274 
MOORE’S RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
OCT.28 
ru 
A TOUCHING STORY. 
The Original of “East Lynne.” 
It may be not generally known, yet it is pro¬ 
bably true, that the famous novel of “ East 
Lynne," although written in England, had the 
groundwork of its story In u singular marriage 
which took place In this city, the notice and 
the attending circumstances at the time being 
copied by almost every puper In the country. 
Tbe matter was about a» follows: A Mr. J. M., 
a clerk In a down-town house, fell In Love with 
a young lady whose father was a well-to-do 
Second street merchant, and after a proper 
season of attention the couple were married. 
Both soon found out that they weie not hap¬ 
pily mated, and after u marriage of seven years, 
during which time they had three children, 
two boys and a girl, they both agreed to part, 
tho husband applying fur a bill of divorce, on 
the ground of Incompatibility of temper. The 
divorce was granted, and the wife went home 
to her fathoi, who had through indorsing lost 
bis business and all his property. The daught¬ 
er's and his own misfortunes weighed so 
heavily upon the father’s mind that during a 
moment of mental alienation he took his own 
life, leaving his daughter penniless, and to 
rough it with the cold charity of the world as 
best she could. The woman, a brave little crea¬ 
ture, tried every way she knew how to gaiu an 
honest livelihood; In fact working so hard 
giving mimic lessons and doing embroidery for 
her old school mates that her health gave way, 
ami, having no money to pay her hoard, must 
beg, starve, or go to the pnorbouse. 
To turn to the other side of the picture, the 
husband after a few months’ release from the 
marital bonds, again married, and at the time 
of which we speak hail not only the three 
children by the flret wife, but also in uddltion 
thereto, a little two-yen* old girl by the second 
wife. The latter lady being III, the husband 
advertised for a nurse and hou»e keeper, which 
notice reached the eye of the first wife, and she 
In her trouble went to tho former partner of 
her heart, told him of her sad condition aud 
applied for the position In his household. The 
husband knew' not what to say ; but after giving 
her ample funds for all immediate wants asked 
her to call again at Ills office on the following 
morning, promising to consult his w ife about 
tho matter in the mean time. 
Promptly as per agreement wife No. I was on 
time, as was the husband, and from there they 
went to the residence, where the two wives had 
their first conversation ending in tin Ir agree¬ 
ment for lhe first wife to come and accept the 
vacant place, which she did, seemingly de¬ 
lighted at having a peaceful home over her 
bead, notwithstanding the very strange cir¬ 
cumstances under which such shelter was 
given. Necessity demanded that the entire 
pant should bo obliterated, and tho new house¬ 
keeper treated as any other help; that she 
must care for the children—her own offsprings 
—and the other child the same as any hired 
nurse would do; that she must eat at the second 
table to care for her charges. All those things 
ami even more humility did tho poor woman 
show, never by sign, word or look exhibiting 
the least evidence of discontent. What, how¬ 
ever must have been tho true feelings of her 
boart, when seeing another filling the place 
that she had once tried, as she thought, so 
hard to fill 1 
The above is from the files of an oid Cincin¬ 
nati paper, but the ample), as told us by one 
conversant with the whole facts la stranger 
than what we have already narrated. When 
tho cholera was raging in odr city In 18C0 the 
second wife was taken very 111 with It, and be¬ 
ing Informed by the physician that she could 
live but a few hours at must, as she was then in 
a collapsed condition, she asked that all go out 
of the room, excepting her husband and the 
housekeeper, when she told how much she 
dreaded leaving her little child amongst 
strangers, and as a dying wife entreated them 
both to marry again. The proposition was a 
strange one, but both promised, and In a few 
months afterward, when the second wife had 
bean dead a sufficient length of time not to 
cause remarks, the two were again married, 
brought together after a cruel separation of so 
many years, and, wo believe, aro now living 
happily together in a cosy West End house.— 
Cincinnati Inquirer. 
■ --- 
ABOUT PROVERBS. 
