The Albany register. [volume] (Albany, Or.) 1868-18??, 1871-06-24

Then he carefully. though with trcm.
bling fingers, separated the pure white,
petals Of the laurel bios
SONS, deposited the folded paper within,
closed over it the petals, and placed it in I.
Mary's hand. -ss.s..
'sLook within," he said, cit bears q
secret at it's heart"
Whom Mary reached the old farmhouse
close by, at which tho picnic supper and
dancing were to be held, she went MP
directly into a little dressing-room. She I
was excited, angry.
"To neglect me so, she said to herself
"To become jealous and doubt me as he |
has done ever since Mr.. Weston has |
thought proper to pay me some attention. |
What could do but pretend not TO care |
And the impudence of this insult Look
,oithtn. II bears a secret Of ITS heart P''
She threw the laurel blossom from her |
and burst into tears. These apparently
calmed her.
ssYet he loves me after all. It will, it
must come right in the end. will let
him see this evening that don't care
for Mr.. Weston"
"I wish I had not broken the flower,
SO that he might have seen me wear it
this evening But I will tell him, and
sometime when we are happier will
show him how carefully kept il"
/ Hugh Shirly was standing at the door
of the danciug-room as she entered. She
wore in her hair the cluster of wild roses
that had been given her by Mr.. Weston
but there was no laurel there. As she
passed him their eyes for an instant met.
He was pale, and his face wore still
stern expression such as she had never
before seen there. Conscious of her own
changed feelings towards him in the past
hour, and unwilling that he should read
tit in her face, she turned away her head
as she passed. And when she again
glanced in that direction, he was gone.
4 On the following day she learned that
/ Mr.. Shirley had left Riyerside-had
started for California-and this without
a word, message, token of farewell to
herself
So years passed by-two, Eve, ten
years. Mary Morrison was a tall, ele-
giant, digni6ed woman of twenty seven
, verging upon old maidenhood the young
girls said, though the older people insist
ed that she was .shandsomer than ever"
and they were right.
In this time Hugh Shirley had often
been heard from. He was prosperiug
becoming wealthy and infiuentiai-but
was still unmarried. And when ten
years had passed since he had left River
side, he wrote to his friends there that
business would soon require, his presence
in New York, and that he would visit
them before returning to California.
Mary Morrison knew when he came,
and it was noticed that she stayed away
from church the next Sunday. Yet,
avoid him as she would, they could not
help meeting. Very quiet was the inter
view-very cold even those present
thought it. a few polite inquiries, q
few commonplace remarks, aud perfect
| ly composed demeanor on both sides
this was ALL It was plain to be seen that
each was perfectly Indifferent to the
other.
Several times again they met, with
even less interchange of remark than on
the first interview Some people thought
that there must even exist feeling of
dislike between them.
One evening when it would have been
twilight but for the full moon, Mary
Morrison stood resting upon the little
gate of her front garden, enjoying the
beauty of the hour, and the sweet breath
of the flowers around her.
T Suddenly, as she leaned pensively on
the gate the sound of an approaching
step caused her to start The thick
laurel hedge concealed the person, but
she knew by some rare instinct that the
J step was that of Hugh Shirley; and the
next moment he stood before her.
:, On seeing her lifted his hat and seem
. ed inclined to pass on, as Mary hoped he
would but this under the circumstances
: would have seemed almost rude-so he
, hesitated, and finally stopped, with COM
monplace remark upon the beauty of the
evening. He looked very handsome as
he stood there--a tall, dark man, bearded
and noustached, with his broad brow
barred TO the evening breeze. So Mary
thought. What other thoughts she had
or what were his thoughts Of her we can
not tell, but after a while almost silence
fell upon the two, though Hugh still
fingered.
He made an effort to break the con>
, straint.
Fl ssThe laurel is still your favorite per-
j ceive," he observed, glancing at the
shrubs whose glossy green leaves and
D pure white blossoms cleaned brightly in
0 the moonlight.
. Eyes, she answered, simply and cold
! ly. For this allusion brought back the
j recollection of that evening, ten years
: ago, when she had last seen him and Of
! the gift of a laurel blossom; the cold
cruel parting.
"And 1, he answered, .sof all the
flowers and trees on earth most dislike
. the laurel"
II She made no answer, but lifted her
eyes as If expecting him 70 give reason,
Because" be continued, in lower
voice, because cannot forget how the
| fortune Of my whole life depended upon
laurel blossom-and how / lost it.
/ There was just the faintest tinge of
bitterness in his tone; yet he looked
; down with calm cold eyes into her own
. as he spoke.
HHow was Il p, she asLad