St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1871-06-16

went-to the Hall.
"Isn't Jennie coming to have te
with us ," Mrs. Stent asked, as her u
after rejecting his dinner altogether, an
wandering away over the common tu
hours, came home and began To unlac
his shoes
''Shc'll never come again, r.other
It's all over bciwiXt u and Eve head
ache-Tll 90 TO bed"
The mothers first impulse was joy
tul one. Will had been her all till tn
pretty face Of this girl bcguiIed him
Winter and summer they had dwell con
tcntcdly together in the cottage her deat
husbands industry had made their own
and the thought of an intcrluper la,
been Il g;Illin" one. To have 10 max,
way for gay ilrty girl, who didn't know
what hard work was to feel that sh,
had no longer the right to lay out WIZ
money-to plan for him, or even to la
Dor ior him-had filled her Jealous hear
with dismay.
She forgot what viii might be suffer.
Ing while she rcjoiced, and when, with {
pang, she remembered this, and turtively
investigated his face, she learned but lit.
tie. Will made no parade Of his grief
He was trihe quietcr, perhaps ant
with a deSolate look about his eyes when
lie lifted them sometimes from the book
and papers he brought home from the
town. and poured over from the time he
left his work until their early hour foI
retiring.
Mrs. Stcnt moved about her work
more briskly with each succeeding day,
and took renewed pride i'll the pretty cot
tagc; but the pleasure was checked when
Tom, the young groom from the Hall,
burst in upon her, one afternoon, with 4
face OF Concern.
''Prctty mischief Eve done, and never
knew it till | worried the truth out of
poor Jennie, AN hour ago Its all Il
silly mistake, aud my foolish chaltcring
that's come between her and your Will.
got the brooch, sure enough, but She
gave me the money, and asked me to yet
it for her. A. to swccthr:trting, She.
much too good a girl to listen 10 any OF
my non>cmoc. lou'll tell VIII all about
it, and please give him this note from
Jennie I'd stay and see him, but I'm
to 90 10 Scotland with Mr.. John, and
we're Oft in an hour or two. You'll
make him understand that twas my
fault, won't you -
Mrs. Stcut watched him from lh' door
as he bounded away, satisfied that all
would be we'll between the lovers: and
her face grew harder and colder with
every passing minute.
Only that morning VIII had Zone oil
to h;s work viii! IA Ii ,hi"I step. AMI his
head as erect rs OF yorc. There wasn't
II doubt but that hc had conquered any
little soreness hc had felt respecting .Jen-
ME; was it worth while t. bring back
the old remembrance, AMI induce him To
risk his Happiness again
The wind blew cold across the wide,
trcclcSs common, and with shivcr the
old woman went back to her fire, still
visiting Jcnnic's note over and over be-
tween her FINGERS. 1t huttcrcd from
tIlCIll, anu itll ol tllc llC'll II ClOSt ~ Il
lighted brand that bean to scorch the
paper.
She stopped TO save it, then paused ir-
resolutely-pauscd till the letter that
cost Jennie 50 many tears and pains to
write was smouldcrng away; and with
a guilty sense of her wrong doing, Mrs.
Stcnt went and busted herself in another
part OF TIE cottage, till nothing remained
but 4 few ashes.
Will was more tender To her than usu-
al that evening; more tolerant OF her
pccvi,h speeches; more anxious To please
her. lie altered the hasp of the lattice,
so that it should not wake her from sleep
by lis ratlling, and nailed some drug.ct
around the door, saying, rs he did 50,
Il must make all comfortable against the
cold weather comes; shouldn't like to
think of you-ihc only friend have in
the Notwithstanding or suffering with
the rheumatism through my NEGLECT"
As she listened, his mother no LONGER
regretted that the letter was destroyed
If he should ever discover what she had
done, he would acknowledge that she
had acted wisely, in not disturbing the
content that had fallen upon them.
A day or two afterwards Mrs. Stent
had occasion 10 90 TO Carndell. With
her customary forcthougllt, she timed her
journey So rs to be home before Will.
For wonder, however, he was home
before her He had taken the key from
its hiding place over the porch, lit the
fire, and gone into his own room, where
the noises he was making induced his
mother to follow. Beside box, in
which lie had packed his small ward
robe, knet the young man; and on the
card he was mailing upon it, the half
stupefied mother read, Passengers by
the CailjQpe to Portland, for Nebraska. ~
"Dont look SO scared, mother" he
said, rs he led her back TO an armchair
beside the hearth. 'I'd have told you
before, bat | was nfcard you'd take it to
heart"
"Say it's not true !" she moaned.
'.But that would be no good, when
my passage moneys paid, and I'm oil 10
Liverpool with half a-dozen more, first
thing in the morning." answered Will.
"Don't fret, | shall make n man of my
self over there, and send for you to keep
house for me-
"You were doing well enough here, -
Mrs. Stent expostulated. "I'hc house
and the gardens your own, and your
wages is good Why should you g
elsewhere !''
Will averted his head, as he replied,
in choked tones, 'Don't say no more,
mother. can't stay hcre. When los
Jennie, | lost all. You don't know
what I've felt since we parted"