Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1852-1859, 1859-01-06
THE INTELLIGENCER.
THE MIsDEEDs OF AURA PLA1srow.
CcoNTlNuED.1

about then,-such an asSemblage as they made
of large dark eyes,. wide red lips, floating hair
and white tossing armS,-with the huge dog
barking, and the birds singing noisely overhead
Tom could not help thinking that after all, thi .
life ofbeauty and careless good temper, of art
and love and buoyant health, ofgaiety and free
dom and childlike pleasure was wiser. one than
had been dealt out to him at home He and his
had known only life of suppressed emotions
and checked affections, n life of conventional
bondage and social slavery, life of dull, fiat,
monotonous routine, of hard practicality and of
severe thought, life which art had never beau
titled, and poetry had never idealized, and which
made ofgaiety sin, and ofnature n reprobation.
1t was out of such narrow existence as this
that he had stepped into the enchanted circle of
an artists home, ahome overiiowing with beau
ty, like purple wine streaming over golden
vase. Small wonder it then, it, in the in
tOHication of such delicious novelty, he lost
his head and heart together, and, like Aura,
overlooked the grave difference which education
and early training had made between them
Love conquors all things" says the poet in
syntax; but assuredly his first, conquests are
over provision and common sense, over the meas
urement ofdistances and the comparison of dis
similars.
Aura, not being very reflective, thought no
more of Toms description of his people. She
got her things together, and made herself ready
for her visit qnite TRANQUILITY, only rather grave
yet determined to find all beautiful and bright,
and quite decided on seeing no faults in dear
Toms family. "Did he sec any in the little
mother, or in papa-good papa? and didn't he
love all the children as if they were his own?-
Why should she be so ungrateiul then, us to
find fault with anything of hs?" So, with the
careless courage of her nature, she kissed her
mother and the children, Rugged her father, and
patted fine old Carlo; then sprung into the car
riage, her full red lips parted into wide smile,
but something very like tear, too, in her dark
eyes, as she leaned forward for the last look and
the last good by. For this was the first time
that she had ever left home, and her visit was n
formidable ordeal even to her
But it must be gone through with now as
bravey might be; so she and Tom drove off
gaily enough, after the first little burst of grief
was over, and Auras spirits soon rose to their
usual height again
Tom was going with her, both to take care of
her on her journey, and to introduce her to the
grim Assessors at the end of it. This had been
Mrs. Delane's doing; for her strong hope lay in
being able to make her son feel for himself when
under the influence of his own home, the impro-
priety and incongruity of this "silly blunder."
She was very sure that Aura would not fit in
well with the tone and life Of the Holiies; and
she believed that Tom would stand by his own
home. So she waived Appearances, and asked
only for opportunities
The day passed without accident Aura was
a capital traveller, but rather distracting too
At crowded railway stations she might be look
ed for talking TO jaded women, with small babies
and huge baskets, or questioning old laborers
in smock frocks as to where they came from, and
how much they earned week. Nay, ut one
station, where the trains crossed, and the times
did not serve, Tom detected her standing with
heap of animated rags in her arms. "She was
only holding poor wornan's child, while she
went to look for her husband" she said, when
| nv .l.,k
severely; for the Deiane blood had been dignfied
| in some of its channels, and Tom had proper
! regard for that fact However, these and sun
dry other misdceds were all worked off in time
and by the evening the young people found
themselves at the door of a pretty, but distress
ingly neat and trim house, which Tom said was
'his home"
"Don't you go in without knocking?" asked
Aura when-he rang the bell, standing on the
step without opening the door. At Merridno
even visitors did not ring 1t was open house
to ALL and the very begger might have rested
| in the hall, had he been inclined.
1--WE never do said Tom in low voice.
"My mother does not like us to take liberties" "
"Goodness! how odd!" CALCULATED Aura.
AT that moment the servant opened the door,
and Aura was handed into the hall. II was fur
nished like n room, and felt confined and close
! I-"stffy," said Miss Aura, in her domestic YER
nacular
lis my mother at home, Jane; said Tom feel.
ing very nervous.
Eyes, sir, she and the young ladies' are in the
drawing-room, said Jane, in a stiff, hard, and
rather abrupt manner.
"Come then, Aura, and viii introduce YOU.
! Toms voice was Slightly altered, and his
manner was shade more formal than usual;
but Aura saw nothing, She was as obtuse as
good natured and unsuspiciOus people always
are. With herquicll smile she called out, Yes!
I'm ready Tom !" in voice that would have
sounded gentle enough at noisy Merridno, but
which literally echoed through this still, solemn,
well conducted house.
"How loud her voice is" thonght Tom, 81
wonder never noticed it beforol What will
my mother say; she will be shocked, know she
will"
However, loud or no, the voice must make it.
self heard now; so they both went up stairs, Jane
/ leading the way. The drawing-roOm door was
openet, ''Nir Tom and Miss Plnistow" nunonn-
ced, and Aura, followed by her lover, entered
the room.
4 stern, stiff, frowning woman, very upright,
and dressed with painful severity, sat working,
opposite to two pretty, bloodless, and quaker
Hooking girls. When Jane announced the visi-
tors, the lady. rose slowly, fixing her hard grey
ewes ON Aura, who came forward in her dcbon-
naire manner, with a pretty kind of hail swas-
ger about her, as she ran her fingers through
her hair, saying, in her loud open voice, How
ld've do Mrs. Delanc?" then holding ont her
- L.e,.o tb,t l,,lN- cOnid Sucak or mike a