Wilmington daily commercial., 1873-07-19

lin his eye. He had such handsome dark eyes.
could see that without my glasses.
Nov" said to myself, II hope he isn't go
ing to get sofia sensible, gentlemaniy, agree-
! able man like him, and quite old enough to be
her fatherl" And 80 looked at him to see il
he was, when suddenly he turned upon me.
'At least you might have written, Agatha
Wells, said he sharply.
I started, as you may think, to hear my own
name spoken so familiarly by stranger, when,
looking again, behold l saw beneath the bronze,
and under the wrinkles, and behind the beard, q
face that twenty years before was the dearest In
the world to me-the face Of Duncan Ashley
We parted one day expecting to meet on the
next, but that evening he was called away and
wrote instead OF coming. In his letter he said
what he had said before with his eyes-yes, those
same beautiful eyes-that was the choice OF
his heart aud the desire Of his life. Answer
me-" said he, II cannot wait till l see you
So answered-a long foolish letter, though
there was no need OF writing, for he had read all
could say. with those eyes of his Then
watched and waited for him. but never saw him
nor heard one word more. Ii you are young,
you can imagine the slow dying out OF hope and
expectation, and il you are old you know how
such things can be lived over and hidden in Sc
cret graves.
But now, as though the graves had boon OPEN
cd and the judgment scat came this sudden re-
proachfu question up from the buried past. l
fairly caught my breath az l turned back my
eyes and looked at him in the face again.
Forgive me" said he directly in genler
tone. II did not mean TO speak-you brought
it with your eyes-that questioning turn was 80
familiar. or course you were quite right and
never blamed you. never meant you to see me
again, but the tenn otation to feel myself beside
| you, only TO be in the soothing charm OF your
presence was too great. IL has been q blessing L
| shall carry with me all my life"
lie was rising to go away, but put ont my
hand II did write Duucan Ashley" saidI. THE
| letter must have gone wrong."
"You did yoz wrote !" he cried sinking back
| E his chair again, and looked at me eagerly.
"What did you say 7"
"rhere was only one thing sould say; and
| said that" l answered, blushing as though had
| Just written the letter.
A mdde-aged woman in hood and waterproof
| But dear me 1t was only mS face that was mid
| die. aged, after all my heart was as young and
| AZ silly as ever Aud as for Duncans face, the
marks of care and thonght, and time fell on
| leaving it only the eternal youth Of love.
1t was the old story Of lost letter, and the
| old story of proud man believing himself re-
| jected and humiliated, and fleeing to the endi
| OF the earth with his pain.
"Twenty precious years wasted ~ said my New
| Zealander. ave must not be separated another
| day while ws both live. There is clergyman
among our passengers and We will be married
| this vsry hour.
That was go like his headlong decisions Ger
| tainly he did need a sober second thought like
me for balast-''That cannot be !" cried
| ''ll6 ceremony WOulu po lebhl q
| license or something. Aud would by no means
| do anything so sensational and conspicuous
Bnt bless your heart l might as well have
| tried to wipe up tho Atlantic with my pocket
| handkerchief He was 20 grieve1, and 80 impa-
tient (and indeed when one comes to think OF it
| twenty years is long enough for ar engagement
| that finally dropped of my waterproof aud my
| sea- sickness. and stood up behind the binnacle,
| and was married before eight bells that very
morning-ring and all. Duncan produced it from
| a small casket, where he had carried it in his
waistcoat pocket for the whole twenty wears
II could never bear to put the little thing
away" said he, looking at it tenderly..
The next day we came to port, with the sun
shining and our flags flying. There was furry
| of goodbyes, hoisting of trunks, a welcoming
of friends on the shore, and glad hurrying tt
| and fro.
Among the rest was an instant's nesting OF
| Miss Armours lips on my cheek, and little
/ smile-and she was gone, like the flash OF fire
| fly, out of my sight forever. But wherever she
| is and however she fares, she has the daily
| blessing of two middle-aged hearts, whose way
to each other she unconsciously lighted.