Dodgeville chronicle. [volume] (Dodgeville, Wis.) 1862-current, 1868-05-01
shone and winked at me in an impish man

my social rest. Mild, round and rosy
in body and mind, crying is the only lux
| ury she seems thoroughly to enjoy. The
tears roll over her plump cheeks as il
they were used to it, and leave them
plumper than before. The round, light
blue eyes are always ready for shower,
and look all the rounder and bluer after it
is over. l never knew her to have an
original idea indeed, / think she never
had but one very clear idea of any descrip-
ton. The thought of her whole life had
been cher Willie" Mrs. Robinson, al
though weak little woman enough, has
had curious history Of her own. y
She was an orphan: had married, at
twenty, William Robinson, sailor OF the
town, and had moved into her present
home, with her husband and an old uncle
with whom she had lived before her mar
riage. Two months afterward young Will
liam sailed for India. The appointed time
for his return had passed: month by
month went by, and still his wife looked
for him who never came. After two years
the old uncle was laid at rest, and the lit
tie woman was left quite alone
How she waited and watched-watched
all through youth, all through middle age
waited and watched in vain through
twenty long, long years *
In all that time her one thought when
she rose in the morning was OF Willie ::
her last thought as she laid down at night
was of her lost husband. Nightly, long
after we had gone to bed and she thought
me asleep, her little figure would steal
from the bedroom and kneel in a spot she
had often shown me, where Willie had
| said his goodbye, and there she would
pray, in a low, soft voice, the words
always the same: MY God, take me
home to my Willie: oh, come and take
me, Willie, my. husband, come back
and take met" And then she would
creep away to her room as quietly as she
came. -~w e
By the fireplace stood Willie's arm
chair: out in the pantry were Willies cup
and saucer, carefully, tenderly washed
every day. Over the mantelpiece hung
Willie's picture-to her, that of a beau
tiful hero; to me, that of a very COM
monplace young man with blue eyes,
light curling hair, large features and a
turned-up nose. have seen love, devo-
ton, infatuation, all manner of mischief
brought on through men; but never, in a u
my experience, had | encountered such
complete merging of one life into another.
To her, Willie seemed to be not all this
world only, but all she dreamed of in the
world to come. She did not think of him
as on earth, but as in heaven.
The little woman's mind and heart were
study to me. was sitting, with my
hands in my lap, thinking her over, she
still knitting, and the click of the needles
diversified by the splash, just audible, OF
| the large, comfortable tears on her neat
black silk, when we were both startled by
a vigorous swing of the gate and a heavy
step on the gravel. A moment more and
the door was flung epen, and suddenly,
without word or gesture, large, weather,
beaten, rough-looking man stood, like an
apparition, before us. A long, purple scar,
crossing his forehead and cheek, gave a
sinister expression to one eye. He stared
at us, then gazed about the room for some
time without speaking; at last he fastened
his eyes on Mrs Robinson. She crept be-
hind me and whispered, PLEASE send him
away, Miss Jemima; see how he stares
Dear, dear! what a dreadful man -
"What do you wish, sir?" | inquired,
boldly enough, think, although quaking
internally, for he had now transferred his
eyes to me. ntasH
"Does Mrs. Mary Jane Robinson live
here?" The harsh voice made us both
start. $751;
Yes; I am Mrs Robinson" said the
little woman, retreating further behind ME.
Suddenly was seized, chair and all, and
deposited in the middle of the room; the
next moment the stranger lifted Mrs. Rob
inson and gave her bear-like hug, the
little woman struggling and screaming
with all her might. l ran to the door, in
tending to call for help; but the words
Mary, nay wife, don't you know me ~
struck me dumb. / turned in amazement.
He still held her in his arms She had ceased
struggling, and was looking at him with
strange, wild, shining eyes. Was her mind
shaken? Had the shock been too much
for her?
"Let her go; you will kill her p CRIED,
scarcely knowing what said.
He put her down gently, still holding her
hand. She stood quite illand passive, as
if frozen, the two fixed, bright eyes staring
from her death-white face. The man
looked from one to the other in a frightened
way.
"Do you think I've frightened her out
of her wits ?" he asked, in an uneasy whis-
per, as she stood with her eyes -riveted on
his face 9a ~ -E#a@ FIJI
II dare say you have,1 I blurted out,
CURLY, as l turned to Mrs Robinson,
Mary, my dear, what is it ?" taking her
passive hands in mine. She made no mo-
ton, not even shifting her eyes. Wont
you speak to me, Nary" The eyes turned
on me, and slipping her hands from mine,
she gropedin the air like blind person.
1t was terrible to see! Mary" l said,
desperately, 1T is your husband come back
to you anything, | thought, to rouse her
won't you speak to, him?" Ky TIN
"Yes,n said Mr. Robinson, eagerly, Il
am your husband; don't you know me,
Mary? Amt youglad to see me, my dear ?"
The tears stoodin his eyes, and although
they could not soften the look of the
Scared one, still ] could see a dina very
dim-likeness to the picture over the man
telpiece, and could no longer doubt his
identity. Deep lines seemed to grow in the
little woman's face as he spoke to her: the
very rosndness appeared to fall into sharp
angles, such as long years of sorrow had
failed to produce.
"Send him away; tell the man to 90
away. Cannot he go aways" she cried,
piteously.
"No, my DEAR" said her husband: =
have come to stay, and thought you'd be
glad to see me-" His rough voice trembled
a little. "See, I've carried your, picture
with me through thick and thin. When
we were shipwrecked thought about it,
and tied IL upwater.proof, SO Ishould have
that, any way; and all them long years,
when Torn Bright and George Griffith and
me used to sit in our hut nights and talk
over our wives and homes, your picture
used to look so hopeful- lika-iuSt like Won