The St. Cloud journal. [volume] (St. Cloud, Minn.) 1866-1876, 1872-04-18
PART 1I.-NOON:
CHAPTER x.

CHAPTER x.
WHAT THE AUTHOR SAYS.
All the next day Lenore lies IN led
weak and white-it does not take much
to pull her down-and, Tor the most
part, silent. She asks tor no one ex-
presses neither regrets nor se}f-congrat-
ulations on the subject of her deferred
! wed6lng-lies with her face, gentle
and innocent as any sanity martyrs
| what tslsehoods faces do tell !-on the
pillow; crowned by bright, brown
| glory of hair-an aureole given her by
Nature, not martyrdom. She is not i'll,
! neither we'll very still, and only turn
ing restivo under doses Of branded
/ beeftea, repeated ad nauseum. There
are few of the minor diseases that are
worse than beef-tea and brandy. The
| following day passes in much the same
! way; but on the third morning, Jemi-
ma enters cheerfully:
"Riley says you may get up"
The commu nication does not seem to
afford much satisfaction to the person
| to whom it is addressed. She turns
her face away with pettish jerk, and
hides it in the pillow.
"He says you may dress and come
! down as soon as you like"
Gas soon as 1 like p repeats Le-
! more, ironically "that would be long
time of. Why may I not stay lere ?"
-(stretchiDg out her arms lazily.) 81
I'm happy. 1 like to lie here all day
| long the noises Of the house seem so
| lar of, and your footsteps outside so
gently. I like TO listen to the clocks,
| one after another, and count them as
they strike. I feel noihing-I think of
nothing. I have not been so happy for
| years."
"He says that staying in bed is very
weakening"
"Thep / like being weakened"
| "Nonsense !! Please talk like ration.
al being"
! Never was toilet more slowly made
I|.a's L"nore's-partly from weakness
|-tor her illness, though brief, has
told upon htr; partly from a deep and
innate unwillingness to return to the
we'll and work a.day world. At length
there is no evading the fact that she is
fully dressed rot only fully dressed,
but established in an arm chair before
Sylvia's boudoir fire: a banner screen
between her face and the fame; nov.
els, workboxes, point lace, pug-ev
rything that is necessary to make a ra'
tional woman's happiness-within easy
reach Of her hands. There is one 9th
er addition, without which, many ra'
tioual women think happiness iucom
plete-a lover; and even he is not fa'
off.
| AS mans heavy step sounds muf
fed along the carpeted passage, as q
mans fingers close on the door handle
Lenore turns her head resolutely tt
the ether side-like child averting it
face from the inevitable rhubarb ape
maguesia-and rests her cheek on th'
back of her chair.
He enters softly, and afraid Of eve,
breathing over-noisily, imagining she i
asleep, stoops his waved gold head owe
her. He is soon undeceived.
/ III wish," she says in most wide
awake voice, opening her bcautiiu
petulent eyes full upon him, "that 20,
would not come creeping in, in tha
crcakily, tip.too way; nothing in tn
world 6dgets me so much.'
Hc starts upright again in hurry
"It was stupid trick" he says
humbly, and then stops suddenly
afraid Of rousing live]ier wrath by fur
ther speech. As for her, she rolls be
pretty, pettish head from side to side
aad Affects not to see HIM. He grow!
tired, at last of standing with his bacl
to the mantle-s helf, silent, and says
with eager tenderness, but in a rather
frightened voice:
"You are better?'
eyes, I am BETTER" she answers
quickly; Cat least, so they say; but
am still far from well-vcry far f.; it vii
be long euough before I am strons
again, aad---and-and up to an,
thing"
"Riley says that there is nothing
Iike-like change Of air." (reddenine
guiltily.)
"R:ley is au old woman y (rcdden
ing too)
"Lenore !" throwing himself dow
on his knees, on the rug beside hcr
and, in SO doing, giving an uuconsciou
buffet to the pug's black face, VIII
f,rthwith departs bowling, uuheedcd
and with bis tail uncurled. "Lenors
why need We have halt tho county