St. Charles Republican intelligencer. (St. Charles [Charles City], Iowa) 1856-1857, 1856-10-30

l.
accompanied us. .a.-
Kate Barry was wilful girl of six
teen, with her beautiful head filled
with all sorts of romantic notions, and
unfortunately, she had no mother to
counsel and sustain her; yet | must
own, her will was law to me. We had
many a strange adventure. Some
times she would take me out into the
night, when the rest of the household
were asleep, to watch the stars, and
the outlines of the hills and vallies as
they lay shadowy and indistinct in the
spectral moonlight, and would enthu-
siastically repeat to me the lines of
some poet, while stood shivering in
the night dew and trembling with fear !;
but Kate was proud of the courage
she possessed, and her freedom from
superstitious notions. We had walked
in deserted graveyard when the neg
lected graves, overgrown with rank
weeds end tangled briars, looked still
gloomier with the night shadows rest
| ing upon them and Kate had often
boasted to Phil of having visited a To-,
cality in the neighborhood, where a
man had once been murdered, and
which still had the reputation of being
haunted; but she did not tell him that
some half dozen young lady friends ac-
companied her. The old housekeeper
often strovc to detain us by talking of
the miasma afoat on the evening air,
and the danger of fevers, but she dar-
ed not expostulate with us, for Kate
was proud, and brooked no interfer-
ence with her projects from interiors.
The sun was sinking gloriously in
the west amid sea of clouds, purple
and golden and rose-hued AS we
walked lightly down the gravel path,
I could not help casting regretful
glance back at Philip, who still sat
reading in the piazza, enveloped in
clouds of smoke, with the tips of the
slippers l had embroidered for him
resting on the window-sill.
Kate and l gathered meadow lilies
and wild roses; we filled our little will
low baskets with the luscious black
berries that weighed the bushes down
into the rank grass beneath; we stood
on the hill-tops and looked with de-
lighted eyes at the winding river, the
pretty village, and the windows of the
Ifarm-houses far away on the hills that
sparkled in the red light of the sunset;
we listened to the musical tinkling of
the sheep-bells, and passed moment
by the Black Pond, where the frogs
were holding such a grand concert;
but the sun had not yet disappeared
behind the hills when we entered the
shady yard that surrounded the wild
ow Deane's cottage. The sitting
room door was open, and the dear old
lady was sleeping in her armchair,
with the sunlight streaming over her
rosy face, and her head resting heavi-
ly on one shoulder. We could not
help wondering how she had ever con-
trived to crowd her short, corpulent
figure into the narrow limits of that
chair; but q musquito had long been
buzzing about her face, and at last the
unmerciful little insect aroused her,
so that she gave him a hearty slap
with her plump fingers, and opening
her eyes caught a glimpse of our laugh
ing faces.
"Ah! girls, you're amusing your
selves at my expense" she said, tying
her cap-strings and adjusting her
spectacles. II
Kate apologized for our unccremo-
NOUS entrance.
Miss Anna" said the good lady,,
with pardonable vanity, for she had
once been rustic beauty, "my fig
ure was once as slight and elegant as
kate's, and think she will be as,
stout as any old lady in the village by
the time she is sixty years DID,"
"How can you be so cruel, Mrs.
Dean ?" said Kate, Il am sure hope
| shall never survive it. 1t is too
shocking to think of for moment"
~ entertained the same opinions
when | was girl, and you see the
result" said Mrs Deane. 81 then be,
llieved, as doubtless you do now, in
broken hearts, undying attachments,
falling in love at first sight, and all
such sentimental nonscnce. My first
lover was handsome, good hearted
fellow, but his principles were some
what loose, and there was so little en-
ergy in his character that our parents
would not consent to our marriage
Dick proposed an elopcmcnt, protested
he shoala die if l persisted in my cruel
determination, and said l would re
lent when he should be lying in his
tcold grave; and l, silly goose that J
Twas, believed every word that he said
The day after this interview, | was
standing at the window in melancholy
: mood, with Helen Morny at my side
: when who should see passing the
: house but Dick, He cast one wild
/. desperate glance at me, and then
. saw him rushing towards the river
! his long hair floating on the wind
A and his coat skirts streaming behint
| him. 'Oh! he will be killed, he il
Y going to throw himself into the wa
i ter | shrieked and fell back faint
5 ing"
i Here the old lady paused, evidentl.
< agitated by some deep emotion, though
.s eHg 6 .. r