It was Lord llacon who said "The genius, 
Spirit, and (he wit of a nation are discovered In 
its proverbs;’’and Earl Kussell defined a pro¬ 
verb admirably when ho called it the “ Wisdom 
of many, and the wit of one "—that is, the wis¬ 
dom of many having observed a fact, one wit¬ 
tier than the rest puts it into some happy 
phrase. So also Pope : 
" True wit Is nature to advantage dressed— 
What oft was thought but ne’er so well expressed." 
As for the wit of a nation being discovered in 
its proverbs, this is true with the reserve that 
almost every proverb worth ripeating may be 
found In many languages, indicating a common 
origin perhaps, certainly showing that all men 
are of one kin. A proverb, in fact, should be 
that touch of nature which will make all feel 
alike and all accept It. 
The following are a few proverbs, some of 
which combine much shrewd observation with 
caustic wit, and which are all deserving of be¬ 
ing treasured in our memories and taken as a 
guidance in life. 
Life Itself In short and death so near to us all 
that we do not wonder at the mini of wisdom 
being to tbe Babylonian, “Eat, drink, and 
love," or, as some say, “ live.” It is the old 
materialist Idea, “ Enjoy the present hour," 
The Syrian bits this off admirably when he 
says, “The egg of to-day, and not the hen of 
to-morrow." 
We say, “A bird in the hand Is worth two in 
the bush," calling in alliteration to aid us to 
remember that promised happiness Is uncer¬ 
tain. 
“To-morrow never come?, we are told but 
there are others who have turned the good of 
waiting Into w ords of wisdom as true as they 
are poetical. 
Apropo* of eggs, Jerrold has said with sweet¬ 
est poetry, “Patience wanted a nightingale; 
Patience waited, and tbe egg sang." 
A parallel piece of poetry Is a French pro¬ 
verb, “ With time and patience a mulberry leaf 
becomes satin.” 
Another writer tells us that “ Patience and 
Faith alone can conquer Time;" and the French 
have a beautiful line, which the poet Jauigfol- 
low has thus Englished, “All things come round 
to him who will but wait." Finally, he who 
would rather have the egg than the hen may 
consider himself “sat upon" by the mighty 
Shakspearc and his weighty pity, " How poor 
are they that have not patience!" “ Well—that 
is the lesson of life," says one; biit,answers an¬ 
other, “ A setting hen never gets fat," “Ay, 
ay," rejoins the first, “but ‘a rolling stone 
gathers no moss.* ” Both thrust and parry, 
lunge and lipoMe are good ; a setting hen does 
not want to get fat, but she hatches her chick¬ 
ens ; and the rolling stone, we may sopposo, 
sees tho world. 
These are some excellent Syriac proverbs. 
The Moslem Syrian laughs at the “Jew beggar 
who neither enjoys this world nor the next;” 
and while wesay, "Hard words break no bones," 
he puts ills view (the same) in more appropriate 
words—" A thousand curses never tore a shirt.” 
“Speech is of silver, silence Is gold," made pop¬ 
ular here by Carlyle, Is German ; but the origi¬ 
nal is Syrian, and is manifestly Eastern. “ I had 
many friends when my vines gave wine," em¬ 
bodies the common experience that prosperity 
begets friends and adversity tries them ; so we 
see that what Is true In the West is true also in 
the East. 
--- 
BUSBY’S ISON WEDDING, 
Busby of Trenton oelebrated his “Iron wed¬ 
ding " one day hist week, and he Invited about 
one hundred and twenty guests to the wedding. 
Of course, each person felt compelled to bring 
a present of some kind, and each one old. 
When Mr. and Mrs. Smith came they handed 
Busby a pair of flat-irons. When Mr. and Mrs. 
Jones arrived they also had a pair of flat-iron*. 
All hands laughed at tho coincidence. And 
there was oven greater merriment when the 
Browns arrived with two pairs of llat-lrons. 
But when Mr. and Mrs. Robinson came In with 
another pair of flat-irons the laughter became 
perfectly convulsive. There was, however, 
something less amusing about It when the 
Thompsons arrived Wlthlour flat-irons wrapped 
iu brown paper. Aud Busby's fnco actually 
looked grave when the three Johnson girls were 
ushered Into tho parlor carrying a flat-iron 
apleoe. 
