The Fremont weekly journal. [volume] (Fremont, Sandusky County, Ohio) 1867-1877, 1870-05-27

i ACN Els 0u4DAC W AAONN "a - lSNNe-Ns
Renee Law for month between life
land death, and when she recovered,
her beautiful voice was gone. Louis
was the first whom she told of this,
and she added, as a matter OF course:
"And l think, Louis, that, as my
voice is gone, you had better tell my
father that you give me up, and per-
| haps he will let you learn music in
peace"
And so you thought it was for
your voice that l liked you?" cried
Louis in hot indignation.
Yes, Renee had thought that;
and, seeing that she was loved for
her own sake, she felt too happy for
one moment, but the next she could
not help saying:
80, Louis! how shall we manager
letter has been, and whether it had
been written before or after the re-
port of his death, there was nothing
to show. All Renee's wounds bled
afresh as she held the mutilated let
ter in her hand. Was Louis living
or dead, had he forgotten her, or
would he come back some day?
Who could tell! not Renee, surely,
only one thing she knew.
Il will wait for him till / die"
she said in her own heart as she put
the letter away. 1t is the lot of
many women to wait so; and Renee,
meek and trusting, bore her fate with
silent patience. She never spoke of
the hope that lived within her. She
never complained that her youth
was wasting in this lonely vigil for
one who seemed to have forgotten
her; she never even uttered his
name, but she lived alone in her
fathers old tumble-down house, ten
derly keeping the memory Of the
past in her faithful heart. And thus
her life was passing slowly and
heavily, when there occurred an IN
expected eVenttO breakits mOnOtOry.
Renee was coming home one eve
ming from her days work, for Man
neville. The grayness of twilight
was setting on Mannevile as Renee
approached it. She saw the old
church on the hill, and little lights
twinkling here and there around it,
but though Renee looked wistfully
at the village, she Stunned its steep
main street, and took q quiet lane
which took her to her own house in
the fields. She met no one on her
way, and when she entered the dwell
ling in which her youth had been
spent, when she struck light and
kindled a little cracking fire of rape
stalks, and sat down looking at it,
Renee, though at home once more
felt the sense of loneliness upon her
which comes to US when we have
left the dead behind US, and must
needs journey on through life with
out them.
| Still, Renee was young, and to
youth many things are pleasant.
IThe sun shOne so brightly the next
day, the sky was so clear and blue,
that Renee felt cheerful as she looked
Into the fields-all white with the
nights frost, This was Sunday, too
land when the familiar Manneville
bells came pealing on the air, Renee's
heart had a throb of gladness.
"Thank God to be at home once
Imorew she said to her own heart, as
she took her seat on the old bench
where she had sat since she could
remember. 1t was early, and the
church was empty still, but Renee
liked that. She wanted to pray qui-
etly, and collect her thoughts before
the congregation came in. She was
| lkneeling and had closed her eyes
perhaps, that she could not well help
being little distracted at seeing all
| the well known faces around her,
when mass began. 1t began, and
with it there pealed through the
1church, clear, deep and strong, the
lvoice of the long silent organ.
| IfRenee did not start up and utter
a cry, it was because the very excess
of her surprise kept her motiOnless
and mute. But she shook from
head to foot, and felt in a trance of
lamazed delight. If the test ofmusic
be in its power over a human heart
never surely was there music out ot
| heaven like that to which Renee lis
tened then. She hid her face in hel
hands and let happy, grateful tears
| flow through her little fingers. In
the mean ime the organ poured forth
its glorious tide of sound, now tri
umphant, now pathetic, now solemn
and tender; and, what with the music
and the delight of knowing thai
Louis had come back, for she die
mot doubt it one moment, Renee felt
that perfect bliss which life grants
i Death settled that question, for
/ soon after Renee's recovery the
mother of Louis died. At once the
youths resolve was taken. He would
| go away; go and try his fortunes,
and come back and be Organist OF
Manneville, and marry Renee if she
would only wait for him. Renee
raised her soft dark eyes to his,
Il shall wait for you till l die. ."
she said
/ The weaver would have tried to
keep Louis, just to vex and thwart
him, if the young man had not
i gone away without saying a word to
any one save Renee. He vanished
from the house. one morning, and
after a while Renee felt as if he had
vanished out of her life. No one
j knew whittier he was gone, no one
! knew what he was doing, no one had
/ seen OF met Louis, or heard of him.
till, two years after his departure, q
report reached AIanneville that
Louis Picard had died in one of the
Paris hospitals. It was the weaver
who told Renee with 4 low chuckline
laugh. She heard, but did not be-
Ilieve him. When we love and are
Iyoung, the being we love wears {
charm against all harm. Death
which can lay whole kingdoms waste
and level nations in the grave, ha:
mo power over the beloved one Of {
lyOung heart.
1T is not true, it can not be true
| Louis is not dead" Renee said tC
herself, not merely on that day, but
on every day that followed it fOl
weeks and months, but as some time
passed and brought no tidings from