Litchfield enquirer., 1857-07-09
LITCHFIELD, THURSDAY, JULY g. 1857.

ing-party Hjalmar was not at the ball. Fri herman K. had received his excuses he was obliged to return to the place he had left.
 To smile, to look pleased to dance, with a load of lead in the hcart-this cannot be very easy. In the heart of the silvered wooden spoon the lead had grown very heavy.
 ] VIII. LIEUTENANT HJALMAR's LETTER. BELOVED ANsErrE-For the first, the last time, permit me to call you so-my beloved. Yes, even now are you truly, deeply beloved. But write, not to ask you 10 return my love, not to ask you to be my own-my wife. That can never do. Yet it may console you to know, that one heart has beat for you alone with emotions such as those which now almost overpower my reason and my purpose. An nette, love you, passionately love you but l love others also. l love and reverence the parents who watched over my childhood, who made my boyhood happy, who toiled hard to supply me with the means of improvement and advancement in my youth, who now rejoice with honest pride over the prospects of my manhood. These parents, Annette are hum be, hard-working, but independent peasants Education and circumstances have raised me 1 above them in the worlds estimation, but not in my own yet l also feel they have made a distinction between us I feel-perhaps I should blush to say it-that good, estimable, worthy of love as she is, could not choose for my wife woman so plain, so unaccom- 1 pshed, as is my own mother. l own this yet truly honor and love my mother aud never would l marry the most refined, the most charming of women, who could not do so likewise. How often have gazed on you, Annette, when this thought has been in my mind, when have been asking myself, could she despise my homely, humble parents :! Would she feel ashamed of her husbands be- ing peasants son? Ah, Annette, if such were your disposition, all your beauty, all your charms, even that sweet simplicity which at tmes-at times only-was apparent, and had so much fascination for me-aIl, all would be vain Yes, so have I been thinking, when you have raised those pretty eyes, ahd have seen that you felt the earnestness of my re- gards, and were perplexed by it. And when you have looked up so, have forgotten all but my love. Again we have met and some proof of vanity, love of the world, of its opin- ions and fashions, awoke my slumbcring fears At last love became too strong for silence, but not too strong for fear. then resolved to | trust in your sincerity, to speak to you of my own position, and to coulide in the integrity of your nature, when, as hoped, you should re- veal to me something of your heart in return The moment for such confidence offered itself at one time when 1 was most off my guard You know, however, how it was interrupted {; but you never krew till now my motive in seeking it. It was not to declare my love- not to solicit yours not to ask you to be my wife but to let you know what my wife must be-to let you know that I was peasants son, and could only seek the love of one who would not scorn to be t peasants. daughter Was it not we'll for us both, Annette, that that confidence was interrupted? Subsequent events proved how unnecessary it was-proved how 10th you were to be peasants daugh- ter-how 10th you would be to be the wife of a peasants son. When heard that you, too, were peasant's daughter, I rejoiccd for l thought our parents were equals But I soon found-pardon me- still too dear Annette, it is with pain to myself I write the words--I found you denied, were ashamed of your own parents, despised your own mother And had hopea--bnded as l was by love--that you would honor, love, respect mine even as do myself
 Now, then, still beloved girl, it only re- mains for me to bid you an everlasting fare we'll. have promised myself never vounta- rily to see you again but can promise you to think of you often, to pray for your good, and to desire, truly and fervently that you may make another man happier than, I am now at last persuaded, you could have made me. HJALMAR.'
 The lead had sunk deep, very deep it $ weight was well nigh insupportable in the heart of the poor slvered spoon. The furnace was ready. ...
 Hjalmar received two lines in return for his long letter. They were these =
 'Only by one word you wrong me. That word is 'despised.' 1 have not despised my mother. ANNA Anna ? said Hjalmar to himself, as, in spite of all his resolutions, he kissed the billet her name is Annette
 K. TWO YEARS AFTER.
 Two years more have passed. Two years can bring good many changes-these two as we'll as any others. One or two of the chan ges we shall now mention. The first is mlli- tary one. The successor of the santed Vein berg, as captain of land regiment is now a sainted somebody else to another mourning widow ; and his official place is supplied by Lieutenant Hjalmar, who has for some two or three months been in possession of the Rap 1 tens BostaIle'* in the same northern district In Sweden, there is sort of standing militia kept up the soldiers and officers of which have land and houses for their pay-they unite the offices of farmers and soldiers. The navy also is supplied in the same way and the men, who are liable at any time to be called on to serve in it, have their allotted dwellings on the coasts A captains bostalle, or farmhouse, is an object of no small ambition to an under of 6cer. A man so young as Hjalmar still was, might account himself peculiarly fortunate in
 attaining such snug position. We shall look by government.