Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1872-01-04
AUSTIN MOWER COUNTY, MINNESOTA

by five O'Clock the holiday became
10 intolerable that l said I'd 70 and gel
q dinnen The best dinner the town
could provide A sumptuous dinner.
a sumptuous dinner for one. A din.
ner with many courses, with wines Of
the finest brands, with bright lights,
with cheerful fire, with every condis
ton of comfore-ai1d I'd see if [ couldn't
Tor once extract little pleasure out of
4 holiday.
"The elegant dining room of the ia.
nous caterer looked bright, but it was
empty. Who dined at q restaurant on
. Christmas but meg There was a
fiatter of surprise when I ordered a
dinner, and the few attendants were,
no doubt, glad of something to break
the monotony of the hours.
~, My dinner was elegantly served.
The spacious room looked lonely; but
the white, snowy cloths, the rich win.
dow. ha4gings, the warm tints of the
walls, the sparkle of the fire in the
steel CRATE, gave the room an air of
elegance and cheerfulness and then
the table Mt which I dined was close to
the window, and through the partly
drawn curtains were visible pictures Of
lonely, cold streets, with bright LIGHTS
from many 81 windvw,9 it III true, int
there was 1 storm, and snow baoan
whirling through the streets. Ilet INV
imagination paint the streets as cold
and dreary as it would, Just to extract
Little pleasure by way, ofcontrast from
the brllilant room of which I was an
parently sole master.
~ dined well, and recalled in fancy
old, youthful Christmases. and nleioed
mentally many an old friend. and nv
melancholy was nellowin9 in q low. sad
nIndeftenc, when, Just as I was raising
:. glass OF wine to my lips, I was start
!ed oy picture at the window. pane.
IL was pale, Wild, haggard face. in a
great cloud of black hair. pressed
agalnstth glass. As I looked, It van
ished. With strange thrill ut nv
1eart, which my lips Knocked with q
der1s've sneer, I finished the wine and
set down the glass. It was, of course.
only begger girl that had crept up to
the window and stole bright glance
at the scene within: but still the nale
lace troubled me little, and threw a
fresh shadow on my heart. I filled nv
glass once more with wine, and was
again about to drihk, *henthe face re-
appeared ct the window, It was 80
wh3te so,thin, with eyes so large, wild,
and hungry-looking, and the black.
9nkempt hair, into which the snow had
all1ted, formed so strange and wierd a.
frame to the picture, that / vas
ialrly startled. Rcplacinx. I'M
tasted, the liquor on the table. rose
ana went close to the pane. The face
had vanished, and I could see no object.
within many feet of the window. The
storm had increased, and the snow was
davlng in wild gusts through the
streets which were empty, save here
and there hurrying wayfarer. The
whoie scene was cold, wild and
desoiate, and I could not repress a
keen thrill of sympathy for the child.
whoeveri it was, whose only Christnias
it was to watch, in cold and storm. the
non banquet ungratefully enjoyed by
the lonely bachelor. T resumed nv
place at the table but the dinner was
and the wine had no further
relish. l was haunted by the vision at
the window, and began, with nm unrea.
eonable irritation at the INTERRUPTION.
to repeat with fresh warmth nv detest.
alton OF holidays. One couldn't even
ulhe alone On holiday with anv sort of
comfort, Ideclared. On holidavs ono
was tormented by too much pleasnre
on one side, and too much misery on
the other: And then, I said. hunt;no
Tor Qualifications of my dislike of the
day, How many other people are. like
me, made miserable by seeing the fni !
ness OF enjoyment others possessed = y
,"Oh, yes, Know" sarcastisallv re-
pned the bachelor to a comment Of
mlne,s "of course all maRnan1mons
generous and noble-souled peonle d.
Light in seeing other people made verv
happy, and are quite content tn o.cert
this vicarious felicity. But I. Won see
and this dear little Girl - 'o0'
"Dear little girl|
"Oh, I forgot" said Bachelor Blufr
b!ushing little in spite Of deaperate
effort not to do 50. 1T didn't teil Won:
Well, it was SO absurd! I kept blink.
ing, thinking of the pale. faopan1
lonely little girl on the cold and desc,
late side OF the window-pane. and the
over-fed, discontinued, lonely old bach.
efor on the splendid side Of the win.
dow-pane; and I didn't get much han.
pier thinking about it. I can assure
you. I drank glass after glass Of the
wine, not that / enjoyed it's flavor nv
more, put mechanically, as it were, and /
WIN q sort OF hope thereby to drown
unpleasant reminders. I tried to at !
trln9te my annoyance in the matter to
and so denounced. them more
yehemently than ever. I got up onee
In o while and went to the window. bnt
could see no one to whom the pale face
could have belonged. =.
Atlast, in no very amiable mood. RI
got up, put on my wrappers, and went
out; and the first thing I did was tn
run against small figure crouchino in
the doorway. A face looked up ouick.
y ut the rough encounter, and I Jaw
the pale features of the window-nana
l was very irritated and angry, and
spoke harshly; and then, all ct once. I |
am sure 1 don't know how it han.
pened, but it flashed upon me that +.
OF all men, had noright to utter harsh
word e one oppressed, with so wretch
ed Christmas as this poor creature
was. I couldn't say another word. hit
began feeling in my pocket for some
money, and then I asked a ouestion ~
two, and then I don't quite know how
it came about-isn't it verv warm
here :" exclaimed Bachelor Blur RISING
md walking about, and wiping the per.
SEPARATION from his brow.
"Well, You see," he resumed. ner-
vousi y, "it was very absurd, but I did
not believe the girls story-the old
story, you know, of privation and snf.
1s11ng, and all that-and Just thouoht
"a go home with the brat and see -
what she said was all true. And then
remembered that all the shops wera
closed, and not a purchase could I've
made; and L went back to the resto,
rant. and persuaded the proprietor to
put up tor me q hamper of provisions.