Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1870-08-31

pkk&9@tl}As
Ntuper's for September.
Unzs y II, or X?
summer afternoon.
kenly looking fellow |
IS at the feet Of
sho sometimes cre
ives off to watc
,oes nothing bu
res. She is onl
but his aunt, AM
5t bis lady love, bu
kriend, whom he love
8 entirely. She has ius
4 rom 3 three years stay in z "a
50 now they are trying to stalk up
long intervening time that has sepa
-Le says, afer there has been .
- rthere's.-one thing you
;.t Il 5'ye been studying
eaHse back. 4 heres
theza And, be.
'ty, not married
earthly to pre-
rfect devotee Of
a baby in pet
ndvenev6r even mfnfioaed te
as she spoke she laid her little
caressipgiy on his bair
ed bis head, and met her loving
with a-sofsened look on his face I:
he said, slswly, /: Your womans in.
has b;t tba -,~.xtr 90 ,,-,,,l- ~ i
you love ne. and there's no other
an in the world xhat does This mother
ad) ..so-I will. tell yoir- about it
ecause I'm in the mood; and. may
be again, and, besides, ] trust qoal,
g. And he took the little hand and
issed it reverentlYr Then, throwing him
Self back on the gas, leaning on his elbow
becoming assztsde for HANDSOME
han he began
1t is MT so much of a story, after all
dear, and it all hinges on just the being
able to tell if single letter were an III or
K. The one romance of my whole life
was in it, though and since it failed, why,
all the real brightness of my youth has
gone forever. Strange God should let
such trifes, such Insignificant mistakes.
have power sometimes to wreck a whole
life Just after you went abroad, you
know, went to California on some pro-
fessional business. The first day out, as
was standing on the deck, smoking, put
my hand into my pocket for my cigar-case,
and pulled out instead a small parcel,
which, on opening, l found to be a morocco
miniature-case. This is queer / said to
myself, but interesting! Then I re-
membered that the night before. when l
was busy packing-my room at the same
time half full of fellows who had come in
tosay good-by-that servant had brought
me this package, just left at the door for
me, he said. Thinking it was the new
cigar-case | had ordered, l thought no
more about it just then, but tucked it into
my pocket, and had forgotten all about it
till now. l opened eagerly the case, and
there was photograph, vignette, of such
lovely woman j certainly never saw a
more charming picture; and you will ad-
NIT that, in my long apprenticeship to the
sex, have grown critical, and am by no
-means easily pleased.
The shoulders were turned away CO.
quetishly, as if to hide their lovely out
lines, but the face looked back on me with
an air of archness that was captivating
The mouth was delicate, but full of char
acter; the eyes, which met mine with the
glimmer of far-off smile in them, were
large and very dark, contrasting strongly
in color with the hair, which was light,
and thrown off carelessly, in little waves,
from wide, low forehead, like a statues.
The whole face was that of a young, beau
tiful, spirited girl, already dangerous in
her consciousness of womanly power
'Ah, john whispers the aunt, coaz-
ingly your description fascinates me.
Will you not show me the picture some
day?'
No. answers the young man, with
heavy sigh /; because [ gave it back to
her long ago. Well, you can fancy My
amazement at thus coming into possession
of such picture, the original of which l
had never seen in my life. As there was
no note with it, L turned with keen curios-
ity to the wrapper, which 1 had hastily
torn off without looking at. Alas one
half only was lying at my feet; the other
. had blown into the water, where l could
lust discern it now, little brown speck,
r which 1 would have given almost any
ing. For on the half held was written,
stylish. feminine hand, Mr.. John Ii :
here the wrapper was torn across most
okingly; for, looking at it narrowly
the lower part of the II was torn,
ID almost as though it might be
er all. How / pored over that
5ed capital If it were an III, in
the mystery-making it all the
Rrming-it belonged to me; if it
then some -unlucky. being had,
kunder of somebody. lost pic
be.worth- the, world to him.
ted that it must be an Ii !;
presentiment that some TO-
= connected with it, took
it, wearing it always
--sepding many
norma in studying
my months among
Id not a,sfhgle friend /;
almost .teart-sick with
rdened, coarse, even bru-
e poor women one.fnds
blessed relief to take
which carried me straight
ton and home. with its soft,
les, and its sweet, pure eyes
ay, bya strange chance-Proy-
5ught to say-it gained for me a
,, since it saved my life. was
hpe, one dark night, through a
Is, when the well-aimed ball of
desperate struck directly ON
at the case of the little pic
Is there, broke its force. and
NE photograph itself was not
1T either, though the case
blit to pieces. After that the feeling
b.d for it amounted almost to super
- = o. Iifornia a wear. then