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diff --git a/11033-h/11033-h.htm b/11033-h/11033-h.htm new file mode 100644 index 0000000..e1a8d96 --- /dev/null +++ b/11033-h/11033-h.htm @@ -0,0 +1,433 @@ +<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN"> +<html> + <head> + <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content= + "text/html; charset=UTF-8"> + <title> + The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Angel Over The Right Shoulder, by Elizabeth Wooster Stuart Phelps. + </title> + <style type="text/css"> + <!-- + * { font-family: Times;} + P { text-indent: 1em; + margin-top: .75em; + text-align: justify; + margin-bottom: .75em; } + H1,H2,H3,H4,H5,H6 { text-align: center; } + HR { width: 33%; + margin-top: 1em; + margin-bottom: 1em;} + BODY{margin-left: 10%; + margin-right: 10%;} + .linenum {position: absolute; top: auto; left: 4%;} /* poetry number */ + .note {margin-left: 2em; margin-right: 2em; margin-bottom: 1em;} /* block indent */ + .pagenum {position: absolute; left: 92%; right: 100%; font-size: 8pt; justify: right;} /* page numbers */ + // --> + </style> + </head> +<body> +<div>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 11033 ***</div> + +<h1>The Angel over the Right Shoulder</h1> + +<center><img src="./images/02.png" width="450" height="623" alt="Image of an Angel" /></center> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;"> +<a name="The_Angel_over_the_Right_Shoulder"></a><h2>The Angel over the Right Shoulder</h2> + +<center>or the</center> +<br> + +<center>BEGINNING OF A NEW YEAR.</center> +<br><br> +<center>BY</center> + +<center>THE AUTHOR OF "SUNNY SIDE."</center> +<br> +<br> + +<center>1852.</center> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;"> + + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;"> +<a name="The_Angel_over_the_Right_Shoulder"></a><h2>The Angel over the Right Shoulder</h2> + +<hr style="width: 45%;"> + +<p>"There! a woman's work is never done," said Mrs. James; "I thought, for +once, I was through; but just look at that lamp, now! it will not burn, +and I must go and spend half an hour over it."</p> + +<p>"Don't you wish you had never been married?" said Mr. James, with a +good-natured laugh.</p> + +<p>"Yes"—rose to her lips, but was checked by a glance at the group upon +the floor, where her husband was stretched out, and two little urchins +with sparkling eyes and glowing cheeks, were climbing and tumbling over +him, as if they found in this play the very essence of fun.</p> + +<p>She did say, "I should like the good, without the evil, if I could have +it."</p> + +<p>"You have no evils to endure," replied her husband.</p> + +<p>"That is just all you gentlemen know about it. What would you think, if +you could not get an uninterrupted half hour to yourself, from morning +till night? I believe you would give up trying to do anything."</p> + +<p>"There is no need of that; all you want, is <i>system</i>. If you arranged +your work systematically, you would find that you could command your +time."</p> + +<p>"Well," was the reply, "all I wish is, that you could just follow me +around for one day, and see what I have to do. If you could reduce it +all to system, I think you would show yourself a genius."</p> + +<p>When the lamp was trimmed, the conversation was resumed. Mr. James had +employed the "half hour," in meditating on this subject.</p> + +<p>"Wife," said he, as she came in, "I have a plan to propose to you, and I +wish you to promise me beforehand, that you will accede to it. It is to +be an experiment, I acknowledge, but I wish it to have a fair trial. Now +to please me, will you promise?"</p> + +<p>Mrs. James hesitated. She felt almost sure that his plan would be quite +impracticable, for what does a man know of a woman's work? yet she +promised.</p> + +<p>"Now I wish you," said he, "to set apart two hours of every day for your +own private use. Make a point of going to your room and locking yourself +in; and also make up your mind to let the work which is not done, go +undone, if it must. Spend this time on just those things which will be +most profitable to yourself. I shall bind you to your promise for one +month—then, if it has proved a total failure, we will devise something +else."</p> + +<p>"When shall I begin?"</p> + +<p>"To-morrow."</p> + +<p>The morrow came. Mrs. James had chosen the two hours before dinner as +being, on the whole, the most convenient and the least liable to +interruption. They dined at one o'clock. She wished to finish her +morning work, get dressed for the day, and enter her room at eleven.</p> + +<p>Hearty as were her efforts to accomplish this, the hour of eleven found +her with her work but half done; yet, true to her promise, she left all, +retired to her room and locked the door.</p> + +<p>With some interest and hope, she immediately marked out a course of +reading and study, for these two precious hours; then, arranging her +table, her books, pen and paper, she commenced a schedule of her work +with much enthusiasm. Scarcely had she dipped her pen in ink, when she +heard the tramping of little feet along the hall, and then a pounding at +her door.</p> + +<p>"Mamma! mamma! I cannot find my mittens, and Hannah is going to slide +without me."</p> + +<p>"Go to Amy, my dear; mamma is busy."</p> + +<p>"So Amy busy too; she say she can't leave baby."