed that your guardian ia tender and true but arc liars you dare not tell the story of your sufferings and sorrow yet I 1 will strike kofl your chains I 1 will make you indeed free when he found that his words were still unavailing he turned away and gnawed hia lip in anger from that day on his presence was shunned but hour by hour ho nursed hia rage until it knew no bounds then he new to the mighty city where wealth and worldly learning and power were congregated he told liis horrible story of an entyre family kept in bondage airwoman in the chains of marriage and children in the bondage of filial ilove ho asked for help tv abolish such awful slavery and to annihilate such an example to tho world and the frightened people gaye hiro all ho required because their sympathies were with the scrod of family bics tics and because they dreaded the growth of marriage and pure paternity when tho worldly returned village he waa with almost sovereign power and he was by ft dashing people versed n all the pleasant freedom which he admired ho cried aloud to the wife and suns and you have dwelt so bog iu servitude that you lire better than tho brutes you dumot understand what necessary for your welfare lowi am going to mercifully tear your family apart anu give you freedom the wicked husband and father must ea to drigon the property I 1 will seize for myself and favorit cg and if any of you children will join with ug yon may bo our servants and pupils in nil the delights of freedom the husband was cast into jail the wife grieved with breaking heart the children lost their guardian and one or two bf them in very desperation learned the new philosophy philos phy and joined in the plea of freedom the property genf q ruin and soon desolation and orrow reigned almost supreme then stranger clapped his hands and called upon tho whole earth to applaud his mighty work at last ho cried my grand baskis accomplished I 1 have brought the members of that family out of their slavery of union and pure love into our life of scattered liberty to be aure they seem just now to be stricken with deathly woe but anything even free and speedy destruction is better than the ignoble serfdom in which I 1 found them |