Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1860-04-27

mail, which comes in at three in the morning
Then our own bags for the sub-oilicers have
to be made up and dispatched, which occu-
pics us till six o'clock. The letter office must
be open to the public at seven, and the money
order office at ten. At eleven there is a mail
from our county town. and one to be sent to
London. We go on all day till our great
night work begins, which lasts till alter ten,
when VIC send out our greatest number Of
bags"
"What part does our father take in tho
work e. ] inquired
lie is more involved in it than he use Co
be- she replied "his accounts have 20 be
strctly and punctualy attended to; he has all
the letters Of complaint and inquiry to answer /;
he is required to inspect the sub-ohccs and
sec that every official performs his duty in
short, be has more than forty persons 20 SUI
periutend and to pay. lie is getting very
old man now
$50 the postofiicc work actually requires
three persons to do it; / asked.
Two persons could not possible do it.,
she replied morning noon and night its
claims require our full attention. could not
manage IN tho night without the assistance of
the town Ictter-carricr, who brings the bags
from the station. This is no par. Of his duty,
but by helping me he is able 20 get some of
the town lctters for tho lawyers and other
people who are willing TO pay him, and de-
liver them before six in the morning il is an
irtosuIarity, Of course, but don't know what
should do if We were forbidden his assist
anco"
"Wcll. Anna" | said after long pause,
and | raised her bowcd-down head that
might look keenly into her eyes. "a0er all
this hand-to-haud life, is there amy cf the wo-
man left in you; Arc you not crustcd over
with misanthropy:
"Not quite, she answered, smilingy; 81
have little love left for you and EtGe and
my father. But it is rather a weary thing TO
be chained to the oilice-counter all the days
Of my youth and it is a very painful thing
to sacrifice health and spirits and
"Beauty r / added "Yet beauty and en-
ioymont and health arc not the chief things a
woman cares for. Has there been no thoughts
20 creep in No time to fancy yourself in
another home with all your future life lying
cheerful and blessed before you;'
IL had such a dream once, she replied.
"but it was a vain dream without foundation
"Tel me all about it, | said
81 will do so, she answered, "and then
we will not speak of it again, for thiuk girls
often waste their time and lower their own
deHcacy by talking and thinking Of young
men.
How much time every day do you think
we might lawfully devote to such subject
| asked, slyly.
"Well, perhaps ten minutes she added
with her old honest navete; "or, if you are
positively engaged, and had to write, half an
hour would not be too much. But it seems
scarcely modest to talk much Of them, even
to ones sister
In the quiet hour after midnight, sitting
alone upon the kitchen hearth, with such faint
and uncertain light as tcmpts us to unrcserved
confidence because a dim but not altogether
mpcryious veil shades our tell-tatc faces. my
twin-sister read to me from the pages Of her
memory her own version of the old old story
which constitutes the romance of ever wom-
an S life Seven years before its first words
had been sylabed to her and, with the beau
tiiul rctccnco Of her constant nature, she lin
gered faithfully over its remembrance, dating
all things by it as the sacred era of her his
tory and onshrining in her heart as the period
of her fullest life.
She said must easily rccollect Stephen
Elesmorc, the eldest son of the proud aud
wealthy Tonwcl banker a handsome, gay,
flank boy, who had been our admiration when
we were both young girls at school lie re-
turned from college at the age oftwcnty- three.
soon after / left home with the intention OF
taking some part in the work of the bank, as
preliminary to becoming painter He
cared little for business beyond bringing the
letters to the postoffce daily, in his free, off
hand manner, and he had assumed a right of
entering the Office, instead of delivering them
through the window. In Anna first feeling
of loneliness after my departure, he had ap-
pearcd one who brought temporary relief
and gaety, and so 1t came to pass that they
were actually attracted be by her quiet, mel
aucholy genteness and she by his frank and
cordial lriendiness. My father was blind as
to what was going on, and his family could
never have imagined such an iniatuation on
his part.
1T was downright insanity ! exclaimed,
"ior you and stephen Ellesmore to care for
each other.
u could not help it, she said simply. Il
will tell you how We came to understand one
another. 1t was one winter day after Christ
mas, and ! was making mince pies at this
dresser. Ettie had gone out with cousin
Rhoda, and as | had the office to mind open
ed the little door between it and the kitchon.
1t pleasant morning; the sparrows
were ChHpmg quite Dlthciy on lhc loohcry
under the window, and began singing to
myself, so did not hear Mr. stephen come
in but, looking round, ! saw him standing
in the doorway, quietly smiling at me- He
asked me to go on with my work, and let him
warm himself at my fire, and did so, while
he stood looking and telling me of all the
grand Christmas parties he had been at
Then he talked some nonsense about mince-
pics being nicer if made by sister or a wife (;
but laughed so much at the idea of any one
belonging to him eondesconding to make mince
pies, that he was quite Disconnected and ST.
fenced for few minutes, until | drew some
from the oven, and they were nicely baked
offered him one.
"Anna r. | cried with ioigned indignation.
81 did not mean it, l assure you, she said
vehcmently; 81 never thought Of encourag-
ing him. ! scarcely knew what Stephen said,
but knew from that moNent that he believed
he loved me.
"And what did he do = asked.
"Why-why, he kissed me = And Anna,
red with shame, hid her face in my lap. "lt
was very wrong, know she continued after
a little while, "but | was not twenty, and it
seemed so natural for him to do it. felt