Bach one of the succeeding sixty guests 
brought flat-irons, and there was no break lu 
the continuity until old Mr. Curry arrived from 
Philadelphia with a cast-iron cow-bell. Now, 
Busby had no earthly use for a cow-bell, aud 
at any other time he would have treated such 
a present with scorn. But now he v/as actually 
grateful to Mr. Curry, and he was. about to em¬ 
brace him, when the Walrlngham’s came In 
With a new kind of double-pointed flat-irons 
with wooden handles. And all the reat of the 
guests brought the same articles, except Mr. 
ltugby, aud he had with him a patent aland fur 
holding flat-irons. 
Bushy got madder and madder every minute, 
and, by the time the company had all arrived, 
lie was nearly insane with rage, and he went up 
to bed leaving his wife to entertain the guests. 
In the morning they eountod up the spoils and 
found that they had two hundred and thirteen 
flat-irons, one stand aud a cow-bell. And now 
the Busbys have out the Smiths, and Browns, 
and Johnsons, and the rest entirely, for they 
are convinced that there was a pre-concerted 
design to play a trick upon them. The fact Is, 
however, that the hardware store in the place 
had an overstock of flat-irons, and sold them 
at an absurdly low llgure, and Busby’s guests 
unanimously went for the cheapest thing they 
could find, as people always do on such occa¬ 
sions. Busby thinks he will not celebrate his 
" silver wedding." 
--—- 
THE OMAHA HIGH SCHOOL. 
[See Engraving on preceding page.] 
Tub High School building at Omaha, given 
on preceding page. Is copied from Mr.KoWTN 
A. CarleVs recent work entitled “Nebraska, 
its Advantages, Resources and Drawbacks,” 
which we shall notice In a future number. Af¬ 
ter speaking of the public schools of Omaha at 
some length, and somewhat critically as 
regards expenses, etc., our author (who, by tho 
way. Is a born Englishman aud contributor to 
the London Field,! says: "The plate facing the 
title-page of this book, from a photograph by 
Eaton, a local artist of repute, is an accurate 
representation of the High School, a finely pro¬ 
portioned and beautiful structure, 170 feet long, 
and 80 feet wide. The spire rises 185 feet from 
the ground. The High School bill of intel¬ 
lectual fare comprises a German-Engllsh pre¬ 
paratory course of one year, a Latin-Engllsh 
ditto of two years, a classical courso of four 
years (Latin, Greek, higher Mathematic?, Nat¬ 
ural Sciences, English Composition, Rhetoric, 
Logic, Literature, Political and Social Econo¬ 
my, Mental and Moral Philosophy and the Eth¬ 
ics of Government, Chemistry, Physic*, Physi¬ 
ology, Zoology, Botany, Geology, Mineralogy, 
Astronomy, History or Civilization, Interna¬ 
tional Law); a Latin-Engllsh or a German-Eng- 
Ush course of four year?, very similar to the 
classical course, languages excepted ; an Eng¬ 
lish course of four years, almost, equally ambi¬ 
tious; and a select course, which is very much 
at the option of students and parents. This, 
like the bill of faro of an American hotel, com¬ 
prises too many dishes; It is extremely difficult 
for the diner to choose wisely, and he or she 
runs great risk of destroying the pow er of men¬ 
tal uigestlon. Tbe fact that it is entirely free 
adds somewhat to tbe danger. There is very 
property no distinction of race or color, and 
the irrepressible darkey Is to be found in all 
grades.” 
A SECOND LADY FRANKLIN. 
The wife of John Comstock, the discoverer 
of the great Comstock Mine at Virginia City, 
has been making a tour of the territories in 
quest of Information concerning her husband, 
who left, her over twenty years ago. Twice or 
thrice he v/as reported dead, and each time the 
report was contradicted, until his wife was un¬ 
prepared to believe him either dead or alive. 
