Newbern progress., 1863-01-24
but Alice had vanished.
"It's pretty lengthy" said Trad, rue,

''It's pretty lengthy" said Trad, rue
fully; "but here goes"
| Name after name he pronounced
with slow, mechanical eXactness, as if
each were not shrined in some bleed
ing heart-wept over with everlasting
tears.
"What ~ shrieked the Squire, sud
denly, as one well known name knelled
on his ear, "not in the list Of killed y
He started up, pale and trembling.
with cold dew on his forehead.
eyes, it is" said Trad, himself rath-
er dismayed. "Co. E-that's his very
Company read for yourself, if you
don't believe me-"
The Squire's dim eyes traced the ia
tai syllables in the doomed list,
through thick mist of binding tears.
"Poor Alicel it will break her
heart" he said, in husky tone. Mrs.
Bankgrove gave piercing cry, and
sprang forward just in time to catch
the sinking figure of Alice, who stood
near the door, white and motionless
as q aspectre.
Dead killed in battle. She could
not believe it, though she repeated the
words to herself mechanically a thou
sand times day. Dead-in the bloom
of his vigorous youth, and she living
to mourn him. She scarce understood
why people looked pityingly at her,
and whispered one to another as she
went by; she felt like one who walks
in the mystery of dreadful dream,
and blindly trusts some day to waken
from its awful shadows.
Dead ! killed in battle!
The sad December blasts were
moaning the skeleton woods; the ici-
cles tinkled, like tiny chimes of bells,
at every rattle of the frozen boughs !;
the sunsets burned in orange flame
along the west, and the nights, still
and starry, were full of rimy frosts
that cut almost like a knife in their
biting keenness. And Alice Bank
grove, leaning sadly over the fire of
cracking logs, wondering what dreary
SHOWS were folding their shroud over
his unknown grave. ...
"Better go to bed, daughter, it is
past ten," said the Squire, ''and a
stormy night. There's snow in the air,
OF l. III lHiSLdhCH.
"I will, by-and-by, father"
Mrs. Bankgrove, wiser than her hus-
band, quietly took up a candle, and
beckoning him into the adjoining bed
room.
"Don't notice her, jeremiah" said
the mother, in a low voice. "Shell
grieve it away in time, if she's only
let alone poor child"
at is too consarned bad," said the
Squire, the nearest approach, by the
way, to profanity in which he ever in
duiged. ssAnd to think of Trad Curtis
comm danglin' round to see if I'd any
objections to his comm to see Alice
Sunday nights. Objections !! 1 let
him know what 1 thought of his con-
duct. He won't come again in hur-
ry, l calculated" :.
"There, there, father-hush !" said
Mrs. Bankgrove, soothingly, "you'll
disturb Alice"
And she closed the door as softly as
if hss daughter had been sleeping
infaHs whom she feared to arouse.
Alone, Alice sat there before the
fire-alone with the ticking clock, and
the bubbling drip of rosin from the
singing pine logs, and the wall of the
tempest without, sadly pondering on
the wintry blight that had come over
her own young life. Almost before
she knew it the old clock had chimed
once again, and the faint horn OF the
midnig ght stage, passing on its lonely
way down in the hollow, foated indis-
tinctly up to her ear-and still she
unused on.
= =
"Hollo there inside |" bawled JON
athan Starkey, the stage driver, ''who
was it wanted to get out opposite
Squire Bankgrove's house? This is
the nearest we come to it. Just over
the hill, sir, and take the first road to
your right-tain't but little way
and pitch dark at that" he added in
an under tone, as he helped out a
mufed figure; "sorry l can't drive
you nearer, Sir you seem to be
lame"
Lame 1fevery bone in his body
had been shattered, the knowledge
that he was within sight of Alice's
home would have given him super
natural strength. How well he new
every turn Of the road, even in the
dense darkness of the stormy midnight
how familiarly the frozen ground
answered to bis footballs!
Far out in the murky gloom stream
ed the ruddy brightness Of that hearth
stone where she sat all alone. Could
she have known who was toiling to
reach her through that night and tenn
pest
She never heard the faint, uncertain
tap at the door, she never heard the
click of the latch, but all of sudden