Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1872-11-21
A MlDDLE-AGED LOVE STORY.

They had come, q little group of
friendly, faces to watch me off, with
waving handlSerchiels and kindly good
byes and stood on the stern nodding
and waving back, till the steamer swept
down the river out Of their sight. |
knew / should have their prayers that
the great sea might be gentle with me ;
| knew they would watch the weather
and look for a TELEGRAM Of the arrival Of
our ship; yet | knew | was taking
nothing from their lives, and that they
each would 90 home hardly missing
me; and ii was with no great wrench
of heart that | saw the pilot pu. off
from us, and took the last look at my
native shores
During most of the passage | was
just comfortably sea sick, 50 | sat all
the day long in reclining chair on
deck, watching the white caps on the
purple and green and blue waves that
mounted and fell, down and up, up and
down, away out to the far horizon. |
saw the shining natiluses float by, and
now and then a whale or shoal of
porpoises, or a sail speeding white and
full across the water | saw also a
good many other things nearer by, for
| didn't put my eyes in my pocket
along with with my short-Sighted glass
es, and nobody was much likely to
mind a middc-aged woman in hood
and waterproof.
The first thing | saw was young
girl with dark eyes and brown hair,
that rippled itselfin a tangle of rough
curls whenever she took off her net.
She was not so very pretty, nor so very
brilliant, but there was piquant charm
about her that attracted half the pas
sengers before the first day was over.
BY the end Of the second day, every
body, from the captain to the ships
surgeon, and from the surgeon to the
cabin-boy, was eager to show her at
tention, and everybody was met by
the same genial smile and lively re-
tort.
She won her way at once into my
heart by the kindly thought that led
her to bring little relishes from the ia
BILE to tempt my sckly appetite, and to
soothe my forehead with bay water and
gentle touches Of her shapely, brown
hands, where a great cmeral glistened,
encircled by diamonds. Very soon
she got into the habit of drawing her
rug beside my chair, and sitting on the
deck leaning against me so that | might
"pet her." as she said.
This was how it happened that my
quiet, out-of-the-way corner came to be
the center of the life and gaiety and
romance Of the whole shipboard. 1t
seemed this young girl, Rosa Armour,
was an only child, and an orphan, 90
ing to an uncle in Germany, her near
est of kin.
'Dear heart hope her uncle will
be wise as well as loving" said / to
myself very often, for she seemed too
fragile bubble Of humanity to drift
on through life alone.
The tips Of her brown curls were
lighter than the rest, and here and
there were little bright touches all over
her hair, as though the sun was shining
in spots on it. One morning | sat coil
ing these beams of sunshine around
my fingers and watching flock of
Mother Cary's chickens skim restessly
over the restless water, thinking these
thoughts about Rosa, and having her
soft presence alone to myself for a
few moments. Not many, however:
soon up came a New Zealander-of
course there was New Zealander OF
an Australian on our boat.
"You are very lowly, Miss Armour"
said he; ''let me bring you chair
"Thank you; prefer to sit here on
my rug, and have Miss Wells pet me-