The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1870-11-25
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ONE EVENING.

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/ ing them upon the closet shelf to h
entire satisfaction, closed the door upo
them with an air of relief. Then ST
Strengthened the crumb-cIoth spread I'll
crimson table-cover, placed the lam
upon it ready for lighting, and laid h,
fathers daily paper beside it. Th
done, she went to the door and locke
out.
1t had been sultry summer day
! The heated air in the meadow ha
seemed to vibrate visibly; and the COW
had stood all day knee-deep in the wa
ter, lazily brushing away the flies, an
browsing the thick herbage upon tn
bank, and the tender shoots of tn
overhanging willows. Faith was tiret
The children had been troublesome
and her young step-mOther-hersel
only ten years older than this girl {
eighteen Of whom 1 am writing-ha
had headache. To tell the truth, sh
always had one-Or some other ache
whenever it was hot, or the childrel
were cross, or any unpleasant domesti
exigencies arose. Miss Ophelia Nigh
have pronounced her shiftless.n Sh
declared herself a martyr to feeble
ness and to her nerves. ---a
I But now the sun was lying low in tn
west; bright breeze was dimplin;
the river, and the tree-tops nodded an,
beckoned invitingly. Tom and Jane
would not to want to go bed for al
hour, and Faith caught her little whit
sun-bonnet from the peg behind tn
door. She wanted to be alone fo
awhile, to be free, to think her owl
thoughts, and to open her heart to th'
sweet ministries of nature. She needed
rest and medicine such as she coult
find nowhere else. No am not speak
ing at random. Imean just what say
such as she could find nowhere else
God reaches young girls heart NOR,
nearly through His woods, His flowers
His dews, His stars, His sacred soil
tudes, His holy calms, than through
the lore of books, or even the revela
tions of His Word. These thing.
touch it as with a human tenderness
and the closed doors fly open at theil
approach.
She had just got to the gate.
"Faith Faith! Tom says he want.
to 60 to bed," called Mrs. Harris
"Come and get him. He is driving
me crazy"
Faith went back tO the house, and
hung up her bonnet again, casting one
lingering glance at the cool, leafy re.
cess beyond the river.
"You will mot so to sleep J ct, Tom, u
she said. at is whole hour before
your bedtime. Where's Janet ?"
But Miss Janet was not ready to g
to bed. She was slowly shaking the
sawdust out of her dolly, sitting with
her face to the wall in q dark corner.
"Oh! leave Janet for the present. u
said Mrs. Harris. "She'squiet enough
and I'll send her up by-and-by. II
Tom doesn't want to 60 to sleep lust
yet, you can tell him Stories"
Tell him stories? Faith knew just
what tfRt meant. She repeated "Mo-
ther Goose" and the "House that Jack
Built" and London Bridge" and
"Who Killed Cock Robin ?" until her
head swan. Then she began with
"Noah's Ark" and went straight
through to Malachi" But all to no
purpose. The great brown eyes still
looked at her unwearingly from over
the low foot board, and the persistent
little voice still pounced upon every
omission, and demanded the correction
ofevery blunder."
"Ah, Tom!" she cried at last; .'I
knew you were not sleepy-and / am
so tired Do he good boy now, and
let me 60 down stairs. You can go to
sleep without me if you have a mind" {"
No, amt a-gOing to sleep for ever
so long" said Master Tommy, kicking
his feet against the wall. Not for
six or fourteen hours; and there's lots
and lots of stories you've got to tell
me! If you don't, 1 shall holler and
holler and that imakes mammals head
ache" Faith resigned herself to her
fate, and began to improvise a fairy
tale. That was at least better than
ringing the changes any longer upon
+" As was Going to Sell my Eggs" or
little Jack Horner." But just then
a lady and gentleman upon horseback
swept by, the latter raising his eyes to
the window as he passed, and then,
lifting his hat with smile, bowling
until his dark hair nearly touched his
horses chestnut name.
The color flashed to Faiths face, for
an instant she drew back and hid her.
self in the shadow of the curtain. Then
as the riders swept round the corner,
and commenced !. more leisurely as
cent of the hill, she leaned forward and
watched then,-with look of pain and
longing
"What you stopping for, Faith ~
came voice from the bed. "Why
don't you tell me what became of the
princess "' Did she ever find"
mo-" cried Faith, suddenly, "sbe
never found what she was looking for,
never never! Oh, Tom, Tom! do let
me be! / can't tell you any more sto-
ries tonight"
But you must, you see; because il
you don't | shall cry and scream and
get sick and then"
Faith rose i'm her desperation and
went up to the bed.
"trom Harris, you will do no such
thing; andI shall not tell you another
story this night. D0you just turn over
and go to sleep, or l shall go straight
down stairs.n
Astonished out of his wits, for Faith
had never so dealt with him before,
Tom turned quietly to the wall and
said never a word. Faith went back to
the window.
They We're still going slowly up the
hill-slowly, like those to whom the
present moment Is golden, and who
would prolong its sheen. The lady
was young, only a year or two older
than Faith, probably, and very beauti-
full; so beautiful that the child who sat
covering there behind the window-cur-
tain gazed at her with a strange sink
ing OF heart; for the gentleman who
rode by her side was-Kenneth Mars
ton.
As they reached the brow of the hill
they reined in their steeds, and Faith
knew by the wave of Kenneth's hand
that he was pointing out to his com
panion all that was worth seeing in
the valley below-the wide sweep ol
the hills, the uplifting of the mountain
peaks, the glories of earth and air and
sky. She knew just how his eye di-
lated, how his form seemed to expand
how his voice grew deeper and tender.
er. There was the sting of it.
But how could he help it: How
could Faith help it that this beautiful
cultured, graceful woman had dropped
down, out of the clouds, as it were, ant
for three or four weeks had sat beside
him at the board, walked with him in
the dim old woods, read with him out
of the self-same book, rode with hin
over the hills and through the valleys
and knelt by his side i'm the same pew
on Sunday? No one was TO blame
but that did not make it any easier.
Faith looked at her as she sat ther,
ON her white horse, outlined agaiDs
the sky, with her dark blue drapery
Nling in graceful folds. She was no
80 az on hut that it was easy to sc,
now Nher Wv hair, so wondrous fair
Wus WIN lne suusNS rlou-inu. and hnu