The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1857-01-29

from whom abe inherited competence, and
whose wishes she respected by still living in
the house which he had built, upon his mar
rage with her mother, and which fronted the
pleasant common.
Miss Agnes had been quite pretty and quite
gay IN her girlhood, (of course, all this came
to my knowledge in after years y and after fin
shing her education at Miss Strong's school. in
Hartford, had spent several weeks of every
successive winter in New York With each
visit, there came rumors to Chesterwood of her
approaching marriage to some wealthy or dis.
tlnguished person, which ended where they
began-ln mere gossip. At last, when she was
about thirty, she became acquainted with q
Springfield gentleman, and in some little time
there arose an engagement between them.
Her fathers sickness and death caused the
marriage to be deferred at first, and then it
was put off, on one pretence and another. The
gentleman's visits grew less frequent, and his
letters more cool, until he finally wrote, re-
questlng her to cancel the engagement, plead
ing the state of his affairs, and serious doubt
as to his ability to render her happy; which
letter reached her on the very day that she
read, in the country paper, the announcement
of his marriage to another lady, who, it seems,
possessed few more thousands than the old
Doctor had been able to leave her.
Like Polly Maria, she had been "dis' p inted,'
and | am inclined to think there is some truth
in Uncle Steve's observation, that it "comes
kinder nat'ral to women" for though her most
intimate friends said that she never recovered
from the shock, | think they must be mistaken,
from the fact that she was ever ready to refer
to it on all occasions. Indeed, it was the pet
sorrow that gave sentimental coloring to her
whole life. l scarcely know what she would
have done without it; it was the bond between
he's NIf 10 L.
and this alliance, coupled with certain lean
ing toward the manufacturing party, subjected
her to some criticism and no less scrutiny
from her own set. Her adoption of me, as l
have said formed a fruitful source of discus
sion. Had she assumed the responsibilities
and duties of a missionary, for which she was
nowise adapted they would have Landed her
sefsacrifce and devotion on every occasion.
and been proud of the slightest line written by
her hand but this "whim" of taking town
pauper into her own house, and "making such
a fuss over bel" was "quite another thing
and there was more coincidence than congratu.
lation.
1t is strange how distance lends magnitude
to things in the moral world, while in the
physical it always belittles theml
"My dear, dear Agnes" Miss Moore would
say, as she came in to discuss the last number
of " Cooley" or Graham" and that Glove of
poem," by Prentice, or Willis, "you are
wearing yourself out with that child. You
must remember that you have other duties
you were not at the Society yesterday-duties
to yourself and the world. You must not shut
yourself up in this way. l am sure could
never bear It'll"
"But l like it, Fanny. Only think how
pleasant it is to me to have something wholly
mine ownl something to love me better than
any one else in the whole world have always
needed love so much ~
Then, perchance, would follow something
about the "dear gazele" from Moore: and
Miss Fanny, who was sentimentally given,
would appear softened and admit that ''dear
Agnes had had trials; and then they would
go on quoting poetry, or talk over some piece
T VI hGGF.f 1Pe H5ep,filR ~metBg he of he haE pr
when student, and intimate that, had they
chosen, they might have been sharing his for
tune, instead of sitting there, unmarried. OF
all Miss Agnes's friends, / liked Miss Moore,
with her poetry and sentimentalism, best.
She would be followed by the aristocratic
| Miss Grifiths, whose ancestor originally owned
one-third of the whole township, and whose
mothers grand uncle had even been Secretary
of State. To be sure, he was never reelected,
ungratefully suffered to sink into the obscurity
from whence a political coup d'etat raised him,
|
passed into other hands; but it must have been
very strong land, for the very memory of the
ownership gave loftiness and stiffness to the
! Gritiiths, which was TO be accounted for in no
other way. Like the uncoronetted and con-
demned princess at the block, she was Ouch
ess Of Molly STILL"
Spite of all Miss Agnes's petty maneuvring,
she could never bring this lady to recognise my
existence otherwise than by brief
"Ah, that child. | think l heard Fanny
Moore say you had taken one!"
Miss Beach, who was the wit of the set, and
! liked above all things to hear them say, at
every other sentence, snow, Anna, don't be
satirical! F" shook her black curls at me when
ever she came, and ordered me off to play, say
ing to my mistress
"You know very well, Agnes Lathrop, that
an not going to be cheated out of my chats
with you for all the children in Christendom,
nor be bored to death with them either
| Turn your cosy little sitting room into nur.
sury if you choose, dear; make second John
Rogers's wife of yourself, and adopt the whole
body of town paupers, if you plesse-every one
to her notions but don't expect me to tolerate
them 1t is such a joke-the idea of your
adopting a child-and one that no one knows
anything about, too-you, who have always
been so particular l wonder you don't apply for
the situation of matron of the Orphan Asylum
in H. Shall write you a character, dear? u
and the black curls would toss with mirth a,
Miss Agnes's distressed look and her depreca
ting tone, as she plead
"But you are not all alone in the world, Sarah
You have brothers and sisters to love you"
"Love Fiddle-sticks, Agnes! Give me
your position aud independence, and you may
take the love Don't let us be silly in our ole
age, my dear"
But, of all these ladies, l most dreaded Miss
Harriet Hart, and l think Miss Agnes fully
shared my feeling. She was such superior
person." every one said though in what hel
superiority consisted, save in mere force of will
| cannot say. She made no scruple of med
ding with a persons most intimate persona
affairs, and of saying the most impairment, dis
agreeable things, under pretence of her REGARD
; for truth. Her features and figure, though in
Ginning to the masculine, were good, and sh,
, was always very carefully dressed but Their.
, was something hard and metallic about her
you felt it soon as she entered the room; ant
l used to fancy this property extended itself II
; her dress, for her silks and musins had rustic
: peculiar to themselves. She had dexterou
manner of drawing out person without com
, hitting herself, and then giving an opinion
with an imperative force, that, for the time be
ing, would silence much stronger nature thai
Miss Agness.
| She had been out of town when we arrived
therefore, L had seen most of the ladies befor
: had made her acquaintance. was seate,
\ at my table in the study, striving to master m,
f lesson in the "De6ner," when she entered, an,
, the rustic of her silks caused me to look ur
, Miss Agnes signed for me to go on with m
, studies, and arose to meet her. And they con
yersed some time before she said
r "Zerlina, my dear, come and shake hand
4 with Miss Hart "A little wsif cast up at m
j feet by the rough sea of life -"