The Middlebury people's press. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1841-1843, 1842-11-01
Vino. 26.

the mountain, was his, and the adJaceht
orchard, and the chestnut grove that shades
the left hank of the torrent. In short, nc
had every thing necessary to happiness,and
| vet became the most wretched of men. lie
fell in love with the girl Of whom spoke
to you, and from that time there was no
peace for him. Agatha, as told you, was
a poor shepherdess, the daughter OF a droVcr
in the employ of a rich landholder OF LaV-
agna, but beautiful beyond ~imagination; her
complexion was as white as milk. and glow
ing as the rose that springs up IN the hoi-
lows of the cliff. Alas beauty of person.
unaccompanied by beauty Of soul. Is an un.
happy gift to him who possesses 1t, and
most atal 10 him who yields to its tascIna-
lions. The heart of Agatha did not cores
pond with her face. She was capriclous as
the vainest beHe, f~lattered by every attention,
and ambitions of elevating her condition.
Her only study was to adorn herself In n
manner wholly unbecoming her station
She spent hours twining flowers for her hair,
and watching her image in the fountain
She sat by the way side to receive the com
pliments of the passers, and sung such
strains as her mood suggested, IN order to
display her sweet voice,a and see the villagers
collect about her TO listen. Lorenzo moro
than all was attracted by her
Night and day he roamed about her dwell
ling. lie followed her upon the mountains,
among the chestnut woods, and along tho
border Of the river. lie woye SarlandS ut
every place where she was accustomed 10
rest during the noon-tide heat in tho shadow
- Tho oI,o. San,nfovrae no ac.Gutrau fpI
her rustic ditties with his ilagcOlct ; at 9TH
ers he went in search of her stray lambs.
and every day placed beside the fountain
where she loved TO repose, a basket at the
choicest fruit the season afforded. Agatha
finding herself the object Of such Il tender
solicitude, began to turn her thoughts To-
wards Lorenzo. She knew that she was
envied by all the peasant girls OF the vIcin-
ity. and that it was scarcely prudent to let
slip so favorable an occasion, and she began
to smile upon her young lover. Then was
Lorenzo. indeed cnlranced' 'What a beau
tiful pair = we used TO say, as We passed
them on their way to mass or To the iair-
What a happy life is before thcmF Not
so thought Bertha, who from the first saw
deeper into things. My poor son ! she
exclaimed, whenever congratulated On L"-
renzo's fine prospects Il would give my
life had he been enamoured of another!
And when | inquired. Good Bertha, will
this marriage soon take place!
Yes, Giulio, she replied, witt Il Sigh IT
it please heaven Oh! there are in Il
mothers heart presentiments revealed To M
other. Mysterious voices warn her OF evIi
TO come, as the atmosphere ~forcteiis Tim
tempest to ANIMALS by signs which man d"rs
not recognize Master Giulio paused Il
moment to wipe away a tear, and | was m
pressed with his feeling manner of sPcaking.
His heart was in tones, and made them full
of simple eloquence. At length he rcsn
med pardon nv emotion II viii be jas
titled by what have to relate. The day
was fixed for the marriage, and the pastor
had already once proclaimed the banns'
when there arrived at the village Il nephew
of the rich landholdcr of Layagna,w who came
in consequence of the death Of his uncle, To
take possession Of the estates, to which EC
was heir. Among the peasantry who col
lectcd from all parts Of the valley 10 hon
or the arrival of the new landlord, was tho
drover, the father Of Agatha, accompanied
by his daughter. She was, as | have sad,
very beautiful when arrayed only in her ma
tive graces, but most lovely was she on that
day, dressed in her Ia -iday garb, her hair
confined by silver bodkins, and her neck
adorned with a golden necklace, the gift of
Lorenzo. The young heir was captIvated
by such beauty he could not keep his eyes
from her, and sought by every pretext, To
have her near him. lie managed that eve
ry day she should bring him the milk for
breakfast, the butter for dinner, or The Cream
for supper. Accustomed as he was in the
city TO all the tricks Of the fattcrer, the
a~cuteness Of Agatha more than matched the
arts Of the citizen. She manifested a re-
spect towards him, and Il modest reserve
which made him despair, and replied 10 eY-
cry protestaticn of love, The poor Agatha
is unworthy of your regard The young
man struggled with desires; he would nave
given any sum TO conquer her GOODNESS but
for a moment, and when he learned that
she was about 10 marry Lorenzo, he was
ready to die of grief. And do you love
this Lorenzo he asked her one day do
you love him so much that the signs OF your
master are Of no importance? He is my
betrothed.' she replied, blushing i ought
not 10 love any one but my betrothed.'-
'And if | would marry you, Agatha, would
you cave your Lorenzo?' You marry me,
signorl it is impossible ; you are too rich
for me l am too poor for you ) and so
saying she left him with a sigh. The young
mans passion was so increased by these re-
pulses, that at length it conquered every
consideration of wealth and station, and Ia
determined to wed her. 'And LorenzoF
| interrupted. Lorenzo was ignorant of
these proceedings. He had gone to Genoa.
where a miller, one of his %neighbors, had
involved him in a lawsuit, on account Of
a water privilege. Lawsuits among US are
prolonged to a degree quite inconsistent
with the relative Importance Of the question
at issue. so that some times many months
elapse before some t%rifing difficulty is adj
iusted. At length a compromise was sign
ed, and Lorenzo returned. He had written
II D--sI. H. I,,- ,0l hnVr