Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1873-02-13
had come too late-too late There


would be fully dark when she would
pass his house and the chances wer'
that he would not see her. Sh'
wouldn't have him see her for TIL
world. S. :. .
When she arrived opposite to th'
house she perceived a light in thu
sitting room. Her first impulse WA
to hurry by; but some powerful IN
huence prompted her to stop. She
did so, and. stood timidly at the
further side Of the road, gazing long.
ingly at the house that had been 6
home for her-frst of happiness
then, of misery. By-and.by, she fell
and irresistible yearning to look al
the interior of the room once more
He was evidently Within, and there
was no danger that he would see her
So she walked hurriedly across the
road, opened the gate, and softly
stepped into the lawn. Another mo-
ment and she was at the window,
looking in. What singular behavior
But she could not help it.
The little room was as neat as
when she herself watched over it
A cheerful fire was burning in the
crate, although it was not very cold
and a lighted lamp stood on the table
1t was there that Harry was sitting
How her heart bounded asshe caught
sight of. him He held in his right
hand e. book from his scanty library
She recognized it at once; but he
was not re ading now. He had al.
lowed it to drop, with its open pages
looking mutely to the ceiling-and his
face was supported and half concealed
BY thesleft nand, the elbow resting on
the table. Was he asleep-or was
! he. buried in sad reverie Nettie
thought that the latter was the case
and her heart was touched.
Il wish I had borne with him, she
said.
But a moment later her heart was
touched when she saw tear roll
down his cheek, and drop upon the
book. The lonely man was not asleep
he was crying.
She could not help it. All that
was womanly in her heart was arous-
ed and she was at the door in mo;
ment. No ceremony-she burst into
the sitting-room and was at his side.
oh, Harry !
Her voice quivcred with emotion.
Why, Nettie ! he exclaimed, try
ing to hide his tears-men are asham-
ed of them Is itryou?' -
Yes Harry, holding her face in
her hands, = was passing-l 10 ,ked
in-.I saw you sitting here SO lonely,
and could not help coming in. l
thought Of the time when we were
happy here, and
Then her own womanly tears could
be repressed no longer. There was
no use trying to hide them, Besides,
her voice broke down. and she could
say no more just then.
Nettie, he arose, and took both
hands from her face and held them
in his own, l thought you had blot
ted me out of your memory,
No, no, Harry, sne sobbed. I
could not do that. l could not help
leaving you, but I left you loving you
more than ever. Oh I have been
unhappy
'Mettie you have heard that +
Yes, / have heard that you have
changed-that you do not drink any,
more-that you are again manly and
industrious as you used to be; but
how lonely you must be here? and
the tears gushed forth anew, as her
heart felt that her lips spoke.
Yes, I'm lonely, Nettie-more so
than you may think; but deserve
this punishment for the way l have
acted. I had no discourqgemaents, t
had nothing to make me do 30: It
was only passion for drink, that it
seemed impossible for me to over.
come. You were sll a wife should
be or could be. When you left me,
l thought l should become more reck-
less than ever. Only day or two
after I knew you had left me for
good. I was in town drunk, and l
heard some village people-they
thought I couldn't hear them across
the strees- -Eassing all sorts OF re-
marks about ne, :sSa4yilaGg that now l
was a doomed man cerFMqnn3 tl!!aI ttlhat ny
Destruction was near. Although in
toxicated it STARTLED me, and for the
first time I felt the full force of onr
separation, and realized that raln
stared me in the face. | lad q bottle
OF whiskey in my pocket at the road
side, and resolved never to touch
whiskey again. had tried it long
enough to know that I could not
dri * and be temperate. 1t was hard
to keep my resolution for the first
Yo4lr q two, but I stood it, and soon
nv my aasf5 ',o1 q:ink disappeared. |
care nothing for il po&, 'anq you'd ]a
hot touch it if it ran in stFeafh1s f
Now, Eettia, if yoa love me as well
as ever-and God knows that I love
you the same, let US get married over
again. and the bitter experience of
tue lest two years will only enhance
your happiness: Nettie, DEAR what
do you say?
She could not answer; she was
crying as if her heart would break,
and her head was pil!oyedl y upon his
breast. 1t was a more eloquent YEP,
than she could have spoken with the
tongue.
Tie moon was rising, and it had
never looked so happy as it did while
be walked home with Nettie to her
fathers.
So Harry Rogers and Nettie Ray
were v. married again, and there is no