</p> + +<p>The child began to cry, still standing close to the fastened door. Mrs. +James knew the easiest, and indeed the only way of settling the trouble, +was to go herself and hunt up the missing mittens. Then a parley must +be held with Frank, to induce him to wait for his sister, and the +child's tears must be dried, and little hearts must be all set right +before the children went out to play; and so favorable an opportunity +must not be suffered to slip, without impressing on young minds the +importance of having a "place for everything and everything in its +place;" this took time; and when Mrs. James returned to her study, her +watch told her that <i>half</i> her portion had gone. Quietly resuming her +work, she was endeavoring to mend her broken train of thought, when +heavier steps were heard in the hall, and the fastened door was once +more besieged. Now, Mr. James must be admitted.</p> + +<p>"Mary," said he, "cannot you come and sew a string on for me? I do +believe there is not a bosom in my drawer in order, and I am in a great +hurry. I ought to have been down town an hour ago."</p> + +<p>The schedule was thrown aside, the workbasket taken, and Mrs. James +followed him. She soon sewed on the tape, but then a button needed +fastening—and at last a rip in his glove, was to be mended. As Mrs. +James stitched away on the glove, a smile lurked in the corners of her +mouth, which her husband observed.</p> + +<p>"What are you laughing at?" asked he.</p> + +<p>"To think how famously your plan works."</p> + +<p>"I declare!" said he, "is this your study hour? I am sorry, but what can +a man do? He cannot go down town without a shirt bosom!"</p> + +<p>"Certainly not," said his wife, quietly.</p> + +<p>When her liege lord was fairly equipped and off, Mrs. James returned to +her room. A half an hour yet remained to her, and of this she +determined to make the most. But scarcely had she resumed her pen, when +there was another disturbance in the entry. Amy had returned from +walking out with the baby, and she entered the nursery with him, that +she might get him to sleep. Now it happened that the only room in the +house which Mrs. James could have to herself with a fire, was the one +adjoining the nursery. She had become so accustomed to the ordinary +noise of the children, that it did not disturb her; but the very +extraordinary noise which master Charley sometimes felt called upon to +make, when he was fairly on his back in the cradle, did disturb the +unity of her thoughts. The words which she was reading rose and fell +with the screams and lulls of the child, and she felt obliged to close +her book, until the storm was over. When quiet was restored in the +cradle, the children came in from sliding, crying with cold fingers—and +just as she was going to them, the dinner-bell rang.</p> + +<p>"How did your new plan work this morning?" inquired Mr. James.</p> + +<p>"Famously," was the reply, "I read about seventy pages of German, and as +many more in French."</p> + +<p>"I am sure <i>I</i> did not hinder you long."</p> + +<p>"No—yours was only one of a dozen interruptions."</p> + +<p>"O, well! you must not get discouraged. Nothing succeeds well the first +time. Persist in your arrangement, and by and by the family will learn +that if they want anything of you, they must wait until after dinner."</p> + +<p>"But what can a man do?" replied his wife; "he cannot go down town +without a shirt-bosom."</p> + +<p>"I was in a bad case," replied Mr. James, "it may not happen again. I am +anxious to have you try the month out faithfully, and then we will see +what has come of it."</p> + +<p>The second day of trial was a stormy one. As the morning was dark, +Bridget over-slept, and consequently breakfast was too late by an hour. +This lost hour Mrs. James could not recover. When the clock struck +eleven, she seemed but to have commenced her morning's work, so much +remained to be done. With mind disturbed and spirits depressed, she left +her household matters "in the suds," as they were, and punctually +retired to her study. She soon found, however, that she could not fix +her attention upon any intellectual pursuit. Neglected duties haunted +her, like ghosts around the guilty conscience. Perceiving that she was +doing nothing with her books, and not wishing to lose the morning +wholly, she commenced writing a letter. Bridget interrupted her before +she had proceeded far on the first page.</p> + +<p>"What, ma'am, shall we have for dinner? No marketing ha'n't come."</p> + +<p>"Have some steaks, then."</p> + +<p>"We ha'n't got none, ma'am."</p> + +<p>"I will send out for some, directly."</p> + +<p>Now there was no one to send but Amy, and Mrs. James knew it. With a +sigh, she put down her letter and went into the nursery.</p> + +<p>"Amy, Mr. James has forgotten our marketing. I should like to have you +run over to the provision store, and order some beef-steaks. I will stay +with the baby."</p> + +<p>Amy was not much pleased to be sent out on this errand. She remarked, +that "she must change her dress first."</p> + +<p>"Be as quick as possible," said Mrs. James, "for I am particularly +engaged at this hour."