The Westerly echo, & Pawcatuck advertiser. [volume] (Westerly, R.I.) 1854-1858, 1856-08-07

acting in my disposition l possessed
always an innate consciousness that l
was made rather to love than to be
loved
Child that I was in many things, /
was not deceived in Warner Gray's
feelings for me. l felt thutter impossi-.
bility of his returning in like measure
the affection l lavished on him /; if ever
| yielded to the blissful thought that l
was dear to him, it was but moment !;
then said
BE still, vain heart; remember thy
nothingness, and be content with the
little that is given thee
l had never been used to much affsc-
ton. Lillian, my beautiful, fairy sister,
was my mothers idol, and Harmon, my
brave, fiery brother, had been his faith
er's pride. Only a little love had been
Alice's' need.
But 1 am wearying you. Let me
leave to your imagination month Of
unalloyed happiness, when full heart re-
yelled in the blessedness of freedom
from all restraint, and when each day
some unlocked for kindness should my
grateful soul still more strongly to my
betrothed When my friends grew i'm
patient that our union was so long de-
layed, besought them to grant me one
more year. The present was full of
enjoyment that | dreaded to change it,
and sbrank from the untried future. l
talked all the while of Isabel, 1 filled
my brothers. ear with tales of her won
drous goodness and boundless influence
at school. 1 thought I should seem
worthicr in his eyes if I could { prove
that my cousin had cared for me, even
me, so far beneath her in all things );
and when she was coming to the rail-
way station, he went to meet her. |
was to have gone, too, but my mother
was weaker than usual that day, so |
sat at this same window still, and with
my face pressed against the glass,
watched to catch the first sight of them
through the thick branches of the great
oak trees, while | read over the maya
zines ~ the day, but took Dot I word |
read, SO full Of eager expectation was
my heart, | seem to see them now, as
they cam, dang up the avenue.
How proudly my brother bore him
self on that fiery charger his tall COM
manding form never showed to so much
advantage and Isabel, how we'll that
dark green velvet hat, with its dropping
plume of snowy whiteness, became her
rch, glowing complexion. Oh glor-
ious creature was my cousin Isabel.
God had stamped her with the impress
of perfection. There was nothing want
ing, nothing that you could have wished
to chauge-in that face or form l know
that she was human still, but hers was
humanity so purified, and l had almost
said gloriied, by the divine power, that
you doubted the truth of inspiration
that told you Of the iraility of our fallen
race.
Is this exaggerated fancy do paint
an unnatural character 1t may be
so. l love to throw around the crea-
lures of my love halo of roseate light,
and through that light 1 see them, yet
all acknowledge my cousins wondrous
charms, and only bowed to them, and
worshipped her as l had done all things
beautiful and good, from the days of
infancy.
Days glided into weeks, and weeks
became months. The summer had
passed and the golden beauty of au-
tumn had come, still Isabel fingered
with us. The syren voice sof pleasure
and fashion could not lure her from the
quiet beauty of our home, aud yet she
seemed not always to be happy. There
was often a shadow on her brow, and
an unwonted tenderness and melancholy
sweetness mingled strangely with her
dignity of manner. But
Warner saw her only in her brighter
moods, and she was much with him, for
my mother kept me ever at her side,
and it devolved on him to entertain our
guest.
And now there came to my heart a
strange forboding fear there was a