Urbana union. [volume] (Urbana, Ohio) 1862-1872, 1870-10-26

| perhaps
| 1t was not the customary thing, you
see, for beautiful young ladies to be
wandering on foot in 4 country place,
and fainting away in a strange house,
without any pTOvOcatiOn. Ny mother
had elevated ideas about female dignity
and pTOpriety; and although she had
the kindest heart in the world, knew
! this young person would be compelled
/ to explain herself satisfactorily before
I she could have favor in Mrs. Pages
eyes. l was thrilled through, for my
self, with the kecneSt interest and SYM
pathy; the lovely, wistful face with its
( sad eyes and tTemUlOus mouth, had ta-
/ ken my heart by storm; I felt with in
stinctive certainty that she was good
and pure as she WAS beautiful, and re-
/ Sented almost Indignantly the implied
doubt in my mothers manner.
| Not to make long story of il, may
as well say that my childish instincts in
I the matter were perfectly justified by
/ Miss COX's explanation, and the after
/ events that fully correlated it. Her
! stOry-tOld at length in the lingering
| twilight of that soft autumn day, with
q hundred interTupting questions and
comments from her listeners-I will
cOndenso here into the simple facts of
| the case.
The first of these was, that she was
| truant from home; the next, that her
real name was Esther Lincoln, though
! she was calling herself Miss Cox for
| purposes of disguise; the third, that Mrs.
| Winter former owner and occupant OF
our house, was an old friend of her
mother's-nOt of late years in frequent
communication with the family-and
for that reason chosen as the safest per-
son to keep the secret of Esther's flight,
that reason explaining also Esthel's ig-
nOrance of her change of residence.
AS to the cause Of her flight, it was
mixed-up matter of love and money
Esther was an orphan, dependent upon
stepfatheT, who had squandered her
mothers fortune. The stepfathGr Mr..
Morrison, had boon cOmpaniOn-three
times Esthers age, but rolling in riches
who wished to marry the young girl,
and had promised las she accidentally
discOvered) a considerable sum of mOn-
ey to Mr.. Morrison, if he would persuade
or compel her to accept his proposals.
She had refused them decidedly from
the beginning; and when she discovered
the bargain that was made for her pur-
chase, she reiterated her refusal with in
dignant contempt, very plainly express
Glla EDLG uIu llOt CLlOOSC " 6Cll lEI NOuLu
and beauty for old Doctor Hardy's gold,
even if she had been free to do so; and
she had another lover besides-a hand
some young fellow, who was digging his
gold for her sake in CalifOrnia-tO whom,
like Annie Laura, she had given her
promise true,' and meant to keep il, i'll
spite of all tile stepfathers in the world.
Mr.. Morrison, however, was a man of
determination, and he coveted DIR. Har-
dy's money. So poor EsthCr's life was
made intOlerable by the persecution to
which she was subjected; and, in fit of
desperation at last, she freed herself
from it by flight. She had very little
money, and but one friend Of whose
help She felt sure. That ono was Mrs.
Winter, and she had her made way with
infinite difficulty and fear to the house
where she had counted upon finding
refuge and protection, only to be met
with by SO cruel disappointment. 1t
was no wonder that her strength and
courage, so sOrely taxed, gave way sud-
denly.
We were the gamers, however, by
her misfortune, for il took my moth
er but little time to decide that Miss
Cox was worthy of love and confidence
and therefore was not to be lightly part
ed with. She had the prOfoundest SYM
pathy with all true lovers, and was full
of Indignation at Mr.. MOTTisOn's unman-
Iy persecution, the long details of which
completely Justified Esthers course in
her eyes. He had legal power as her
guardian by her mothers will to reclaim
her if lie could find her; but my mother
declared he never should. She had Il
horror of assumed names, and every
thing else not perfectly open and above
board; but she conquered her Tepug-
nance in this case, and lent herself
heartily to the furtherance Of Esthers
| disguise.
It was given out to friends and neigh
bOrs that Miss Cox was a young lady
/ from the North, highly recommended
as q teacher, and she had engaged her as
Emmy's gOYerness, an Office which
Miss Cox insisted upon accepting liter
ally, very much to Emmy's-tlat is to
say, NV OWn-satisfactiOn. For the
childish love WHICH had sprung up at
| first sight of the most beautiful face /
ever saw, deepened and grew, day by
day, as her sweet, bright nature unfold
ed itself before me.
She was a favOrite i'll the house direct
". The servants loved TO wait upon
her, and my mother made pet of her;
but to me she was being of another
order-the centre Of q world of romance
in which my childish Imagination Sc
cretly reVeled. Other peOple-eYen
my own mOthCr-were apt to consider
me as a brusque, self-willed, rather un-
promising sort of child. She openly en-
pressed her hope that Miss CON's gem
tleness and refinement would have a
refining effect upon me; and, after Miss
Cox had been with us some weeks, sat
isfied conviction that / was greatly i'm
proved. But she did not know that it
was all the influence of the mighty en-
chanter, Love. | wOrshiped my beauti-
ful gOVerness with
..The desire Of ne moth for the star,
The night for the morrow
and to please her, was motive enough
for any exeTtiQn, Children-girl-chil
drcn eSpeeially-aFc often capable of
these passionate, absorbing affections,
of which the elders around them are
wholly unconscious.
But Miss Cox was not unconscious;
she was yOnug enough h0rself to UNDER
stand me, and, moreover, her sympa-
thies were quiCkened by her own cor
responding feeling for her absent lover.
She read my own little foolish heart
like an open book, and then I'm return
rhe revealed hers to me, with all its
sweet, pure lOngings for the one who
was SO proudly enshrined init We had
such I8ll-s together Mrs. Pago would
hardly have approved OF Them, | am
afraid, considering my youth; but one
thing l know, it did me no harm, child
as was, to Learn the holy power Of a
pure, forvent, enduring love.
The time passed away, and Miss Cox
was unmolesI6II IA IA her retreat, For the
fisrt two weeks she lived in a state of
nervous apprehension, fearing that her
stepfather would discover aud reclaim
her. But as weeks and months slipped
by without disturbance, she grew happy
and assured. She had written TO her
betrothed-my mother directing the ell
velOpe, for fear of aCcidents-and cN-
planned her present way Of living. The
answer i'll return had been full Of pas-
sionate love and praise for her courage
and constancy, and fervent Gntreaties To
continue true to him till he returned.
He had had innumerable haTdships and
disappointments to contend with, he
said, but the tide Of fortune had turned
now; he was prOspering IN his work,
ami in q few months more he trusted to
bc able to come home and claim 'hi5
precious, noble little Esther
She showed us the letter, flushing all !
over with her sweet embarrassment, !
and glowing with proud delight, when
my mother said, 'Hc is worthy Of YOU,
Esther, and you Of him. Tell him he
need net fear. We will keep his little
wife safe till he comes.'
After this she rested in peace, almost
forgetting, as she declared, that any
snch men ms Mr.. Morrison and Doctor