</p> + +<p>Amy neither obeyed, nor disobeyed, but managed to take her own time, +without any very deliberate intention to do so. Mrs. James, hoping to +get along with a sentence or two, took her German book into the nursery. +But this arrangement was not to master Charley's mind. A fig did he care +for German, but "the kitties," he must have, whether or no—and kitties +he would find in that particular book—so he turned its leaves over in +great haste. Half of the time on the second day of trial had gone, when +Amy returned and Mrs. James with a sigh, left her nursery. Before one +o'clock, she was twice called into the kitchen to superintend some +important dinner arrangement, and thus it turned out that she did not +finish one page of her letter.</p> + +<p>On the third morning the sun shone, and Mrs. James rose early, made +every provision which she deemed necessary for dinner, and for the +comfort of her family; and then, elated by her success, in good spirits, +and with good courage, she entered her study precisely at eleven +o'clock, and locked her door. Her books were opened, and the challenge +given to a hard German lesson. Scarcely had she made the first onset, +when the door-bell was heard to ring, and soon Bridget coming nearer and +nearer—then tapping at the door.</p> + +<p>"Somebodies wants to see you in the parlor, ma'am."</p> + +<p>"Tell them I am engaged, Bridget."</p> + +<p>"I told 'em you were to-home, ma'am, and they sent up their names, but I +ha'n't got 'em, jist."</p> + +<p>There was no help for it—Mrs. James must go down to receive her +callers. She had to smile when she felt little like it—to be sociable +when her thoughts were busy with her task. Her friends made a long +call—they had nothing else to do with their time, and when they went, +others came. In very unsatisfactory chit-chat, her morning slipped away.</p> + +<p>On the next day, Mr. James invited company to tea, and her morning was +devoted to preparing for it; she did not enter her study. On the day +following, a sick-head-ache confined her to her bed, and on Saturday the +care of the baby devolved upon her, as Amy had extra work to do. Thus +passed the first week.</p> + +<p>True to her promise, Mrs. James patiently persevered for a month, in her +efforts to secure for herself this little fragment of her broken time, +but with what success, the first week's history can tell. With its +close, closed the month of December.</p> + +<p>On the last day of the old year, she was so much occupied in her +preparations for the morrow's festival, that the last hour of the day +was approaching, before she made her good night's call in the nursery. +She first went to the crib and looked at the baby. There he lay in his +innocence and beauty, fast asleep. She softly stroked his golden +hair—she kissed gently his rosy cheek—she pressed the little dimpled +hand in hers, and then, carefully drawing the coverlet over it, tucked +it in, and stealing yet another kiss—she left him to his peaceful +dreams and sat down on her daughter's bed. She also slept sweetly, with +her dolly hugged to her bosom. At this her mother smiled, but soon grave +thoughts entered her mind, and these deepened into sad ones. She thought +of her disappointment and the failure of her plans. To her, not only the +past month but the whole past year, seemed to have been one of fruitless +effort—all broken and disjointed—even her hours of religious duty had +been encroached upon, and disturbed. She had accomplished nothing, that +she could see, but to keep her house and family in order, and even this, +to her saddened mind, seemed to have been but indifferently done. She +was conscious of yearnings for a more earnest life than this. +Unsatisfied longings for something which she had not attained, often +clouded what, otherwise, would have been a bright day to her; and yet +the causes of these feelings seemed to lie in a dim and misty region, +which her eye could not penetrate.</p> + +<p>What then did she need? To see some <i>results</i> from her life's work? To +know that a golden cord bound her life-threads together into <i>unity</i> of +purpose—notwithstanding they seemed, so often, single and broken?</p> + +<p>She was quite sure that she felt no desire to shrink from duty, however +humble, but she sighed for some comforting assurance of what <i>was duty</i>. +Her employments, conflicting as they did with her tastes, seemed to her +frivolous and useless. It seemed to her that there was some better way +of living, which she, from deficiency in energy of character, or of +principle, had failed to discover. As she leaned over her child, her +tears fell fast upon its young brow.</p> + +<p>Most earnestly did she wish, that she could shield that child from the +disappointments and mistakes and self-reproach from which the mother was +then suffering; that the little one might take up life where she could +give it to her—all mended by her own experience. It would have been a +comfort to have felt, that in fighting the battle, she had fought for +both; yet she knew that so it could not be—that for ourselves must we +all learn what are those things which "make for our peace."</p> + +<p>The tears were in her eyes, as she gave the good-night to her sleeping +daughter—then with soft steps she entered an adjoining room, and there +fairly kissed out the old year on another chubby cheek, which nestled +among the pillows. At length she sought her own rest.