The Vermont transcript. [volume] (St. Albans, Vt.) 1864-1870, 1866-08-17

lsOD, wien MI. mOJeJO0 uTOSC ulu JOOk
me by the hand.
George" he said. "you have need
to speak no more. You are the man
| would have chosen for my Angels
husband Had it not been 80 / should
not have suffered you to visit here as
l have done. / recognize your ster-
ling worth, and fear not to trust you
with the most precious charge / have
on earth to bestow."
cannot tell you what more he said.
Suffice it for me to say that went out
of the library as happy as it is possible
for man to be. | went out, and upon
the verandah | met Angel. She was
looking paler than l had ever seen her
look, and she seemed startled when 1
hurried forward and took her hand
But did not stop to consider. fan
cied that her tremulous emotion was
from anxiety to know what her father
had said for she must have known
chat had seen him.
Dear Angel, / cried, holding both
her hands, and drawing her closely TO
me, i have seen your father-I have
told him of our love-and he has made
me the happiest of men. He"
Angel had turned suddenly pale, and
was evidently sinking beneath the
weight of some emotion that | could
not comprehend.
George Mr.. Garland !" she
gasped. And she gazed up with such
wild look that l thought l must have
frightened her.
What was it .? Had it been all a
cruel dream My walk to the river
my meeting with her by the fountain
these blessed words she had spoken
-all-all dream.
Angel" l hoarsely whispered, "do
you not remember ?"
And she echoed the word remember
with vacant stare.
"AIy Cod" l groaned, and have
1 dreamed all this !"
A sudden light flashed athwart the
beautiful face, and though she grew
stronger, yet she trembled more vio-
lently than before. Presently she mo-
toned me to seat, and, of her own
accord, seated herself by my side. A
/ little while she renamed silent, as
though striving to recover her strength
and then she said
There must have been dream.
What was 1t 2
/ | asked her if | should tell her what
| had dreamed.
Yes, she replied +; tell me"
And / told her how | had wandered
off in the night down by the river, and
how, OH my way back, at midnight, |
had met her in the garden. And then
told her, word for word, all that had
passed between us. She was strangely
moved as | spoke, and more than once
/ tears rolled down her cheeks.
And you feared to tell me of your
love because l was rich 2" she said.
!" Because you were rich, and was
poor
And you have seen my father?"
Yes"
"And he gives you hope ?
She looked up with these words
looked up with her beautiful face so
full of tenderness and love--with her
eyes so radiant in their celestial light
that my heart bounded up from its
slough of despair, and hope once more
was mine
ooh, Angel it was not dream y |
cried
l stretched forth my arms, and she
sank upon my bosom, weeping like a
child l held her there until the wild
flood had passed, and then she whis-
pered:
Dear George, it is no dream now.
/ love you'll have loved you from the
moment l first knew you-I am yours
for all the time to come, If you will
take me, and love me in return"
A moment more she held fast
against my throbbing heart, and then
she started up.
Il must go now" she said; "but |
leave my heart in your keeping"
| wandered off into the park, utterly
lost in maze of JOY and perplexity
that held me as in cloud of dazzling
and bewildering bri 3htness. | could
make nothing OF 1T save that Angel
was mine. How it had como about ]
could not tell. If | had dreamed all
that blissful experience of the previous
night, then the dream had been tc
some purpose, after all. As returned
to the house / met Mr. Moreton and
Fred. upon the piazza.
"Egad old boy !" cried Fred, slap
ping me upon the shoulder, you
should have been physician instead
Of a lawyer!"
His father laughed, and my puzzled
look must have been question enough
for Mr. Moreton Immediately said:
Erred. probably thinks that you
have taken upon your hands case o.
"a case of SoNNAMBuLIsM !! broke IL
nv chum, with another slap upon my
shoulder. And then he added, with 4
ringing laugh:
BOUNDS? old fellow, you'd better
} look ont for that Angel of ours Ifsht
took fancy to make love to you II
her sleep, who shall say that she may
! not, at some future time, give you the
Slip under the same influence ?"