About a month ago she started out on a trip of 
Inquiry and discovery. At Cheyenne she was 
told by a man who pretended to know C.im- 
stock that he was living In Southern Utah and 
was very poor. The wife, ready to seize upon 
any hope, hastened off On the hunt of her hus¬ 
band, visiting nearly every town In the terri¬ 
tory. Then she went on over to Nevada, 
where he was once known to everybody as the 
discoverer of the Comstock, and there she 
heard that he had died In Montana, la destitute 
circumstances, some years ago. She returned 
to Salt Lake, and from there went tip Into Mon¬ 
tana, where she has found the proofs of his 
death. lie had drifted, It seems, Into the 
Sweetwater (Wyoming) mines, and loft there 
with the Big Horn expedition In 1871. The ex¬ 
pedition, failing of Jta object, was disbanded, 
some returning to the railroad and the remain¬ 
der going on through the Yellowstone region 
into Montana. Comstock reached Bozeman 
sick, discouraged and penniless. He often 
pointed to his discovery, the Comstock, then 
producing its jpifi,00(1,000 annually, and the 
thought seemed to bring despondency. One 
day iu ( he spring of 1871 he borrowed a pistol 
from a Mr. Dillabur, a shoemaker, and stepping 
outside the shop, lodged a bullet iu his brain, 
lie left no property of any kind, and the ex¬ 
pense of his funeral, which was quietly con¬ 
ducted, was shared among a few Jrieuds. Mrs. 
Comstock has found the grave aud being 
possessed of ample means, ieit her by her 
father, proposes to remove the remains to her 
present home, somewhere In the states.— Den¬ 
ver (Colorado) Acws. 
---- 
A PAGE FROM REAL LIFE. 
The New York correspondent of the Toledo 
Blade w'rltes: 
The story which l sketch In brief was told me 
by a legal gentleman, who also stands high 
politically, as we rode homeward in the horse 
cars last evening. He boards at one of the up¬ 
town hotels. One evening he was called upon 
at the hotel by a lady who said she did not like 
to call at his office, and yet desired his help. 
She was wealthy and had a daughter sixteen 
years old, but was unhappy, and desired a di¬ 
vorce from a husband w ho had ceased to love 
her. The lawyer responded that the matter 
was easy, if she could furnish the proof of his 
open and flagrant infidelity, which she prom¬ 
ised. The proof was furnished, but still the 
case did not progress. There was something 
that remained untold, aud she was urged to 
leave nothing unrevealed which could help her 
suit. Stillshe equivocated. Fiually, after great 
urging, the truth came out. Twenty years ago 
the parties had been married and living in the 
same vicinity at a distance from this city. They 
eloped together, and the husband and wife who 
were left behind are still living. They came to 
New York, were married, grew' wealthy, had a 
daughter Just budding into womanhood, were 
socially popular, aud yet tho world about them 
knew nothing of their story. Maddened by the 
infidelity of the man whose name she bore, the 
woman who was really no wife of his determ¬ 
ined to obtain a divorce, She was told that 
it was impossible under the law of Kew York, 
as she had no standing as a w lie. Subsequently 
she w ent to Indiana to obtain a residence and 
bring a suit there, and while waiting, death 
came to her relief by carrying off her husband. 
She was divorced indeed. Aud thus truth 
again outdid Action in the weaving of romance. 
- +++ - 
Every one must find out for bimeelf the key 
to the riddle of life. It is of no use to have it 
told, gome do not hear, while others misun¬ 
derstand It, 
j&bkth |kadm|}. 
“THE NINETY AND NINE." 
The following is one of Saxket’s favorite hymns, 
which he sings with thrilling effectat the Moody aod 
San key revival meetings, it was written for Mr. 
Sanket by a lady in England, but the music is San- 
KEY’S own : 
THERE were ninety and nine that safely lay 
In the* shelter of the fold, 
But. one was out on the bills away 
Far off from the gates of gold ; 
Away on the mountains wild and bare. 
Away from the tender Shepherd's care. 
Lord thou hast here thy ninety and nine, 
Are they not enough for thee V 
But the Shepherd made answer, one of mine 
Has wandered away from mo. 
And although the road he rough and stoop 
I go to tho desert to find my sheep. 
