Marshall County Republican., 1868-05-21

single sou to get bread? The petition wa:
unheeded An old man passed The
mendicant thought that the experience o.
the distresses of life might have softened
one like him, but she was In error Expe
rience had Only hardened, not softened, his
heart. ga
"The. night was cold and rainy, and the
hour had come when the night-police ap
peared to keep the streets clear of all men
dicants and suspicious characters Al
this period the shrinking girl took courage
once more to hold out her hand to a passeI
by. II was young man. He stopped al
the silent appeal, and diving into his pock
cts, pulled out piece of money, which he
threw to her, being apparently afraid to
touch thing so miserable, just as he did
this, one of the police said to the girl:
| "Ah, / have caught you, have I?-you
are begging, To the office with you
come alongi' J 4 1ff5 1eJEIHr
1.-The young man interposed. He took
hold hastily Of the mendicant, Of her
whom he had before seemed afraid to
touch, and addressing himself to the po-
liceman, said reprovingly, This woman
| is not beggar No; she is-she is one
whom know But sir said the officer
- Il tell you that she is an acquaint-
ance of mine, repeated the young stranger
| Then turning to the girl, whom he took
for an old and feeble woman, he con-
| tinued: u ft- 8 bvs -tfv Atttt
"Come along, my good dame, and per-
NIT me to see you safely to the end of
the street. Giving mis- arm to the unfor-
tunate girl, he then led her away, saying,
Here is piece of hundred sous 1t is
ali have-take it, poor woman.
"The crown of a hundred sous passed
from your hand into mine" continued the
lady, "and as you walked along support
ing my steps, then thror gh my veil, dis
tinctly saw your face and figure
My figurer' said Frederic, in amaze
ment
YES, my friend your figure, returned
his wife.
1t was to me that you gave aims on that
night. 1t was my life-my honor, per-
haps-that you then saved!"
You mendicsnt-you, so young, SO
beautiful, and now so rich,' cried Fred
eric
"Yes, my dearest husband" replied the
lady, Il have in my life received aims
once only-and from you; and those aims
have decided my fate for life.
"On the day following that miserable
night, an oldwoman in whom l had inspired
some sentiments of pity enabled me to
enter as seamstress in a respectable house.
CheerfuE.ess returned to me with labor /
had the good fortune to become favorite
with the mistress whom l served, and in
deed did my best, by Snwearied diligence
and care, to merit her favor. She was often
visited by people in high life. One day Sir
James Melton, an Englishman of great
80 IL.
With party of ladies. He returned again
He spoke with my mistress, and learnt that
was of good family; in short, learnt my
down by my side one day and asked me
plainly ifI would marry him.
"' Marry your cried /, in surprise.
q Sir James Melton was man of sixty.
tail, pale, and feeble looking. In answer
to my exclamation of astonishment, he
said, Yes, 1 ask if you will be my wife I.
am rich, but have no comfort-no happi-
ness. My relatives seem to yearn to see
me in the grave. | have ailments which
require a degree of kindly care that is not
to be bought from servants / have heard
your story, and believe you to be one who
will support prosperity as well as you have
adversely. l make my proposal sincerely,
and hope that you will agree to it.
" AT that time, Frederic" continued the
lady, ~ loved you; / had seen you but
once, but that once was too memorable for
me ever to forget it, and something always
insinuated to me that we were destined to
pass through life together. At the bottom
OF my soul, believed this. Yet every one
around me pressed me to accept of the offer
made to me, and the thought struck me
that might one day make you wealthy
AT length my main objection to Sir James
MeltOn's proposal lay in disinclination to
make myself the instrument of vengeance
in Sir James hands against relatives whom
he might dhlike without good grounds.
The objection, when stated, only increased
his anxiety Tor my consent, and finally,
under the impression hat it would be after
all, carrying Romance the length of folly to
reject the advantageous settlement offered
tome, Icrusented to Sir James proposal.
!" This part of the story, Frederic, is
really like fairy tale. /, a poor orphan,
penniless, became the wife of one of the
richest baronets of England. Dressed in
silks, and sparkling with jewels, / could
now pass in my carriage through the very
streets where, few months before, had
stood in the rain and darkness-a men,
dicant!'
Happy Sir James," cried NJ. de la
Tour, at this part of the story; ".he could
prove his love by enriching you"
He was happy" resumed the lady.
!" Our marriage, so strangely assorted,
proved much more conducive, it is proba-
BILE, to his own comfort than If he had
welded one with whom all the parade of
settlements, of pin money, would have
been necessary"
II ssNever,I i believe, did he for an instant
repent OF our union. I, on my part, con-
ceiyed myself bound 10 do my best for the
solace of his declining years; and he, on
his part, thought II Incumbent on him to
provide for my future welfare. He died,
leaving me large part Of his substance
as much, indeed, as l could prevail upon
myself to accept. | was now a widow,
and from the hour in which became so,
vowed never again tc give my hand to
man, excepting him who had succored
me If my hour of distress, and whose re-
membrance had ever been preserved in
the recess Of my heart. But how to dis
cover that man? All, unconscious migrate
to make no endeavOr to come in the way
of one who sought TO love and enrich
looked for you at balls, assemblies, and
theatres. You went not there. All, how
! longed to meet you ----'--.
As the lady spoke she took from her
neck ribband, TO which was attached q
piece of hundred souss at is the same
rtAs very same which you gave me-
said re, presenting It to Frederic; "by
pledging 1t / got little bread from a
neighbor, and / earned enough afterward
in time to-, permit me TO recover it.
vovrad m px-<,r no r-f fir<S.,,
"Ah, how happy / was, Frederic, when
/ saw you in the street! The excuse
which made for -stopping you was the
first that rose tony mind But what tre-
mors felt even afferward, lest you should
have been already married. In that case
you would never have heard aught of this
| fairy tale though I WOllld have taken