Indiana American. [volume] (Brookville, Ind.) 1833-1861, 1854-12-15

OmN. koo hc tctt VIC Jul W " ~fo'~~
by his wife when he should goin. sa
:. ffSoe - 80 ta -.
| CHAPTER XIV.
Jonsihan's store. -
And where has Mrs. Acton been
all this morning q Of to the Hall.
very soon after Grace had got away !;
and she rung at the side entrance,
hard by kitchen, most fortunately
caught Mary Stack about, and had a
good long talk with, her; telling her
open-mouthed all about Ben Burke
having found a, shawl of Mrs. Quarles'
on the Island and how, II being very
rotten, yes. and smelling foul, Benhad
been fool enough 10 burn it what
pity how could the shawl have got
there if it could only ha' spoken what
he knew. And the 'bereaved gossips
mourned together over secrets undi-
yulged, and their evidence destroyed,
As to the crockery, fer miraculous
once in life,. Mrs. Acton held her
tongue about thing she knew, and
said not O syllable concerning it. Rog-.
err would be mad to lose the money.
Just at parting with her friend, Mary
Acton was going out by Che wrong
door, through the hall. bat luckily did
no more than furn the handie'; or she.
never could have escaped bouncing in
upon the lovers interview, and there
by occasioning chaos of confusion.
For. be ii whispered, the step-dame
was not little jealous of her ready
made daughters beauty, persisted in
calling her a child, and treated her
anything but kindly and sisterly, as
her full-formed woman's loveliness
might properly have looked for. On
ly imagine. if the Hecate had but
seen Jonathan's lit-up looks, or Grace's
downcast bushes for itreally slipped
my observation to record that there
were bushes, and probably some cause
for them when the keepsake was Civ
en- and accepted ; only conceive, if
the step-mother had heard Jonathan's
after soliloquy, when he was watching
pretty Grace as she tripped away
and how much he seemed to think OF
her eyes and eyelashes 1 am reas-
only fearful, had she heard and seen
all this, Poll Acton's nails might pos
sibly have drawn blood from the cheeks
of Jonathan Floyd. AS it was, the
little god of love kindly warded from
his votaries the coming of so grabbed
an antagonist. Grace has now reached
home again. blessing her overruling
stars that she has escaped notice so
entirely both in going and returning;
for the mother was hard at washing
near the well, having got in half an
hour before. and father has not yet
left OF digging in the garden. Soshe
crept up stairs quietly, put away her
Sunday best, and is just dropping on
her knees beside her truckle-bed. to
speak of all her sorrows to her Heav-
enly Friend, and to thank him for the
kindness He had raised up for her in
an earthly one She then, with no
small trepidation, took out Of her
tucker, justbelow those withered snow
drops, the crumpled bit of paper that
held Jonathan's parting gift. 1t was
surprising how her tucker heaved
she could hardly get at the parcel
She wanted to look at thathalf-crown
not that she feared il was bad one,
or was curious about coins, or felt any
pleasure in possessing such sum
but there was such don't-know-what
connected with that new half-crown,
which made her long to look at it,
so she opened the paper-and found
its golden fellows J 0 noble heart !
o kind. generous, unsel6sh,- be-
loved Jonathan ! But what is she to
do with the soyereigns ? Keep them?
No, she cannot keep them. however
precious in her sight as proofs of deep
affection; bur she will call as soon as
possible, and give them back. and in
sist upon his taking them, and keeping
them too.-for her, if no otherwise.
And the dear innocent girl was little
aware herself, how glad she felt of
the excuse TO call 50 soon again at
Hurstley.
Meantime, for safety, she put the
money in her Bible.
What hallowed gold was that -
Gained by honest industry. saved by
youthful prudence, given literally and
unasked. to those who needed and
could not pay again with a delicate
consideration, an heroic essay at con-
cealment, a voluntary Of sacrifice self,
present pleasure, - passion and affec-
ton. And thereit lies, the little store,
hidden up in Grace's Bible. She has
prayed over it, thanked over it, inter
ceded over Il, for herself, for IL. for
others. How different, indeed, from
ordinary gold, from commonsin-bough
mammon how different from that
unblest store which Roger Acton. COW.
cts /; how purified from meannesses,
and separate from harms This is Of
that money, the scarcest coins of all
the world. endued with all good prop
critics in heaven and earth, whereof il
had been written, 1.-The silver is mine
and the gold is mine, saith the Lord
Of Hosts"
Such alone are truly riches---well
earned, well saved. well sanctifed.-
The wealthiest Of European capitalists
the CnGsus Of modern civilization
may be buta pauper in that better
currency, whereof sample has been
shown in the store of Jonathan Floyd.
TO De CONTINUED
-~~~~~~~-~-~-~-~-
Everybody complains Of his memo.