The St. Cloud journal. [volume] (St. Cloud, Minn.) 1866-1876, 1872-08-29

lustsoss, but without the faintest touch
Of fear or distrust. H..
He did not come the next day. nor
tho next to that. But Why drsg out
such . story !! he did not come at all.
Wesk'-months passed. Through all
the g'arlog summer, r.ssers-by never
missed the slight Uniformed figure
crouched in the windov.ssat behind
tho faded green rep curtain, or stand.
Jog at the little gate With its blistered
paint, one thin hand shading the
round, soft eyss that stared ye.roiogIy
down tho dull road, and blinked back
the sad tears that would rise some.
times, or pressed against two simple
lips ever in = piteous quiver of expecta-
ton. People leaned to notice her,
notice the tWo muslin frocks she
wore,-blue and lilac "week and week
about" growing more limp and faded
each time /; tho heavy hair she soon
ceased to dress with care aud pleasure,
the plain face that was plain again now,
and had startled, feverish vildness
in the great, wlstful eyes. She did
not care i. it was fine or dull, whether
the sun scorched or tho rain chilled
her if tho maid brought her a
cloak, she would huddle 1t round her
abstraetedly, or perhaps let it fall
1t did not much matter,-nothiug
mattered now, she repeated with
dull iteratian, not until he came.
1 cannot tell her feelings -; I can
only say she loved him better than
ever, ii she believed 10 him 80 utterly
no more. She might have thought
him III or dead ; only ono of the trade.
men, who sometimes went to the
town where his regiment was
quartered, had seen him 1T inter.
vals apparently quite we'll and cheerful.
She thought hs must have some good
reason for keeping away as he did ;
perhaps he wanted to see if she really
loved him.
She patiently waited; and waited be.
cause she could do nothing else,-she
knew none Of bis friends, and she dar.
ed not to fad out indirectly about him
Still less, at 6rs., did she dare te
write to him ; she had heard him con.
demn so severely lady who had taken
some such step; but as his maxims Of
propriety faded, as the yearning tc
see him wideoed and deepened 10
the woman's heart, her fears forsook
her. -Four months after the July dawn
that saw their parting she wrote
him . letter, which abrupt and i'll
dictated IS it was, had the psthos of a
hundred impsssioned appeals in its
helpless pleadinga. Twenty times il
was written out in Jinny's best
hand, and torn up: completed
it was, after all, a brief and simple
epistle -
MY DTAREsT CAPTAIN F1TzpAT.
R1cK,-Please will you tell me if have
done anything to vex you, for l am &C
very unhappy because you do not
come. I know the young ladies' you
know do not write to gentlemen ; but
| have only you, and cannot help writ
| log ; snd l will never do it again
Indeed, indeed, I do love you 70 very
much, and am till I die your own
JIMMY"
Why did he not come ? Poor jimmy
The question that perplexed her sc
was easily answered.
The morning after the ball, the
evening glamour over, he took himself
to task. He had gone too far with
. child he never meant to marry
. good, affeotiouate, ugly little girl
whom it was absurd to suppose could
ever be his vito. He was truly yer,
sorry TO part from her, to lose hex fool
ish batteries and lavish sympathy bu'
for her sake, even more than his own
things must 60 40 further.
| It would not do to have farewell
scenes, for he knew be was soft.heart-
ed, and could not bear to see . woman
CRY. There were no presents to bt
sent back one poor little rosebud he
did indeed, with sigh, fling into the
erate but the music he had give1
her, poor little soul she Was welcome
to ksep,-even to play it to some oai
Of q fellow whom she would end By
marrying. He became a little plant
i've on this text, thinking Of little jim
| nyis loving wsys; but was soon con.
soled by 40 invitation to stay at spec
tally "jolly" house ia the neighbor
hood, whore there were lots Of horse'
aud pretty girls. That was Fitspat
rlek's epitsph for his last Amusement
Jinny's letter. coming when he wa
on leave, drst gave him q fit of th,
blues, and theu made him quite angry
it should have had such a power
I-so ill spelled. written, and expressed
Al epistle.
l He tore it up, angry with himsel
aud her, stamped about tho room, anc
made Z wholesome resolution to be care
| fnl ~ nonntrv.tovn ;nnononcA for tho