The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1868-11-24
@istslI#ng.
A Rift In the Clouds.

and out of spirits; came home to his
wife, who was also tired and out of spirits.
ga smiling wife and cheerful home
what paradise it would be-" said An.
drew t. himself, as he turned his eyes
from the clouded face oil Mrs. Lee, and
sat down with knitted brows and moody
aspect.
Not word was spoken by either
Mrs. Lee was getting supper, and she
moved about with weary step.
"Come," she said at last, with side
glance at her husband.
Andrew rose and went to the table.
He was tempted TO speak an angry word,
but controlled himself, and kept silent.
He could find no fault with the chop nor
the homemade bread, nor the fragrant
tea. They would have cheered his inward
man, If there had been CLEAN of sun.
shine on the face of his wife He noticed
she did not eat,
care you not WE'LL Mary" The
words were on his lips, but be did not
utter them, for the face Of his wife look0
ed so repelant that he feared an irritating
reply.
And so, in moody silence, the twain
sat together until Andrew had finished his
supper.
AZ he pushed back his chair, his wife
arose and commenced clearing off the
table.
"This is purgatory," said Lee to him
self, as he commenced walking the floor of
his little breakfast room, with his hands
thrust clear down into his trowscrs pock-
cts and his chin almost touching his
breast.
After removing all the dishes and tak
ing them into the kitchen, Mrs. Lee spread
green cover on the table, and placing n
fresh trimmed lump thereon went out
and slut the door after her, leaving her
husband alone in his unpleasant feeling
He took long, deep breath as she did SO,
pausng in his walk stood still for some
moments, and then drawing paper from
his pocket, sat down by the table, opened
the sheet, and commenced reading
Singularly enough, the first words upon
which his eyes rested were "Praise your
wife" They rather tended to increase
the disturbance OF mind from which he
was suffering.
81 should like TO find come occasion for
praisng mine" How quickly his thoughts
| expressed that ill.natured sentiment. But
his eyes were on the page before him,
and he read on.
"Praise your wife, man for PHYS sake
e:-e i'o. IL i;'tiO ""e---~n-.--~-.. II.
hurt her."
Andrew Lee raised his eyes from the
paper and muttered, "Oh, yes; that's all
very we'll, praise is cheap enough. But
praise her for what? For being sulen
and making her home the most Disagree
able place in the world p His eyes fell
again to the paper.
"She has made your home ontortable,
your hearth bright and shining, your food,
agreeable for PHYS sake tell her you
thank her, if nothing more She don't
expect il; it will make her eyes open
wider than they have for the last 20
years but it will do her good for all that,
and you too
1t seemed to Andrew just as if this SEN
tence was written just for him and just
for the occasion. 1t was complete an
swer to his question, "Praise her fol
what 7" And he felt it also as rebuke
He read no farther, for thought came toe
busy and in new direction. Memory
was convincing him ofinjustice to his wife
She had already made his house as com
Portable for him as her hands could max,
it, and had he offered the light return o
praise or commentator Had he tod o
the satisfaction he had known, or tn
comfort he had experienced? He wa
not able to recall the time or occasion -
As he thought thus Mrs. Lee came il
from the kitchen, and, taking her work
basket from the closet, placed it on .th
table and sitting down without speaking
. began to SOW. Mr., Lee glanced almos
stealthily at the work in her hands, an
saw the bosom Of shirt which she wa
stitching neatly. He knew that it Wa
for him she was at work.
"Praise your wife," The words wer
before the eyes of his mind, and he coul
j not look away from them. But he WI
T not ready for this yet, He still felt mood
: and unforgiving. The expression
his wife's face he interpreted to mean Il
e nature for which he had no patienc
n His eyes fell upon the newspaper whic
E lay spread cut before him, and he ref
the sentence
h "A kind, cheerful word, spoken in
q gloomy house, is the little rift in the clol
4 that lets the sunshine through"
!. Lee struggled with himself awhile 10
ger. His own ill-nature had to be co
quered first; his moody, accusing spi
i had to be subdued. He thoaght OF ma
- things to say, yet he feared TO say thu
:, lest his wife should meet his address wi
" n cold rebuff, At last leaning toward |
and taking hold Of the shirt bosom up
Is which she was at work, he said in vO
g. carefully modulated with kindness:
OF "You are doing the work beautiful
to Mary"
Mrs Lee made no reply but her h
r. band did not fail to notice that she
n, almost instantly that rigidness with VIII
e. she had been sitting, and that the moi