Litchfield enquirer., 1866-11-22
THE DYKEHAMBURY CONCEPT

yet. why, the OiQ man mas kScafcely beer
 dead six months, and it ism t two years since
 the poor lads were drowned in the Dike I f !
 lucky chance for him.
 aThat's no matter. Mir. Hugh Carton i.
 not a near relative. Where they fishel hin
 up from, no one can tell. And then he has
 an invalid sister," g, r
 '4" To whom he is very good"
 This was from an elderly bachelor who
 Was grim and testy, but whose testiness nc
 one minded much. He took snuff as he i carpet savagely, as though that had been
 the speaker, and wanted putting down.
 And should like to know what man
 worthy the name, wouldn't be good to an
 invalid sister ?'' persisted this gentleman
 "Of. course, Mir. Crane, of course But ! then she is an invalid, you, know, which
 might be against-"
 | Her brothers dancing attendance on 6 bevy of music-mad young ladies, and screaming up to B fiat" said MT. Crane, pulling face. 'sWell, don't pretend to be musical, and have already been ,intro- duced to MT. Carton. I should say that he IS not musical either. Sorry to aisappoint you. ....!..t 'ls.t...-'. The three Misses Grafton looked at each other and smiled. The parish of Dyke wood was eminently a musical parish. It was about to take part in grand amateur concert, to which everybody for miles round 1 was expected to come, and its great deside- ratum had long been good tenor. Bari tones there were in plenty, and these had I to be pressed into tenor service; but they were thin, for the most part like vin ordi- nai,e; and besides, they could not take the Thigh notes Now, real tenor, after the fashion of Mario or Sims Reeves, was the thing wanted; therefore, from MT. Hugh Cartons somewhat thin brown cheeks, moustaches, long hair, and general foreign appearance, it had been suggested as not impossible that he might supply the def ciency.
 "At any rate," said Mrs. Grafton, sswe will not take him at your valuation, Mr. Crane.
 No one expects you to do so, young ladies', retorted MT. Crane. "The proof of the pudding-but I forgot, that's vul- gar. Listen, however, to an old fogie. I venture to. predict ct-nay, would lay Q small wager that the concourse of you Graftons, Hetheringtons, Wilson's, every one-don't extract five consecutive words from this taciturn gentleman. I couldn't t; and talked about top-dressing, and the crops, and the game laws,-al that would naturally interest g country gentleman. I don't believe myself that he knows what it is he has come into. The only time Issuc- ceeded in attracting his attention for amo- ment, was when spoke of that poor Mrs. Wynne, who lives over there, you know, almost inside his park. I suppose it is be- cause she is cripple like his sister" Again the young ladies smiled.
 "Ay," said MT. Crane, "laugh if you will, ladies. I dare say you think 8 crtlsty old fellow like me wouldn't be very likely to entertain this new lion; but you may be mistaken. "Why, he's thirty-five if he's Q day, and the gray hairs are coming"
 "His voice will be in it's prime, MT. Crane, said the ladies'
 "His voice! his voice!'' exclaimed Mr. Crane; as if human being were nothing but g mechanical contrivance for emitting sound. And" he added softly, the man has known sorrow"
 He got up to go as he spoke, and the girls shook hands with him good-humored- ly enough, for he was not so sour as he seemed, and in spite of his caustic speech es, he was rather favorite amongst them.
 Meantime the object of these remarks was walking about the lawn of Dykewood Park with cigar in his mouth tall, mus chlar man, with rather worn brown face, and eyes that would have struck stranger as having pitiful, hunted look in them at times. When his possessions became a re- aity to him, instead of appearing like 9 dream, from which he was afraid every mo- ment of awaking, this wore of but at present he could hardly believe that for tune, adverse to him from childhood, had suddenly turned upon him her pleasant smiles. .. .,,.tg,.t -.- There were gardeners at work in the shrubberies and amongst the fiower-beds; and 'as his eye fell upon them, MT. Carton stood still with sudden wonder at the thought that these men were his servants, and would look to him for payment. He shaded his eyes with his hand, and looked blaze of gold and red. The light fell on the tree-tops, and picked out bits here and there of the winding river to make it glis- ten like silver. The scene grew dim be, fore Mir. Cartons eyes. He saw instead a miserable lodging under foreign sky, where gannt man covered at night over the stove, whose supply of charcoal was scanty. He saw this man rising up in the morning, sometimes hopeful, to be beaten back again from time to time, till hope was almost dead within him; then he saw this same man, but changed little, for better days had begun, and his genius was making its way tardily; 8 newspaper was in his hand, and one finger rested upon an adver- tisement. His breath came in painful gasps, his face grew gradually paler until -
 Mr., Carton started, for one of the work men stood before him, touching his hat, and asking instructions respecting certain trees which he thought should be cut down to improve the view. MT. Carton could have laughed aloud at the incongruity of the thing, but he restrained himself and gave his orders quietly. "I might be the country squire in a farce, he said to himself CT feel like playing. at being rich man. Pleasant plays thought An, I am thankful it didn't come too late" ,.-s He flung down his cigar, and walked quickly towards the house. He passed the | wide stone steps, which looked so imposing, pushed open g French window, and enter Led small drawing-room, at the end oi which was Q conservatory. A young girl lay on a couch near this window, young, but with few of the marks of youth. There was not the faintest rose-tint in the cheeks, fromO Ohich suffering had driven thehealthy blood; the hands that she stretched out te him were fearfully thin, and the large eyes which filed with tender light when they | l,, I~~.