St. Charles City Republican intelligencer. [volume] (St. Charles City [Charles City], Iowa) 1857-1861, 1861-04-18
CHATTER ".


to see you, Mr.. Street :" and Deborah
put her head inside the sitting-room
door.
Tea was just over, and Leonard
Street sat by the fire, stroking the
wings Of tame canary which had
Just alighted on his shoulder.
"a lady to see mel 1t must be
some client. But what can have
brought her out on such a night
Hand me my coat-there's a good
girl, Oracle"
Leonard I" and the face which,
despite all his struggles, for the last
four weeks had looked down on his
soul steadfast and shining, rose up
from the sofa and advanced toward
him.
Margaret Allyn I" he said /; and
then he stood still for wondcr-for
something more than wonder.
"Are you glad to see me 2" asked
the trembling lips, the sweet, agitated
face.
Leonard Street put out his arms
quickly and gathered Margaret Allyn
to his heart, and held her there so
tightly that she could only feel, not
see, his tears of joy as they dropped
into her hair
At last they found room for words ;
and sitting together in the sweet, new
joy of that reconciliation, Leonard
Street learned what wide misappre
hension on his side had kept him and
Maggie apart, and cost both Of them
month of slow, terrible agony. He
learned, too, what it had cost Maggie
to come to him after his sisters visit
ut her honsc.
1t humbled the proud man, as, per-
haps, nothing else in the world could
have done and it opened a dark clos
ct in his soul, and the scales fell from
his eyes, for he saw the evil spiri.
which sat there grim and defiant, and
on its forehead was written Pride
Two hours slipped away; and then
Grace, alarmed at her brothers long
absence, softly opened the parlor door
and her brown eyes grew wide with
wonder and delight as they rested on
the two who sat there
"Come in Oracle I" called her broth
or. "If it hadn't been for you, little
sister. Margaret and ! wouldn't have
been here to-day"
She came toward them, her bright
face a-bloom with bushes.
Leonard Street drew one arm around
his sisters waist after Margaret and
she had kissed each other and, like
all Heterogeneous natures when con.
WINGED of wrong, he made full and
ample atonement for tue evil he had
done.
Margaret--Grace," he said, II
am unworthy of either Of you. l only
was to blame with the blame Of false
pride, and rashness, and obstinacy.
that l mistook for self.respect and a
proper regard for my own wounded
affection. l acknowledge my fault
an sorry for it."
mo, you were not alone to blame,
Leonard" eagerly interposed Marga-
ret, as her fond glance drifted through
its shining tears to his face. "lf l
had considered how strongly appear
xnces we're against me, ], too. should
not have been SO hasty at what seemed
your injustice"
"Weil, yon have nobly stoned for
all that in coming here, while bat
my life shall do what my words cant,
Maggie"
"And do you remember, Leonard,
what you said to me one morning near
ly two months ago: that when God
saw best, he would send to me the &C.
casion for doing some real, substan-
tial good 2"
And the occasion came on that
morning when You slipped out Of the
house and went to Margaret's without
q suspicion on my part Of what you
were doing"
swell, wasn't right in thinking
so, Lean ?" her blue eyes laughing
archly in his face.
go, yes; but while was talking
so wisely to you, little sister, l didn't
suspect what a lesson the occasion
would teach my life"
"WelI, we've both been on the wa.
tiers, and both got safe to shore al
last, Leonard"
1t was Margaret Allyn said this
Margaret with the tears in her agate
eyes, and the smiles on her carnatioT
lips.
"Safe to shore, thank God /" re-
peated Leonard Street slowly, open
ing and shutting his ewes.