Bellows Falls times. [volume] (Bellows Falls, Vt.) 1856-1965, 1861-05-17

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moment revealing new gtmpses Of beauty.
A short turn brought us in sight of a state
| ly stone house,
With the battlemrnts high IN the hush Of the air,
/ And the turrets thereon.
! had not been prepared for so splendid
siaht. Ii was perfect architectural m
spiralion. The eminence on which it stool
commanded fine view of the river, flash
ing in the sunlight. The rocks, left as ma
ture had hewn them out were giy with
climbing vines, and the air was full Of the
odorous breath OF sweet-scented flowers
Il never saw anything half so beautiful"
| whispered estatically 10 Hiram, who sat
enjoying my surprise.
As the carriage stopped, a little girl ran
out upon the piazza. | think ! should have
known her anywhere, from her mothers
picture. She had the same appealing blue
eyes, tie same transparent skin, the same
features only the gold Of her hair was
lighter and SUMMER ihaa the picture. 1t
lay about the child's head in light ringlets,
such as you have seen in paintings Of cher
ubs. My husband stepped from the car
riage aud only paused to hand me out before
the little creature was clasped in his arms.
"And is that new Mamma p / heard her
ask, as he put her down.
lie nodded.
"May kiss her 2
surely"
She came up to me. little timidly. |
bent over her, and received her kiss pas
svely, but the kiss | gave her was a very
cold Que. Selfish heart that | was, could
not love her, for She was her mothers child
IA daily reminder, so | felt, TO her father
Of my dead rival.
| should blush to describe all the incl
dents Of the year which followed. How
patiently the poor little motherless girl
motherless STILL though ! had taken her
mothers name and place--strove TO propi-
tate and please me- How cold / was to
her. | neglected none Of her bodily needs,
but to the heart which asked for bread
gave only stone. Not once in all those
twelve months did | gather her into my
arms and kiss her; not once beotow on her
any voluntary caress. ! wonder | did not
soften to her, for was mysely expecting
to give welcome TO a little child, who might
be left moherless as she had been. Per-
laps this only hardened me the more. If
my child was so left, questioned whether
its father would love it as he loved laurie
She is his idol, ] said bitterly, as her mother
was before her and l. who gave him, in
spite of myself, such absorbing love, hold
only a second place in his heart Looking
back to those days, really wonder that he
loved me at all | had disappointed him
so thoroughly. He had believed me noble
and generous. lie had found me selfish
and exacting. Yet ] do net believe his
great, noble heart, ever for moment failed
toward me in tenderness and patience. lie
bore with my waywardness, as one bears
with the faults of an irresponsible child
Perhaps he never lost faith in my ultimate
4 regeneration.
think Laurie suffered beyond what
had supposed child's capacity for purely
mental suffering. The disappointment TO her
was most cruel. She had longed all her
/ life for mother 10 love her as she had
seen other children loved. For many weeks
before | came she had been told that she
was TO have what she most craved, a new
mamma, all to herself. Sine had found in
me less affection than she would have re-
ceived from a governess or housekeeper.-
/ | knew all this. | had never been deliber-
ately cruel before, but | was now. All
Laurie's gay vivacity was gone. She seem
ed all the time fearful of displeasing me-
She moved and spoke in low, quiet way.
1 that | could see was exquisitely painful 70
her father to behold. ] do not know how il
was that his lovefor me was net utterly
quenehed, his patience all worn out Per-
haps he thought that was not well, and
that the swee: new conner, for whom he
hoped, would heal my nature of its pride,
and pain and passion.