Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1865-10-06
QDblo(. ,Statesnar,
MARRIED AT LAST.
BESSIE woopFon D,s ROMANCE.

CHAPTER I.
My sister Lillian and myself had been on
a visit to my uncle and aunt Bourne, In the
little town of H---y, and dmuch we had ell
jOyed ourselves, and with good reason, too,
formy uncle and aunt, although generally
very quiet people, emerged from their re-
tirement, In order to escort us to the differ
ent balls and parties to which we were in
vited; and they were many, for Qet 1t not
be accounted vanity) it was well known
that we possessed certain golden attractions,
besides being the Misses Woodford, of
Woodford, and our father an Nj. p; but II
was not the balls and parties entirely which
made me so happy, nor was 1t my uncle and
aunts Kindness. 1t was somebody l met
there; in fact. But I'll begin at the
very beginning and tell you how it was.
One evening we went to ball at Mrs.
Murray's, dear old lady, who asked us out
Of pure love and kindness, and would have
been just as pleased to see us If we had
been the plain Misses Jones, struggling
hard to get a living; and there met Wal
ter Ashton. Oh, he was so handsome, tall,
strongly built, with large hazel eyes, and
rich, nut brown curls, which cOntrasted
well with his white, broad forehead. Then
he introduced his sister to me; such q nice
girl OF seventeen, who had just come home
from school, and was enjoying her first ball
thoroughly. She and 1 took natural lik-
ing for each other. She told me she knew
Mrs. Bourne, and would come the next day
and take me for walk. But the next day it
showed very heavily; so her brother came
instead to inquire how we were after the
ball, and to bring back my fan, which had
lent to Alice, who had broken hers.
Wemet often after that at Mrs. Ashton's,
and can't tell how it was, but Alice always
would leave us, and not come back for a
long time; If she had not done so, perhaps
what followed would never have happened.
One day, as we were sitting by the fire,
Alice ran off to find her thimble, although
discovered afterwards that she had it on
her finger at the time, and while she was
gone, Walter said, "Miss Woodford, look
me in the face, and answer me one question
Tam going to ask you" So | raised my
eyes to his, but did not say word, but
looked very flushed. Atlast he jumped uE
and said very hurriedly, g am nothing
but lawyer and know you might look
higher, but | love you vely much, and
want to know if you could love me enough
to become my wife,"
could not speak at first, it took me so
bysurprise; and then, when tried to speak,
and tell him that loved him quite as much
as he loved me, | was so silly-I began to
cry instead.
Oh, he was so kind then He said he was
sorry he said anything about it so as to
gIieve me; that he did not think me at
all unkind. OF course | could not help
caring tor him, and that he had been great
deal too presumptuous to think for mo-
ment that l would marry him-a simple
/ lawyer.
got better then, could not bear to heal
| him blame himself. AS if 1t mattered his be-
| ing lawyer-as if it was his fault not being
/ rich, and not obliged to work for o living
Did that make him any the less . gentle
man? Did that make him any the less no
BILE, honest, and true? OfcOurse not, L got
quite angry at the idea, and felt very much
inclined to scold, but when | saw his eyes
looking so sorrowfully at me, put my
hand in his and said, {" | love you very
much. L will be your wife,"
a'Alice came back an hour and half after;
at least, she told me; but it could not have
been so long, am sure; and although she
made me look at the clock, l did not believe
her, for their clocks always run faster than
any one else's. By-and-by we told her all,
or rather Walter did, for could only give
her frantic embrace and rush off.
We stayed week or longer, and then
went home. l had not told my father or
my mother of my love; it seemed much too
important and precious tale to trust to
paper. The letter might be opened and
read, or get lost, and a thousand other
things; so waited. .' 's''.
N.f,i. Hr.f.. /,ty rTrp TT =" .f. 30 ...... .