Lamoille newsdealer. [volume] (Hyde Park, Vt.) 1860-1877, 1861-04-26
MY HUSBANDS CHILD.
by MARTHA A. WILLARD.

such marriages. How many times said
that | would remain single, if Fate so
pleased, to the end of the chapter, but
never, never marry one whose first love
had been given to another-who offered
me the ashes of heart. A secondhand
garment, l said, was bad enough-still,
we're it choice between that and freezing,
one might wear it; but not secondhand
husband. Better freeze than warm ones
being at such fire. / had said all this,
and yet had welded Hiram Woodbury.,
When first met him, however, / did not
know that he had ever been married.
Our acquaintance came about oddly
enough. ! was staying with my school
mate, Elizabeth Simms, now Mrs. DR..
Henshaw. / had been there week en-
joying myself heartily. 1t was pleas
ant change from the boarding house in the
city, where l lived in three rooms and a
banbdox, with my guardian and his wife,
to Lizzie's pleasant and spacious country
house. with wide, handsomely laid out
grounds around it, and the free range Of
wood and hill in the back ground.
had never yet seen man whom l
could look up to and trust entirely, fear
ing nothing earthly, so he was mine. Kind
and good as Lizzies husband was could
never have married him. / had never
seen the man 1 could have married. 1t
was not likely ever should see him. If
not, l must do something myself. What
path would open for me-what, and
where ?--I looked listlessly from the win
dow. A man was coming up the walk,
dusty, and stained with travel, carrying a
heavy portmanteau, man not handsome,
exactly, nor graceful, exactly, but with a
good face face expressing dignity, kind
ness, and much power-the ability to
command himself and others
"Who is t?" asked, bcckoning Liz.
zie to the window.
"No other than Hiram Woodbury., the
Doctors fast friend; and certainly the
last man expected to see to-day. He's
always welcome to Dick, though, and, o.
course, that makes him so to me-"
| ran up stairs to smoothe my tangled
hair, and make my costume little more
presentable, and when came down, Mr.
Woodbury. was engaged in an animated
conversation with the Doctor and Lizzie
He was TALL powerfully made man o.
thirty-fve, with lightish brown hair, bold
and somewhat massive features, and eye.
Of Saxon blue. learned afterwards that
he was a remarkable mechanical genius
and had realized fortune by some O.
his inventions; also that he was jealous
reformer, leading the van of every noble
work.
| had not known Mr.. Woodbury. foul
days before felt in my heart of hearts
that here was man whom could entire
ly love. Still / was proud, and strove t.
retain my affections in my own keeping
| did not feel sure that he was interested
in me- but sometimes there seemed Ian
guage in his eyes | did not dare to trus
myself to interpret By the time he hat
been there fortnight we knew each othe
better than we could have done in yea
had we met solely in society. 1t was OIL
the fifteenth day after his coming that h
told me he loved me, and asked me to b
his wife. 8e
We were alone, sitting under clum]
of pines at the west end of the house
where we had gone to see the July sunset
We had watched the clouds silently a
they changed from gold and crimson t
the softer shades of rose and azure, unit
they were all gone. Then | looked W
and saw that his eyes we're looking at m
with strange tenderness in their depths
AS he met my glance he spoke.
5"I have only known you short tim
Agatha, but you are already dearer to m
than ! can say. Do you think that 20
could ever love me we'll enough to be m
wife?" us sn8 f
II do" answered, struggling with
strange sensation at my heart. whic
seemed almost to choke my utterancc.
"God bless you, Agatha! You al