Litchfield enquirer., 1855-04-26
ARTHUR LELAND.

years of age. His office stood stone'i throw from the Court House, in thriving town in the West. Arthur had taken fal course in a Northern college, both in tic collegiate and law department, and with
 some honor. During his course, he had managed to read an amazing amount ol English literature, and no man was readiel
 or had a keener taste in such things than he
 He had pleasing personal appearance, .
 fluent and persuasive manner, an unblem ished character. Every morning he came to his office from one of the most pIeasan little cottage homes in the world, and if yol
 had opened the little front gate, and gone up through the shrubbery to the house, yor would have seen Mrs. Leland, somewtiers
 in- doors, and she as intelligent and pleas
 ant lady as you ever saw. You would have seen moreover. tumbling about the grass, or up to the eyes in some mischief as noble a looking fellow of some three years old as you could we'll have wished for your own son.
 This all looks we'll enough, but there is something wrong. Not in the house. No it is as pleasant cottage as you could wish; plenty of garden peas and honey-suckles climbing up everywhere, green grass, white paint, Venetian blinds, comfortable furni ture.
 Not in Willie, the little scamp. No; rosy, healthy, good head, intelligent eyes, fine specimen, he was an only son. Full of mischief, of course, he was. Overflow ing with uproar and questions and mis- chief Mustachios of egg or butter-milk or n0Iasses after each meal, as matter of course. Cnt fingers, bumped forehead. torn clothes, all day long, Yet more affection ate, easily managed child never was.
 The mischief was not in Lucy, the Mrs. Leland. assure you it was not. Leland knew to his hearts core, that lovelier, more prudent, sensible, intelligent wife it was impossible to exist. Thrifty, loving, lady like, right and true throughout.
 Where was the miscl.iefi Look at Le- land. He is in perpetual motion. Read- ing. writing, walking the streets, he is al- ways fast, in dead earnest. Somewhat foo fast. There is certain slowness about your strong man. You never associate the idea of mental depth and power with your quick.stepping men. You cannot conceive of Roman emperor or Daniel Webster as slight, swift man The bearing of man. 8 body is the outward emblem of tho bearing of his soul. Iceland is rather slight, rather swift. He meets you in his rapid walk.-- He stops, grasps your hand, asks cordially after your health. There Is an open, warm feeling in the man. No oshypocrisy what ever. Yet he talks too fast lie don't give you half a chance to answer one of his ra- pid questions, before he Is asking another totally different. lie Is not at ease. He keeps you from being at ease. You feel it specially in his house. He is too cordial, too full ofeifort to make your visi, pleasant to you. Yon like him--yet you don't feel altogether at home with him. You are glad when he leaves you to his more composed wife. You never knew or heard of his say ing or doing anything wrong or even unbe- coming. You look upon him as peculiar sort Of man-well, somehow--but! lie is at the bar defending that woman who sits hy him dressed in mournng-some chance Y case. Or it is criminal case-and it is the widows only son that Leland is defend- ing. If you had been in his office for the last week, you would have acknowledged that he had studied the case, has prepared himself on it as thoroughly as man can. He is an ambitious man. He intensely de- sires 10 make for himself fortune and n position. His address to the jndge-or to the jury, as tle case may be, is good one. Yet somehow he does not convince. He himself is carried away by his own earnest ness, but he does not carry away with him his hearers His remarks are interesting. People listen to him from first to last close aly. Yet his arguing does not, somehow, convince. His patllos does not, somehow, melt. He is the sort of man that people think of for the Legislature. No man ever thinks of him in connection with the Su- preme Bench or Senate.
 Wherein lies tue defect Authur Le and is we'll read. gentleman of spotless char ac,er, of earnest application, of popular man. ners. Why is not this man man of more weight, power. standingi Why, you an- swer tho man is just what he is. He fills just the position up to which his force of mind raises him. Did he have more talent he would be more. No, sir. Every acquain- tance he has known-he himself knows that he is capable of being much more than he is somehow he does not attain to 1t It is this singular impression Leland makes up- on you. itis this singular, uneasy, unsat- ished feeling hc himself is preyed upon by.
 He might be, but he is not" says his neighbors -. an not. yet might be, ' worries him as an incessant and eternal truth.
 ltbroke upon him like revelation.
 He was at work one iine morning in his garden in squire in which young water melon plants of a choice kind wero just springing. Willie was there with him. just emerged fresh for fun from the watefs oi sleep. Very anxious to be as near as pos sihlo to his father, who was always his only playmate, Willie had strayed from the walk in which his father had seated him, and stood beside his faihcr. With quick. pass siouate motion, Leland seized his child and placed him violently back in the walk with harsh threat. The child whimpered for a while, and soon forgetting himself came to :: his father again over the tender plants.- : This time Leland seized him still moro vio- lensly, seated him roughly in the walk with harsh threats, struck him upon his plump 1 red cheek. Willie burst into tears, and iwept in passion. His father was in . mis. erable, uneasy frame of mind. He ceased l his work, bared his brow 10 the delicious 1 morning air. He leaned .ppon his hoe, and