Holmes County Republican. [volume] (Millersburg, Holmes Co., O. [Ohio]) 1870-1895, 1871-11-09
ONLY A YEAR.
BY MISS A. H. M. BREWSTER.

r" Only a year since we married
l do not believe Belle cares q whit
for me. wonder how she would
take the news if she were to hear /
was dead? In this same internally
cool way of hers, 1 suppose, which
is enough to drive a man mad"
Fred. Field muttered this, as he
walked sullenly down the path lead
ing to his stables one fine July
morning.
"Jim, is my buggy ready? Why
did you put that mare imp
." The Judge is SO skittish, sir:
them there crackers a flynn about
the streets and all the Fourth do
ings don't help him no how, SO i
thought Fd- s
:" Take the mare out! wish to
drive Judge, and bring him to the
library gallery when you have him
ready"
No one in Fred. Fields establish
ment. disputed with him, especially
when he spoke in that low, decided
tone, not even his old and indulgent
servant, Jim. AS Fred. reentered
the house, his wife, a fair, graceful
woman, met him, and said, in a smi-
ling, half-playful tone of command,
that any one but an angry husband
would have known was meant to hide
deeper feelings, which she was as
much too shy as teopproud to dis
play. 3 e. ..4t.- -- z
"Fred. l see your buggy coming
up. You may drive me over to the
Hill. 1 must be there at 10 O. clock,
to meet the ladies' dinner com
mittee." a.. .=r.. -a
"Then order the carriage, if you
cannot walk. l have no time to take
you" -,et,.53i...a
There was a strange expression
on the young wife's face when her
husband went into the library and
slammed the door after him. She
neither wept nor stormed; aservant
passing on the staircase, and receiv-
ing an order, did not notice any
thing amiss in the young mistress
of the house; but common shrek
ing and tears could not have ex-
pressed that anguish-it was an
guish not anger-so there was no
outward sign, for Belle felt as if the
hope of life had left her. gs T 70 1
The trouble was a'trifle in the be-
ginning, but ithad gone on growing;
the young wife had been provoking
and little wilful; the husband
quick to take offence and unfor-
giving; thus, matters were placed in |
a wofully tangled state. There
seemed no path out Of the trouble,
too. Belle was willing, even anxious,
to advance the whole way in the
work of reparation, and had done
so in her own manner, but that man
ner was not pleasing to Fred. and
only made matters worse.
+ Two obstacles stood in the road |
to reconciliation. Fred. was not
disposed to look over the late diff |
ficulties silently; then, worse than
all, he did not understand the calm,
reticent nature of his wife. He
had been prepared to show a manly |
magnanimity over little scene of
tears and reproaches; but Belle |
never made a scene about anything,
and Fred. mistook her cheerful 81
lence and assumed ignorance of the |
late disagreements, for scornful in
difference, a careless disregard of
his feelings, and false independence,
which he resolved to nip in the bud
thus they groped along, going far
ther and farther from each other, in |
the gloom of misunderstanding.
Belle went up to her bedroom,
where she attended to some house
hold matters, mechanically; gave
various orders to the servants, and |
then prepared for her walk. She
looked very pretty as she stood be- |
fore the glass, arranging the light
brown wayy rolls OF hair, and pull
ing over the low but broad brow a |
modest ssunrise" hat, whose soft
white feather suited well the fresh |
beauty of its wearer. aoL .n ao..e,r
n "Only year married." she kept
thinking, "and this is the end of it,
How am / to bear it?' f,# |
"Mrs. Maull and Mrs. Foster is
in the parlor, ma'am," a servant re-
ported. ''1'
"sCousin Fred. told us you inten-
ded walking overhto the Hall this
morning, SO Jane and thought we
would call for you," was Bessie
Maulfs greeting.
"Thank you; l am glad to have
company"
} Erred. had his wagon full of
girls" said Bessie, rs the three were
on their way, "and Jane Foster told
him it seemed as if the old days had
come back when he was a gay, flirt-
ing bachelor among us" ......