The Vermont transcript. [volume] (St. Albans, Vt.) 1864-1870, 1864-10-14


had received letter from Mr.. Gran
ger in which he talked hopefully Of
his recovery Il am strong, he said.
My appetite is better ; have gained
FIVE pounds in flesh since / left-home.
Three days after writing this letter
there came a sudden change of tenn
perature he took cold, which was
followed by congestion Of the lungs
and no medical skill was sufficient for
the case. His body was sent home
for interment. When the husband and
father went away two or three months
before, his beloved ones looked upon
his face for the last time in this world.
Love and honor make the heart
strong Mrs. Granger was a gentle,
retiring woman. She had leaned up
on her husband very heavily she had
chung to him as a vine. Those who
knew her best felt most anxious about
her. She has no mental stamina,
they said she cannot stand alone.
But they were mistaken. As we
have just said, love and honor make
the heart strong. Only week after
Mr. Sterling read the news of the min
istcr's death he received note from
the widow.
My husband, she said, was able to
go South in the hope Of regaining his
health through your kindness. II he
had lived, the money you loaned him
would have been faithfully returned,
for he was a man Of honor. Dying,
he left that honor in my keeping, and
l will see that the debt is paid But
you Will have to be a little patient with
me.
All very fine, muttered Mr.. Sterl-
I ing, with slightly curling lip. I've
heard Of such things before they
sound well. People viii say of Mrs
Granger, What noble woman
what a fine sense Of honor she has.
But shall never see the three hum
dred dollars was foolish enough to
lend her husband
Very much to Mr.. Sterling's sur
prise and not a little to his pleasure.
he discovered, about three months af-
forwards, that he was mistaken in his
estimate Of Mrs. Granger The pale
sad, fragile little woman brought him
the sum Of twenty-five dollars He did
not see the tears in her eyes as he dis
played her husbands note, with its
dear familiar writing, and made there
on, with considerable formahty, an en-
dorsement of the sum paid. She
would have given many drops Of her
hearts blood to have been able to
clutch that document from Mr. Sterl-
ings hands; his possession oft seemed
like blot on the dear ones mem
DRY,
Katie Granger is the queerest little
girl ever knew, said Flora Temple
to her mother, on the evening Of the
very day on which his first payment
was made. AIR Sterling heard the re-
mark, and letting his eyes drop from
the newspaper he was reading, turned
his ear to listen.
4 think her very nice little girl
replied the mother.
so she is nice, returned the child,
but then she is so queer
What do you mean by queer?
%, she isn't like the rest of us girls.
She said the oldest thing to-day /
almost laughed right out, but Tn glad
I didn't. Three of us, Katie, Lille,
Benfeld and I, were walking around
the square at recess time, when Uncle
Hiram came along, and taking out
three bright ten cent pieces, he said,
heres dime for each of you girls to
buy sugar plums Lille and / screamed
out and We're starting away in an
instant for the candy shop ; but Katie
stood with her share of the money in
her hand. Come alongr | cried she
didn't move, but stood strange and Sc
rious. Amt you going to buy candy
with it / asked. Then she shook
her head gravely and put the dime in
her pocket, saying Il don't think she
meant for us to hear the words) It's
for fathers honor : and leaving us.
went back to the school room. What
did she mean by that, mother? Oh,
she is so strangep
'Her.mother is very poor, you know
said Mrs. Sterling, laying up Katie's
singular remark to be pondered over.
She must be, said Flora, for Ka-
ties worn the same frock to school ey-
cry day for almost three months.
MIR. Sterling, who did not let sim