The Jeffersonian. [volume] (Stroudsburg, Pa.) 1853-1911, 1872-12-05
A Singular Story.

y
1857 the twain, then living in village
of Ontario county, Michigan, were be-
tro,hed for what they hoped to fud an
early marriage, the young man being a
student of law while the lady shared
small hereditary estate with her widowed
mother and brother, a planter at the
South. What little money there was in
the case appertaiued to the coming bride.
who, with the generosity characteristic of
her emotion, counted pleasantly upon the
great benefit it should be to the struggling
novice at the bar while yet he awaited
his first client. The wedding day was
appointed, and the preliminary orange
ments we're nearly completed, when the
news came suddenly from the son and
brother of the Southern plantation that
he had disastrously failed in heavy cot
ton speculation, aud was not only reduced
to temporary bankruptcy. but also involv-
ed in debts for which his private honor
was specially pledged. He wrote to his
mother and sister in passionate distress of
mind praying them to help him if they
could. or he must be dishonored as we'll
as ruined, aud they, without thought of
the seishnesS of the demand hesitated
not to decide thai he should freely have
their all. The little home estate was sold,
aud the devoted women sent its whole
price to the bankrupt aad the sister,
after joining in this sacrifice, declared to
her lover that their engagement for mar
riage must not continue. She had con
sented to the latter in the belief that she
could encounter their proposed union with
some means of her own to aid in the first
struggling years, but now that their mar
riage must necessarily be into helpless
poverty on both sides, she would not al
low herself to become sheer burden to
one whom she loved. Very poor him.
self, as law student he certainly was,
and mad as it would have been to marry
under such circumstances, he protested
vehemently against the wiser judgment
and lesser sel6shess of the betrothed, aud
made elegant use Of every argument that
Youthful romance aud excited feeling
could inspire at such time. But the
girl was firm She insisted that no en-
gasemeut should exist between them
until time had brought brighter fortunes
10 Out VI DOkb lHC 1'ubS uIdu " do
compelled to yield. As they were unable
to help each other as they were then sit
uated, the disengaged lover presently
thought it his duty to accept an oppor
tnuity Of professional advancement offered
him in Philadelphia, aud accordingly
came eastward, after parting like that
of death. They were to correspond with
each other as the dearest of friends and
BY this means, while the lawyer was
slowly making place Tor himself in his
distant field of effort, he was able to learn
that the true hearted girl in the western
village was earning a livelihood for her
mother and self by music teaching. A
hope was maintained for sometime by the
| poor widow and her daughter that their
| son and brother in the South would yet
retrive his fortune and theirs but the
| unfortunate Speculation in cotton died be
fore he could take the first step toward
such consummation, and lie long poverty
was thenceforth to be the fact of the gentle
ones who had impoverished themselves
for him. Years are to the poor achieve
ment Of some common desires, and years
rolled away while the law student IN the
East and the music teacher in the West
were toilog to be rich enough to marry.
At last the mother died, and with the
departure of the bereaved daughter to a
leadership in a female seminary OF
Canada the letters to Philadelphia
abruptly ceased The girl despaired of
the future for herself aud her correspon
dence now. In her flial grief and long
encouragement she believed he would
never be rich enough TO marry poor
woman like herself, aud resolved that he
should be left entirely free thenceiortb
to seek fortune in marriage. The mood
was one not wholly unknown even to
unheroic natures, and she INDUCED IT
until he whom she thought TO benefit was
half mad with the conviction that she had
deliberately discarded his friendship as
we'll as his hand In vain he wrote to
her at her old home, for some explanation
of her silence. His letters were returned
unopened, with note from some old
friend that Miss had left Ontario im
mediatey after her mothers death, with
out giving her future address to any one
Then came for the young man a term OF
profound detection aud then herce
energy to hide and blunt his injury in
uncom promising battle for sordid prize.
Many grand worldly comes from the
desperation of despair, and the hero OF
the present story arose from his misery
to strike conquering blows for himself
Three months ago, as member or
highly prosperous legal firm of Philadei
phia, he had occasion TO advertise Tor
female copyists. After the demand had
been supplied there came an application
from somewhere in Canada. saying that
the writer had seen an advertisement IN
an American paper, and asking if the pa
pers to be copied would not be sent to the
applicant BY mail, and then returned by
her with her copy. She vas a teacher
a,,3 oo,ld not leave her place, but wished