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Article SCENES IN AMERICA . ← Page 4 of 7 →
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Scenes In America .
some one suggested that , perhaps , Bull would not be satisfied without seeing it himself ; Burns ' did not see the sense of the thing , ' but at length yielded to the proposal , and Ball was called in . He entered the room with an extreme wildncss of countenance , and approached the coffin slowly and timidly ; he gazed intently , for some moments , in his dead enemy's face , and then ' without saying a word , marched directly out of the room to the other part of the house .
Burns had had every thing necessary for the interment of Hinlde's body attended to ; the grave was dug under some trees in a corner of one of his own fields , and a sort of rude bier was prepared to carry the body to the ]) lace . Five or six of the company removed the coffin , in their hands , from the room to the road , where it was placed on the bier . Much to my surprise , every thing was conducted in the most orderly and respectful mannernothing , indeed , was neglected that usually was observed in their simple funeral processionswe marched two and two after the coffinand in
; , more silence and reserve than are generally observed on such occasions in more refined communities . Many of those in the procession took their turns in carrying the coffin to the grave ; for although our way was smooth and perfectly shady , yet the day was warm , and the body very heavy . Just as we had lowered the coffin into its place , and two persons had taken up spades to fill up the grave , to the utter astonishment of every one present , Ball suddenly sprang on the top of the fence near usHis mind evidently deranged
. was . " What are you adoin' ? " he demanded roughly . " Filling up the grave , " said Burns . " An' none o' you said notliin' over him ; I know'd that ' ould be , an' I ' 11 say somethin' myself ; he shan ' t be buried like a dumb brute . " " To be sure , " said one of the company , " its proper for somebod y to say something over the corpse ; and Mr . Burns . I think , is the fittenest person here to do it . "
Where ' s preacher Waller ? " asked Ball wildly ; " who went for preacher Waller ?" " Nonsense , Peter , " thundered forth Burns , " if it 'ill satisf y you , I'll preach over him , and that will do just as well as preacher Waller ' s Ion " winnings . Friends , " continued Burns , pulling off his hat , in which he was imitated by all present , " friends , we ' ve put in the grave a fellow creature , and we are just going to cover him with mother earth , for him to sleep 'till God wills him to wake it ' s beyond doubt our duty to forget his bad
up ; doings at such a time , and only to think a being like ourselves has ended his miserable life . I hope God will have mercy on his soul , for it needs it , I can solemnly tell you : but it is n ' t for us to judge a fellow creature , let him be ever so bad , at such a time . I say friends , let us hope God will show mercy to the soul of the body that lies here in this coffin , for I can tell you one thing , a bigger scoundrel never walked on this earth , that ' s my gospel say of him . But , for all , it ' s beyond doubt our duty to hope God will have mm
on his soul . Amen—Now boys , " he continued , clapping his hat on his head " , " let ' s finish our work and be off . " While others were filling up the grave ' Burns and I crossed the fence and persuaded Ball to return home immediately with me . Burns promising to remain until every thing was properly arranged about the ground . As we walked back to his house , '" . ! was satisfied that the old man ' s mind was under considerable derangement ; a circumstance that gave me excessive pain , for although it had not been twenty-four hours since ° our first meeting , yet I felt an identification with him , and indeed , a sort of attachment to him that could not well account for
I . We had njt got far on our way before we met his daughter searching for him ; the poor gii-Hookcd almost as wild as her father ; she told him that " Jack wanted him ' " Two or three times he expressed his determination to return to the grave , but his daiu'liter ' s
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Scenes In America .
some one suggested that , perhaps , Bull would not be satisfied without seeing it himself ; Burns ' did not see the sense of the thing , ' but at length yielded to the proposal , and Ball was called in . He entered the room with an extreme wildncss of countenance , and approached the coffin slowly and timidly ; he gazed intently , for some moments , in his dead enemy's face , and then ' without saying a word , marched directly out of the room to the other part of the house .
Burns had had every thing necessary for the interment of Hinlde's body attended to ; the grave was dug under some trees in a corner of one of his own fields , and a sort of rude bier was prepared to carry the body to the ]) lace . Five or six of the company removed the coffin , in their hands , from the room to the road , where it was placed on the bier . Much to my surprise , every thing was conducted in the most orderly and respectful mannernothing , indeed , was neglected that usually was observed in their simple funeral processionswe marched two and two after the coffinand in
; , more silence and reserve than are generally observed on such occasions in more refined communities . Many of those in the procession took their turns in carrying the coffin to the grave ; for although our way was smooth and perfectly shady , yet the day was warm , and the body very heavy . Just as we had lowered the coffin into its place , and two persons had taken up spades to fill up the grave , to the utter astonishment of every one present , Ball suddenly sprang on the top of the fence near usHis mind evidently deranged
. was . " What are you adoin' ? " he demanded roughly . " Filling up the grave , " said Burns . " An' none o' you said notliin' over him ; I know'd that ' ould be , an' I ' 11 say somethin' myself ; he shan ' t be buried like a dumb brute . " " To be sure , " said one of the company , " its proper for somebod y to say something over the corpse ; and Mr . Burns . I think , is the fittenest person here to do it . "
Where ' s preacher Waller ? " asked Ball wildly ; " who went for preacher Waller ?" " Nonsense , Peter , " thundered forth Burns , " if it 'ill satisf y you , I'll preach over him , and that will do just as well as preacher Waller ' s Ion " winnings . Friends , " continued Burns , pulling off his hat , in which he was imitated by all present , " friends , we ' ve put in the grave a fellow creature , and we are just going to cover him with mother earth , for him to sleep 'till God wills him to wake it ' s beyond doubt our duty to forget his bad
up ; doings at such a time , and only to think a being like ourselves has ended his miserable life . I hope God will have mercy on his soul , for it needs it , I can solemnly tell you : but it is n ' t for us to judge a fellow creature , let him be ever so bad , at such a time . I say friends , let us hope God will show mercy to the soul of the body that lies here in this coffin , for I can tell you one thing , a bigger scoundrel never walked on this earth , that ' s my gospel say of him . But , for all , it ' s beyond doubt our duty to hope God will have mm
on his soul . Amen—Now boys , " he continued , clapping his hat on his head " , " let ' s finish our work and be off . " While others were filling up the grave ' Burns and I crossed the fence and persuaded Ball to return home immediately with me . Burns promising to remain until every thing was properly arranged about the ground . As we walked back to his house , '" . ! was satisfied that the old man ' s mind was under considerable derangement ; a circumstance that gave me excessive pain , for although it had not been twenty-four hours since ° our first meeting , yet I felt an identification with him , and indeed , a sort of attachment to him that could not well account for
I . We had njt got far on our way before we met his daughter searching for him ; the poor gii-Hookcd almost as wild as her father ; she told him that " Jack wanted him ' " Two or three times he expressed his determination to return to the grave , but his daiu'liter ' s