Page:Historical and Biographical Annals of Columbia and Montour Counties, Pennsylvania, Containing a Concise History of the Two Counties and a Genealogical and Biographical Record of Representative Families.pdf/589

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(B y H. Haines Fax. U . D.) Aod hss the vow o f mortal love Been breathed upon thine ear? And hast thou pledged thy faith. O maid. To one o f earthly sphere? •

T 1 vestal glory shone so pure. ^ So tike the modest light O f the dear twilight star that shines More tender still than bright. And must that maiden luster now So qukkly pass away? That lambent radiance disappear Before a brighter day? It most he s o; the vow is pledged. Triumphant at thy side, Osborn stands and cbim s thee for His own. his beauteous bride. Love's blush-roses proudly have Thy snowy temples crowned. And H ym ens creamy orange flowers In (he bridal wreath are lound. Then fare thee well. Thy mother weeps To yield thee from her arms. And prays and h o ^ s and sighs with A ll a mother's tend alarms. Thy father holds thy hand in his And with uplifted eye. Invokes upon nis lovd y child A blessmg from the sky. Tlw sisters* lips are pressed to thine In long and dear embrace: Their tears are mixed with thine— And fall upon thy glowing face. That full effusive confidence O f hope, or joy* or pain. Which sister maidens know with ibce, They cannot know again. But fare thee w ell; tltc hour is come. The hour when thou must part From all that most is cherished B y a yet unw*edded heart. C c ^ b e thy chosen's halcyon love; The loilestar o f his life. Thou once has shone a peerless maid; Be perfect as a wife.

Raaringereek. Fa., July r H Q i. * O llT S O N

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Haimrs Fax)

iV e parted with my parents dear. My brothers and sisters, too; Some time to spend in this vain city. My arduous studies to pursue. I've left ViTtich In order Before

my home, that sacre<l spot is most dear to me, more knowledge to obtain I return to thee.

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Oh. may I well improve the time In knowledge and in science. That 1 in honor may return. The son o f your reliance. Aod lonely hours pass swiftly on In peace and comfort true. O'er the midnight lamp alone, T ill I return to you. Oh. may my course be true and holy. Sin (all harmless at my feet To Cod I'll give alt praise and glory Until wc again do meet.

Fkiiadelpkia. Pa.. Dee. S4, iS4$.

L k ' a n. T he Van fam ilies are o f French Huguenot lineage, and in common with other families o f like religious faith were subjected to persecution, which caused thetr emigration to .America. From "M em orials of the Huguenots/' Rev. .A. Stapleton, the following information is taken; "A m ong the members of the Huguenot Church at Amsterdam. Holland, were Daniel LeV an and his w ife, M arie Beau, refugees from Picardy. France. From a baptismal certificate, it seems that some of the cnlldren were born at .Amsterdam. .About 1 7 1 c four sons of the refugee set out for Pennsylvania. T hey were .Abraham, Isaac* Jacob and Joseph, the latter o f whom died at sea. These were foilow'cd in i / i / by their brother Daniel, and all of them settled in Berks county. In 1748 Peter L c V'an arrived, whose identity and place o f location is not known.” .Abraham Y^an. as already noted, who w as born in Amsterdam in 1698, w as married to Catherine W cinicr. daughter o f M rs. De T urk by a form er husband in France. He located at Otey. situated in a beautiful valley in the eastern part o f Berks county, about fifty miles northwest o f Philadelpliia. and near the De Turks* und his beuutifuJ home is still in the jKissession o f his dcK^cndants, a fte r a lapse o f almost (w*o centuries. H e died in 17 7 1. leaving a number o f children. H is wife. Catherine, torn in France in 1706. died in 1768. Jaco b L e Van located in the M axatawny valley, o f which he w*as one of the first set* tiers. He w as an extensive landowner, the present village of Kutztown being built on a part o f his estate. He erected the first grist­ mill in this region, which is still in the pos­ session o f hts descendants. There is a family tradition that Count Zinzendorf. the eminent M oravian, preached from the bakony o f thi.s mill during his episcopal tour in America in 1742. Jacob V an an important per-

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