Litchfield enquirer., 1873-11-06

to depart, leaving her, If indeed she car eQ for him at all, 2 prey to the vain ex- Hectations he had done his best to create. but h6 paused. Fate must set tle It all Perhaps she did not cara; and .u 90 no harm is done But all the while he was conscious of mild, miserable longing to see the light of love in her eyes and to kiss the sweet, sensitive mouth, Trembling with it's first words of tender ness for him. He went in, and found bessle In the great, cool parlor, fragrant with flowers. She was creature of in- tinIte variety; coquetish sometimes, argu- snentative sometimes, serious sometimes, and never twice the same This after noon she was changeful and brilliant, and elusive as the humming bird that fitted n and out of the rose-tree under her win dow. Her mood tortured him. fine was brutal, that torture, pehaps, was 8 slight exeuse-but then brutality is so often the Eesource of a perplexed man. If he only knew whether she cared for him! If not, he might spare himself the confession he had to make-but how could he be sure? is- "
 He drew picture from his pocket, a, little miniature painted on ivory-the face of woman pure and proud and cold '1cly regular. splendidly null,'' he had said to himself this very day as he looked al it in his own chamber
 sI believe l have never shown you this," he said. handing it to Bessie, ,-ssdo you think it handsome?"
 s'Your sister," she asked. looking at the picture carelessly. .
 No, my cousin. Miss Margaret Stur- gis. whom am engaged to marry"
 He had longed to know whether she cared for him; but in that moment think he would rather his doubt had remained nnsolved. .-t
 She turned suddenly white to the very lips. As long as he lives he will never forget that momentary glimpse of her, with all her young warmth and bright ness gone-a woman of stone She was iafttas4 s4proud and brave, and she would fever lower her flag to the enemy. In moment the color had come back to cieeks and lips, and her voice did not even tremble as she answered, quietly
 Yes, she is very handsome; one of those beauties about whom there can be no question. I congratulate you
 He had been shocked when he saw that she suffered; but now her swift com posture piqued him, and he showed it in his tone as he replied:
 s1 am not sure that am ready to be congratulated. Marriage, at best, is an experiment.
 "I think you are disloyal to your cous- in" she said, with a little scorn in her tone, swhen you receive my congratula- tions in such doubtful fashion"
 Would to heaven that were my only disioyaltyp he murmured, in so low a voice that Bessie did not feel herself obliged to hear it. She led the conversa- tion in quite other channels; and tested and mocked and sparkled, so that if he had not seen her white face of stone for that one revealing moment, he would have believed that she cared not at all for all the summer that was passed.
 Dr. Crandall had returned before he went away, and the parting was general.
 The next day he went to his cousin
 A profound student of human nature says that. in marriage. the certainty ''She will never love me much. is easier to to bear than the fear .I shall love her no more" It must be much tho sal,s with lovers. There had always been vague thr~aht possibly mistaken impression in W-,er Phelps's mind that his cousin would never be very passionately in love with him; and that had never troubled him. Passionate love, he thought, was not in the line of her temperament; and he had been we'll enough satisfied with out 1t. Her grace and beauty had charm ed his taste, her preference had hattered his pride: he had looked forward with pleasure to being the envied husband of much admired woman, whose very cold ness was his security, since she was sure never to turn coquettish or light-minded on his hands.
 But now terrible fear beset him lest he should never be able to love her. He had not guessed how deep an impression Bessie had made on him until he felt how savorless the calm faultless beauty of Margaret Sturgis had become. Involun- tarily he was constantly contrasting her with Bessie; as at Riverside he had been trying Bessie by her standard. It was like passing from gallery of paintings, alive with color and glow and brightness. into a hall of sculptured marbles, still and pure and white, and ohl 50 cold. There are those who like marbles best who, see in them noble grace the more sensuous art of painting can never reach
 but Walter Phelps was not of these. He missed Bessie's riant little face with !ts dark beauty, her gay laughter, her sudden moods of half-pathetic tender ness; she was woman, you perceive, af- ter his own heart, while the homage he had paid to the other for so many years had been but the clear perception of his intellect.
 He had never been used to self-control; no experience had taught him to submit patiently to discomforts of mind or body. He was uncomfortable now; and his boy ish impulse was to run away from his.un- easiness. He had not yet learned that trouble is like the ghost which had tor mented certain worthy family fer years. The good wife finally concluded to move, in order to escape him; but when the last load of goods was on the van, neighbor passed that way. and said, ''So you're moving?" "Yes, cried the ghost, lifting from among the beds and cushions voice of congratulation; seyes, we're oU going" Walter Phelps had not learned that all maladies which are of the spirit have wings by right of birth, and will fly with us wherever we go. He thought Europe would have resources enough to put out of mind one little, brown, mocking face. He would try it. Miss Sturgis should go with him, If she would. He could take her over to the old Greek marble women. with whom she seemed to belong. What II r8R0 SuOulQs CuOOb0 GO tuIu 1AtO SGONo there, and live on forever in a white dream of beauty? He laughed at his own conceit, and then went to his cousin.
 With an altogether unfattering abrupt ness, he proposed to her to be married at once, and catch the next steamer for Europe The mood to go was on him now-he had no patience with waiting- as for gowns and things, they were plenty there as blackberries in New Hampshire. Miss Sturgis was thorough bred, self contained woman of the world; but she was neither without heart nor without perception. Whether the New Hamp- shire in his comparison suggested any thing to her do not know; but, at any rate, she had no mind to be married in an unsentimental haste that did not even pretend to excuse itself by any passionate ardor of love.
 She refused his proposal with quiet frmness; and do not think he was at all sorry to start upon his travels alone Enroua diverted him h0wovar 1aas