The Lincoln County herald., 1872-03-14

through the crustcd snow with a sharp
cracking noise. Ashbury's feature looked
stifFened uuder his fur cap, and Lilly kept
her little nose buried in her muff half
the time.
"Nothing to what it was last night"
said Ashbuiy; and again Lilly thought
Of that girl.
1t was not, on the whole very pleas
ant Irritation between herself aud Ash.
bury, and on the way he told her some
thing that he should have told her before
lie was engaged to be married. A lady
who lived at the South was his fancce.
You'll like her so much, said Ash.
bury.
Lilly was not So sure of that. She
had liked Ashbury himself to well. 1t is
old.fashioned and ridiculous now o days
to be in love. Girls uon't think of such
folly. They have neither sentiment nor
passion tor any Que. But Lilly meant
to say Yes, if Ashbury asked her to
marry him. So, you see, there was q
little piquc to get over And when one
had squeezed your hand, and all that sort
of thing, you know, why, he has had the
best of it.
Lilly was glad when the sleigh stopped
at their friends mansion and the other
sleighcrs, who were all there before them,
ran out to greet them. The lunch table
was DELIGHTFULLY."- spread; the house was
warm. Several Of Lilly's special ad-
mirers were there. She turned the cold
shoulder upon Ashbury and firied with
one of these; and she reilly began to en-.
joy herself after awhile, She sat at the
fireside well satisfied with dainties. Some
one was paying delightfully."-, and she
loved music and Tom Scott was really
making love to her, no doubt Of that.
lie told her that she grew pretticr every
day; he could hold her little gloves, just
to touch something she had touched, etc
II was partly love and partly wine, but it
was very pleasant indeed, for all that,
and Lilly had quite fotgo:ten the girl in
the thin shawl, when suddenly the door
burst open, aud one of the sons of the
house, tall stripping of sixteen, stood in
their midst, with horror depicted on his
countenance.
"Oh, I beg your pardon, all of you T.
he calculated "but couldn't do any
thing else. There may te life IN her
I've told them to brina her here. They're
coming. It's a woman frozen to death,
believe. Frank, tie stab eman, found
her on our very grounds, mother And
DR.. Holden is here, and l thought
Here they are y
And without further preface, two men
tramped across the threshold with thci,
burden.
Lilly had shrunk into a corner, pale
and trembling, and clnging to Tom
Scott's arm, but she could not help press
ing forward to look at what they laiC
upon the crimson sofa.
A girl with white frozen face anc
frozen hair The thin shawl did no
hutter, it was stiff with ice the wretchec
shoes were blocks of ice themselves they
had tramped through so much snow thu
eyes, wide open, had no expression il
them now, and the hands were frozen OF
the frozen breast. But this was the face
that had been in LiIly's mind. Thes'
were the wretched rags that had futterec
in the breeze these were the hands tina
had caught at her dress those were tn,
eyes that all her life she should never
forget again.
20 my God, have mercy |" prayct
Lilly to herself. "It seems as though
have killed her"
She was quite dead. No effort could
restore her. And in her pocket they
found little note written on scrap OF
paper, and pinned there to keep it safe.
These were the words written on it,
"If any good Christian finds me on th'
road, | beg them to write to my brother
Jim, and tell him ! died trying to get t.
him.
perhaps can do it. They say If
walk on up along the river, III come
there after awhile. I've begged anC
begged, but they won't give me any
money, They don't think a good sir
would beg along the streets but tell Jiu
| was good, and mother was dead, and i
| hadn't been good needn't have begged
God kept me from worse It's cole
along the river, and my clothes are thin
And I'm hungry. l think | shau't b.
able to do it.
"God save my soul, and God bless
Jim It's Jim Hunter, at, with Simtl
the carpenter. Tell him it was sIste
Annie"
And that was all. Somebody wrote t.
Jim. Somebody buried Annie.
For a good while Lilly felt like
murderess. But Tom Scott when h
gets her-as he will--will have II bette
wife for this hard lesson. The poor viii
have friend in Lilly all her life, and n
one will ever leave her door unaidel.- =
New York Ledger.
Here is another Irish story: Bridge
came up to her mistress, and asked for
nna1l la md throol an, ynn - Il q,