The River Falls journal. (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1857-1861, 1857-07-15
MISCELLA NY.
ALICE CLARE:
OR, MY PROPOSAL.

ing with Alice Glare. 1t was during q
summer vacation. An old friend had
sent to me an imperative command to
come an spend the dog days with him at
his retreat-a delightful place upon the
banks of little lake in the centre of the
State-and very glad was I to accept the
invitation. l had passed a laborious year
and with boyish exultation of spirits,
burst the thousand Lilliputian Ggamsnts
of duty and habit, and prepared for a
brief period of full, unrestrained and per-
feet freedom. As [ stood upon the
steamers deck, and saw the city recede
from view, banished it from memory as
well as from sight-cast into utter forget
fulness its cares and labors, and turned
the whole strength of my thoughts to
seeking delight in everything. I stepped
back dozen years OF existence and be-
came boy again. The very smoke that
rolled out of the huge smoke-pipe: the
light, feathery steam that escaped, and
f1oated like bird over the waves; the
groups of passengers with their strong
contrasts of ages, conditions, and man
ners; the motion and play of the water;
the foamy waves that rolled off from tho
steamers wake the shore, with its chang
ing aspects-out of all these things, I ex-
tracted pleasure. tits great thing when
we are resolved to be pleased. There
isn't a pebble in our path that won't con-
tribute to such an end, five will only
permit it.
My buoyancy of feeling was soon ex-
hausted. AS | approached the domich
of my friend, l refused to be whirled
along the dusty road, when cross-cut
over the fields would bring me sooner in
point of time, and pleasanter in many
ways, up to his door. So l sent black
Abe along with the carriage, and leaping
over the fence, struck path across
the fields. AS my foot touched the sod,
fairly threw up my hat for joy. The
turf, so springy and elastic, was delightful
to feet long used to unyielding granite
payements. The air was so soft and
sweet that I expanded my chest, and
opened my mnuth wide to take in the
delicious draugnt' 1 feared even to look
at the grasshoppers that bounced about
my feet. The new spring clover seemed
to yield fragrance as pressed it beneath
my tread. My blood ran quickly with
new life, and tingled through my veins
The wind which came murmuring among
the tree tops, lifted my locks, and tossed
them about with delicious freedom. The
mere sensation of existence were at that
moment, exquisite happiness. I was con-
tent simply to be.
1t was near sunset when / came up to
the house. AS l approached, my friend
came running out with both hands extern
ded, and he shook me such welcome,
that my fingers ache now to think of it.
Then he marched up troop of blooming
daughters to present, the eldest of viii; b
was a fine, full-grown young woman; then
after briefdelay appeared the mistress of
the house, grown buxom since had seen
her, but happy, and proud enough, one
could see, of her husband and her brood
of little ones
1t was really an exquisite spot
this home of my friend. | envied him
from the bottom of my soul. AS that
very first evening we all sat in the twi-
light upon the wide, low verandah, and
looked out through Swallowed vista of
arching boughs on the waters of the lake,
just tinted with reflection from the sun
set sky, watching the shadows gathering
beneath the many little wooded islands
which dotted the lake, listening to the
chirp of the cricket, and the cry of the
whip-poor-will, there was calm, so sweet
and intense came over me, that it seemed
to me as if my previous life had been
blank-a perfect death, wherein the soul
had known no sensations, and no existence
that this was my first real taste of life
in its true, high, and perfect meaning
And when later in the evening, Mary, the
eldest daughter, went to the piano, and a
sweet, plaintive melody came waited on
the air, mingling with the musical sounds
around; and after this, three of the sisters
sang sweet little trio; and then the
whole bevy, four in number came up to
their parents for their goodnight kiss;
and the younger ones submitted to an
additional kiss from me, which I didn't
dare ask of the two eldest; and then they
tripped off to bed, happy and laughing
and chatting-why, somehow, my mind
kept running on matrimony, and when l
retired to the chamber shown me, real
" began to whistle to keep down the I'M
comfortable. tug at my heart. dreamt
that night of ripping waters, and pleas
ant shores, and low music, and bevies of
daughters, and beautiful wife; and when
1 awoke, the very first thing was merry
trilling of young girls voice under my
window, and the cir that came through
the open sash was so soft and delicious,
loaded with riches stolen from the flower
beds-and in fact all these things set me
to dressing very abstractedly, and with
a logged sort of determination to make
one more visit to New York for the SAN
culinary purpose of erecting a bonfire of
red tape, cases, briefs, sheep-skin, deeds,
titles, law--and washing my hands clean
of such de6lements forever more, to en-
brace life as full and rich, and true and
beautiful as this saw around me.
After dressing, down went for an an
te-breakfast ramble The air was so fine
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