New Orleans daily crescent., 1866-10-29

a stick, when saw Mr.. Forbes go offin his chaise
one morning with Arthur. r
''Please to tell Jane that ] am taking the |
child he said to me.
On hearing this, Arthur who had sat quietly till
then, uttered scream of dismay, and called on
his g mamma | saw Mr. Forbes bite his lip but
he drove away all the faster, and both father and
child were out of sight in o few moments Jane
had heard the cry, and now come down rather
scared. On hearing the explanation gave her,
she turned very pale.
ooh, why does he take him to Harting?n she r
cried, piteously; "my maid has just told me the Z
smallpox is there. Oh, if one could only over
take him y Z
That was out of the question, so did my best to '
comfort Jane; but the tears stood in her eyes as
she still kept sighing:
"Ohl why did he take him away?"
| Why, indeed? The child came home bright and
we'll and his father seemed quite triumphant at
having kept him half day away from his step
mother.
"And he was not at all unhappy, Jane, )" he said,
with marked emphasis
All day the child continued well and merry, but
| next morning he felt sick, and by the time his
father came home at night he was ill F.; he had the
smallpox. It was who told Mr.: Forbes. He
| turned dreadfully pale; he had learned in the
course of the day that the epidemic was at Hart
ing 1t was there, and he had taken his child to it;
he had taken him to illness, perhaps to death, just
to brave and tease his poor young wife knew
all this passed in his mind for the first words he
uttered were:
'God forgive mel"
His next remark was the question:
8 Has Jane ever had it? !!
Il "NeYer," replied, gravely.
Then she must not stay with him. he said
quickly; " she must not.'
, He went up followed him to the nursery. |
Jane was there, bending over the little cot, with
Arthur's hand in hers. Mr.. Forbes went up to |
her. He was much agitated; he could scarcely |
speak.
: q you must not stay. I know you have never had
this complaint-you must not stay"
|, "Would you say that, if I were his mother?"
she asked.
" have had it, so has your cousin" Il am dread
: fully pock marked, reader.) We risk nothing
- you risk much.n
: : "What?" asked Jane, and my pale, sad-faced
little cousin became for while glowing and al
. most a beautiful woman; f" what do risk? Life
y 1t is not SO dear, Mr.. Forbes Disagreement
n What change for the worse would that make in
= my lotW
!, + Mr. Forbes said not word.
I " have had that child's love-" continued Jane,
= looking back towards the cot, and nothing,
% nothing, shall make me leave him.
: No more was said Arthur moaned as he lay,
:, and Jane sat side Of him, and her husband
I on the other.
Three davs they sat thus Three days the little
e sufferer fingered On the fourth, an angel called
u him and released him from his pain was present
- - when he died. The poor, peevsh little fellow
n had become so patient and so meek in his illness,
NJ that |. too, had begun to love him. My heart
+ smote me when saw his eyelids futter strangely,
and his pa@ lips culver, and his little FACET was
neither blotched nor altered-take the strange
- calmness of death. Jane wept silently. Mr..
ar Forbes was fearless, and sat looking on like one
:; turned to stone. At first he seemed incredulous,
l. i but at length he understood that it was all over
~ do not think he saw me; if he did, he forgot me.
NC He turned to his wife.
:, Jane,h he said.
5 i5 She looked, and did not move.
~ "Jane come to me.'
"a She rose and went and sat on the couch by his
~ side. With sudden moan, in which love, remorse
o. and pain seemed to mingle, he drew her towards
u him. He laid his head on that kind bosom where
- his chid's head had so often rested. 1t had been
P the refuse of all little Arthurs troubles and it
in now received the strong mans passion of grief
~ ~ Jane flung her arms around her husbands neck
~ and mingled her tears with his and whilst they
~ wept together the young and innocent dead sIep
W b and smiled diviney, with closed eyes, at tina
fair world, without sorrow, passion pain, whcl
!; it had just entered.
i, softly stole away, feeling ythat out of the sad
~ dest grief good may come. Long after this, Jan'
~ said to me:
ni- ,g- "Cousin William, my husband gave me hi
oA heart in that hour and he has taken it bacl
again.
- >" And never will, little Jane; for if there be
at tI fondly loved wife, you are that woman"
~, Jane had the small-pox but her husband nurset
On her through it, and she recovered quickly and wa
IL not at all disfgured. Happy Jane! I saw her tn
- rg other day when called at the Elms on my way
H. H. London. What bright old house it looked, nov
1nf n9 that Jane was loved and happy How proud Nh
o Forbes seemed of his wife and of their only child
'nn beautiful boy very like hn-need say that hi
name was Arthur :? Well Do you know, fon
though she evidently was of him, fdoubted ii Jan
M loved this Arthur quite much as she loved th
,iT, Inc other one. told her so.
n ln "The first Arthur" she reflied, was the chill
IN IN of my sorrow ; the second Arthur is the child
me me my happiness. Both could not be dear after tE
or same fashion. Besides, the other Arthur loved m
bo+ best and this one prefers his father"
las 1nr "And Annie % suggested, what about her
'ui 81 neither know nor care" replied Jane, wit
superb indifference. "The dead Arthur makes nj
feel secure in the past, and with the living Arthu
!, a l can defy dozen Annies."
I hu Dear little janet She was just the Rsame littl
goose as ever. 1t was like her to think that he
ei = hold on her husband depended dead or livin
~ child. Mr.. Forbes knew better. In the fulness
l. his happiness, he told me the whole story abou
a. ANNIE, he drove me to the station. Of cours
~ he did not tell me who "Annie" was: but he ha
So seen her again at party, and he could not hel
no f1o. saying:
Ia laF ''Cousn William, you cannot imagine what fe
ms M pretty Jane, (pretty jane oh, love, love an
tiu,3 that cold, shallow, frivolous woman My darlin
pus @ felt shudder we left, and she thought wa
NY cold. Cold! 1 was thinking-I might actual
te. he. have married that womanh