St. Cloud Democrat. [volume] (Saint Cloud, Stearns County, Minn.) 1858-1866, 1864-04-14
eyes, I go,to town next week. I
1--WE shall be sorry to lose you,p

eyes, I go to town next week."s adE
ave shall be sorry to lose you.p) rpjaK
Mr.. Stuart had looked at her while he
spoke, but afterwards he turned away and
stroked Carls hair -sbseatly Perhaps he
thought tho fhint tinge elthatf had risen over
her f.ce was only the reflection of the fire.
light, or perhaps it was so faint as to be
ipsigni6eant;;y anyhow, he, looked, like a
man who had made his first throw and dis
covered q blank. ~ q"
:, 'Ysir George ana Lady Rochelle do not
accompany you, ! think p, '''' IL: W. .,
+ Any brethertakes ne to itoxn, Of course,
but .hs viii not remain: believe Lady
Rochelle R is in the nursery. l. win let her
know you are here ,":;s Ag.;,..l. .I .':'I
/, She looked. towards q crimson 'tassel
ixhishs hung near the. gentleman's hand,
and Mr. Stuart got up, but not to ring the
bell HeIroply required, it seemed, a
change Of posture, for. he stood with one
lhanib on the ;mantlepiece,: and said cprtly,
':Pray 1on't.Iu would not disturb her on
any account. i'cameito bid you good bye"
aiSomething which MAiicent would have
scorned 70 think. was disappointment orept
over her 1t tho ,Merds.I There he stood; =
stern, strong man, an. obscure country
squire, OVER thirty, ,ath not even hand
some face to recommend him; courteous
indeed, but not with tile insidiops; 4latter-
ing courtesy to which she had been accus
toned; rugged figure enough in all con-
science for foreground, .and yet she could
not help little absurd feeling Of regre; at
the thought q saying goodbye to him 1t
was very odd it vas utterly unaccountable
and prePeeterou,. A man who you'd not
even recognize the name of the composer
whose new opera was shortly to startle the
world into. one great diapason Of praise );
ttho would probably confuse NIeyerbeer
with Verdi, and Alboni with Grisi ), who
sang only simple ballads in a very fair ten
or, and knew nothing at ell about his own
register" Neither would any of the
great; NAMES Of Tyburnia have produced
an impression upon him. To all that weat
on in the orld-her world-he' was, she
considered, calpably Indifferent; what then
was there about him which reused her in
tercst in spite Of herself? She could not
tell. She wondered why, if he had only
come to say gpod- bye, he did not say ii
and go; why he chose to stand up there
instead of sitting down; why there was
something about him tonight stranger than
usual, something which communicated to
her an odd sensation of excitement and ap
preh ension. She began to lose her coal
composure and Indifference, to trcmble q
little, to feel little nervous and uneasy.
"You dislike the country then," said Mr..
Stuart, in tone Of speculative deaibera-
ton. ''You really think that with all its
glories of summer sun and winter hearth,
It has nothing to offer which you would &C
cept :; that an existence in it would be sim
Ep'y, insu7portable under any circumstan-
ccs ?" ..,;,
Milhcent hesitated. Other glories, daz.
zling with luxurious appliances, splendid
ip the, wAirl that left no time for thought
or lullness., rose up. and hid those simpler
ones, but somehow she did not like to tell
him so. :
,'.You speak so seriously, Mr.. Stuart"
II feel serious. lam more serious than
ever was in my hfe.'' '.."
my brother is happy here" said MILL
cent; 5"and his wife too. suppose if pee
pie have homes and home interests aud
pursuits like theirs, they may be happy in
the country" "
'Mill,cent!''
The sudden glow which III ghted up his
eyes and face as he turned toward her
startled Miss Rochelle into gesture which
however would not have stopped him but
for another interruption from the noisy lips
Of Master Carl. >, II
II shall have valentine tomorrow, -
shouted the boy. *'And Aunt Milly won't.
She said SO. She's got nobody to send her
valentines, and have" u. H. :.
III Mr. Stuart caught him by the arm and
swung him round. l5:s..,~:. .,......~f,:
"Your aunt thinks VALENTINES are only
for children, eh, Carl? And Valentines
Day is vulgar, out Of date? Ask her ?"
{; II told him nothing Of the sort, said
Nillicent.. .<.But of course It is out of
date ''5,-......., 49,: '>'''
(. Nevertheless we viii honor it as We do
othsr, institutions, for ite antiquity. Il have
ion immense respect for: it; and the villsge
people think that any enterprise begun7en'
yalentine'sf Day is certain to be lucky.
And now. Miss Rochelle, will wish you
good evening"" >aA aNH".s @-,-
Good bye" responded nlillicent. IT.
Mr.. Stuart heard the emphasis on the
words, and smiled. He went away with
thst,half;smile still on his lips, and Aili-
cent'g up and watched his; dark figure as
ifar sasi she could see it,. which was not far.
Fora'sht vss. closing in, the bare branches
lad formed themselves, Into d solemn black
mat seainst the lead.colored sky behind,
and therain dfipped from them. m 80
What did he meant Why had, hc said
that one word, and then broke off so sud
denly And what was he going to do :!
Above all, what did it signify to her about
him and kia do;1iSe @''