But none of t Ite ransomed ever knew 
How deep were the waters crossed; 
Nor bow dark was the night that the Lord passed 
through 
Kre he found his sheep that was lost. 
Out In tl e desert he heard its cry, 
Sick and helpless and ready to die. 
Lord, whence are those blood drops all tho way 
That mark out the mountain's track t 
They were shed for one who had gone astray 
Kre the Shepherd could bring him hack. 
Lord, whence are Thy hands so rent and torn ? 
They were pierced to-night by many a thorn. 
Aud all through the mountains, thunder riven 
And up from the rocky steep 
There rose a cry to the gate of Heaven, 
“ Rejoice, I hure found My sheep!” 
And the angels re-echo around the throne, 
" Rejoice, for the Lord brings back his own.” 
- ■ -— 
THE SABBATH. 
Says the Boston Watchman and Reflector: 
The Advance, noting the fact that even tho 
secular papers have been shocked into a protest 
against recent glaring Sabbath desecrations; 
that the President of Dartmouth Goijego has 
appealed In behalf of n Sabbath-keeping com¬ 
munity; that our Methodist brethren are ques- 
tioningiho whole.' alosecularly, diori of theSab- 
bath by Sunday excursion trains to their cainp- 
moetiugs; that.tho Newark i\. J.) Presbytery 
have remonstrated against the Sunday excur¬ 
sions over the Pennsylvania Central; that the 
Franklin Co., Maas., ministers and Christians 
headed off a proposed Sunday excursion to 
Pleasant Lake; adds, in words lu fullest har¬ 
mony with our own recent utterance on the 
subject, and which we strongly commend to 
the serious attention of all our roaders; 
All thoughtful men must and do perceive how 
vitally our sacred day Is Interwoven with all 
that is good in our republican Institutions and 
social life. It furnishes the opportunity and 
guaranty for religious Instruction aud co-opera¬ 
tion, moral Influences, benevolent enterprises 
and kindly relationships in human life. It 
cherishes every belter tendency aud purpose, 
ove’-y noble thought aud aspiration and habit. 
All sober men know that without Ir, our coun¬ 
try never could have been what It la, never can 
be whnt it has been. It Is, therefore, not merely 
the technically religious man, but the wise aud 
moral generally, the tme patriots who plead for 
the preservation of the day. 
It Is time to pause and see whither we are 
now drifting in this matter. The rude shock 
given to New England is, perhaps, most timely. 
Changes of circumstances have, Indeed, neces- 
tated some changes In the old methods of the 
snored day. Other modifications have arisen 
from a modification of views as to the supposed 
excessive rigidnesB of the former observance; 
others by thoughtlessness and laxity of princi¬ 
ple. But It is a question whether the pendu¬ 
lum has not gone to the other extreme, and 
whether, besides the mure grave violations of 
the day, there are not creeping iu a multitude 
of minor questionable practices, often on the 
part of religious men. which lead directly and 
certainly to the total desecration of tne day. 
We refer to such things as Sunday railway 
traveling. Sunday drives, and even Sunday 
pleasure strolls in country villages when there 
is no valid reason lor them, the growing intro¬ 
duction of secular leading and .Sunday news¬ 
papers into the sacred day, and a great multi¬ 
tude of loose usages and objectionable .prac¬ 
tices on the part of C'brisciaus, which are but 
the beginning of tho end. Let us re-consider 
this matter, and without falling Into any asce¬ 
tic notions, let ua “keep holy the Sabbath day." 
When we finally lose hold of that consecrated 
day, by what appliances or instrumentalities 
shall religion itself lay hold on human hearts 
and lives, and what shall be the fate ,of a Re¬ 
public that has abrogated the very foothold 
for religious inflencas ? 
When we are least moved bv heavenly love, 
we sympathize least with human Infirmities; 
so, also, when we are fullest of heavenly love, 
we are most compassionate to human misery, 
and best fitted to oope with the troubles and 
infirmities that beset us. 
-M-»- 
Better have God for your guardian than the 
Bank of Eogland for your possession. You 
might spend tbe weulLh of the Indies, but the 
infinite richness of God you can never exhaust. 
CL 