</p> + +<p>Soon she found herself in a singular place. She was traversing a vast +plain. No trees were visible, save those which skirted the distant +horizon, and on their broad tops rested wreaths of golden clouds. Before +her was a female, who was journeying towards that region of light. +Little children were about her, now in her arms, now running by her +side, and as they travelled, she occupied herself in caring for them. +She taught them how to place their little feet—she gave them timely +warnings of the pit-falls—she gently lifted them over the +stumbling-blocks. When they were weary, she soothed them by singing of +that brighter land, which she kept ever in view, and towards which she +seemed hastening with her little flock. But what was most remarkable +was, that, all unknown to her, she was constantly watched by two angels, +who reposed on two golden clouds which floated above her. Before each +was a golden book, and a pen of gold. One angel, with mild and loving +eyes, peered constantly over her right shoulder—another kept as strict +watch over her left. Not a deed, not a word, not a look, escaped their +notice. When a good deed, word, look, went from her, the angel over the +right shoulder with a glad smile, wrote it down in his book; when an +evil, however trivial, the angel over the left shoulder recorded it in +his book—then with sorrowful eyes followed the pilgrim until he +observed penitence for the wrong, upon which he dropped a tear on the +record, and blotted it out, and both angels rejoiced.</p> + +<p>To the looker-on, it seemed that the traveller did nothing which was +worthy of such careful record. Sometimes she did but bathe the weary +feet of her little children, but the angel over the <i>right +shoulder</i>—wrote it down. Sometimes she did but patiently wait to lure +back a little truant who had turned his face away from the distant +light, but the angel over the <i>right shoulder</i>—wrote it down. Sometimes +she did but soothe an angry feeling or raise a drooping eye-lid, or kiss +away a little grief; but the angel over the right shoulder—<i>wrote it +down</i>.</p> + +<p>Sometimes, her eye was fixed so intently on that golden horizon, and she +became so eager to make progress thither, that the little ones, missing +her care, did languish or stray. Then it was that the angel over the +<i>left shoulder</i>, lifted his golden pen, and made the entry, and followed +her with sorrowful eyes, until he could blot it out. Sometimes she +seemed to advance rapidly, but in her haste the little ones had fallen +back, and it was the sorrowing angel who recorded her progress. +Sometimes so intent was she to gird up her loins and have her lamp +trimmed and burning, that the little children wandered away quite into +forbidden paths, and it was the angel over the <i>left shoulder</i> who +recorded her diligence.</p> + +<p>Now the observer as she looked, felt that this was a faithful and true +record, and was to be kept to that journey's end. The strong clasps of +gold on those golden books, also impressed her with the conviction that, +when they were closed, it would only be for a future opening.</p> + +<p>Her sympathies were warmly enlisted for the gentle traveller, and with a +beating heart she quickened her steps that she might overtake her. She +wished to tell her of the angels keeping watch above her—to entreat her +to be faithful and patient to the end—for her life's work was all +written down—every item of it—and the <i>results</i> would be known when +those golden books should be unclasped. She wished to beg of her to +think no duty trivial which must be done, for over her right shoulder +and over her left were recording angels, who would surely take note of +all!</p> + +<p>Eager to warn the traveller of what she had seen, she touched her. The +traveller turned, and she recognized or seemed to recognize <i>herself</i>. +Startled and alarmed she awoke in tears. The gray light of morning +struggled through the half-open shutter, the door was ajar and merry +faces were peeping in.</p> + +<p>"Wish you a happy new year, mamma,"—"Wish you a <i>Happy new Year</i>"—"a +happy noo ear."</p> + +<p>She returned the merry greeting most heartily. It seemed to her as if +she had entered upon a new existence. She had found her way through the +thicket in which she had been entangled, and a light was now about her +path. The <i>Angel over the Right Shoulder</i> whom she had seen in her +dream, would bind up in his golden book her life's work, if it were but +well done. He required of her no great deeds, but faithfulness and +patience to the end of the race which was set before her. Now she could +see plainly enough, that though it was right and important for her to +cultivate her own mind and heart, it was equally right and equally +important, to meet and perform faithfully all those little household +cares and duties on which the comfort and virtue of her family depended; +for into these things the angels carefully looked—and these duties and +cares acquired a dignity from the strokes of that golden, pen—they +could not be neglected without danger.</p> + +<p>Sad thoughts and sadder misgivings—undefined yearnings and ungratified +longings seemed to have taken their flight with the Old Year, and it was +with fresh resolution and cheerful hope, and a happy heart, she welcomed +the <i>Glad</i> New Year. The <i>Angel over the Right Shoulder</i> would go with +her, and if she were found faithful, would strengthen and comfort her to +its close.</p> + +<p>END. </p> + +<div>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 11033 ***</div> +</body> +</html> diff --git a/11033-h/images/02.png b/11033-h/images/02.png Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..0fe4710 --- /dev/null +++ b/11033-h/images/02.png |
