1897. 



TUE AMERICAN BEE KEEPER. 



273 



IWIN RO:£S. 



\a a distant, v<>rrlrnt vp.Uey, 



By a \a7.-, linrx^ 1 (i '»^, 

 'Mid the lirds and troes and sunshine. 



Grew two roses, side by side. 



One was kont by a maiden fair, 

 The Oilier s^'e grave to her lover there. 

 As they plighied their troth one day. 



One gle:iipod wlnte on a corselet bright. 

 As a kniijl-" rode away in the morning light 

 To join his king in the fray. 



The other drooped its snowy head 

 At the fear and grief its mistress knew. 

 She kissed i's jxitals and murmured low, 

 "I fear, I fear— I love him so." 



She saw ff ir summer with heated breath 

 Die in the ftush of a hectic death. 



She heard the wild geese rise and cry 

 Adown the glaring southern sky. 



Yet never home her lover came — 

 Slowly died her hope's bright flame. 



In a distant, verdant valley. 



By a laz-, limped stream, 

 Blooms a rose above a grave, 



One white rose, in the sunlight's gleam. 

 —Cornell Era. 



A PATRIOT'S WIFE. 



One warm morning in the spring of 

 1780 Mrs. Slocumb was sitting on the 

 broad piazza about her home on a large 

 plantation in South Carolina. Her hus- 

 band and many of his neighbors were 

 with Sumter, fighting for the strug- 

 gling colonies, but on this beautiful 

 morning there were almost no signs of 

 war to be seen. As yet his plantation 

 had not been molested, and as Mrs. Slo- 

 cumb glanced at her little child playing 

 near her or spoke to her sister, who was 

 her companion, or addressed a word to 

 the servants there was no alarm mani- 

 fest. But in a moment the entire scene 

 was changed. 



"There come some soldiers, " said her 

 sister, pointing toward an oflBcer and 20 

 troopers who turned out of the highway 

 and entered the yard. 



Mrs. Slnrumb made no reply, al- 

 though her face became pale and there 

 was a tightfuing of the lips as she 

 watched the ii-t u. Her fears were not 

 allayed wbm she became satisfied that 

 the leader was none other than the hat- 



ea \joJonel 'iarleton. That short, thick- 

 set body, dressed in a gorgeous scarlet 

 uniform, the florid face and cruel ex- 

 pression, proclaimed the approaching 

 oflBcer only too well. But the mistress 

 gave no sign of fear as she arose to lis- 

 ten to the words of the leader, who 

 soon drew his horse to a halt before her. 



Raising his cap and bowing to his 

 horse's neck, he said, "Have I the 

 pleasure of addressing the mistress of 

 this plantation?" 



"It is my husband's." 



"And is he here?" 



"He is not." 



"He is no rebel, is he?" 



"No, sir. He is a soldier in the arm5 

 of his country and fighting her invad- 

 ers." 



"He must be a rebel and no friend oi 

 his country if he fights against hii 

 king." 



"Only slaves have masters here," re- 

 plied the undaunted woman. 



Tarleton's face flushed, but he made 

 no reply, and, turning to one of his 

 companions, gave orders for a camp to 

 be made in the orchard near by. Soon 

 the 1,100 men in his command had 

 pitched their tents, and the peaceful 

 plantation took on the garb of war. 



Returning to the piazza and again 

 bowing low the British colonel said: 

 "Necessity compels his majesty's troops 

 to occupy your place for a time, and I 

 will have to make my quarters in your 

 house; that is, if it will not be too 

 great an inconvenience to you." 



"My family consists at present of 

 only myself, my child and sister, be- 

 sides the servants, and we must obey 

 your orders. " 



In less tlian an hour the entire place 

 was transformed. The white tents cov- 

 ered the lawn, horses were tied to the 

 high rail fences, soldiers in bright uni- 

 forms were moving here and there. Be- 

 fore entering the house the British colo- 

 nel called some of his officers and gave 

 sharp orders for scouring the country 

 within the neighborhood of 10 or 15 

 miles. 



This sharp command was not lost up- 

 on Mrs. Slocumb, nor was she slow to 

 act upon it herseif, as we soon shall see. 

 But for the present, trying to stifl3 her 

 fears, she determined to make the best 

 of the situation and avert all the danger 

 possible by providing for the comfort 



