Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1873-04-11

| womanliness which three years nave
brought to 1t. She is thinking of how much,
in this time, God has helped her ito do
and bear" Mother Nell has had long
sickness, and is now away on visit with
the Major, whose brow, when rumpled
with care, has often been smoothed very
tenderly by The little girl, who Is learning
10 do all things for love. The little yellow
heads have been carried through innumer-
able diseases of the measles-species Dode,
freakish as ever, has been cried with, and
laughed with, warned and praised, until
Halle has come to be her very heart-con-
fidante; bashful Bess has been patiently
initiated into The mysteries of French
verbs, and the proprietles of young de-
butante; Halle herself has been wooed,
but not won, by good men, who have all
carried away the same answer: "I love my
home and will not leave II. I belong to
It,"
But her head Is throbbing, and she feels
strange and restless, for she has worked
steadily all day. and there has been no
mother 10 kiss away the weariness; and as
she sits thus, balf-dreaming, she hears the
children's voices rising angrily.
Lily, the wee lady in crimps and ear
rings, produces note from Dode's little
boy champion in school. Dodo, with the
old, theatrical air, reads Indignantly:
DEAR LILLIE-I want you TO be my girl
1 have got tired of your sister she promis-
ed TO curl her hair up on papers, if wood,
but I wunt, because had rather have you
| besides she's got Cold, and think your
Nose is the prettiest shape than hers.
Your in life and death. JOHNNIE.
P. s. I'll find place TO Hide your rub
bers in, jest as I used TO hers, and bring
you lossenger every day.
Dode stamps and burns the note, and
shakes her little brown fist at her treacher-
Gus slster-treacherous sister, very much
frightened, uses the point of her needle in
self-defense. Dode, squealing, shakes her
in highly superior way; and Lily, like
revengeful little cat jumps at Dode and
pushes her down. This rouses Halle from
her unusual fit Of dreaming, and she starts
up With thoughtless, angry, "You naugh-
ty child, Lily Darton! Can't have a lit
tie peace?"
Lily leaves the room and Halle,
strangely excited over this child's quarrel,
runs after her. A breathless chase follows,
and the others stand still and watch them,
wondering "what can he the matter with
Halle to-day?'
Swiftly they rum Halle flushed and an
cry, Lily rapid and defiant, through the
room, up the front stairs, down the back,
through the ball, round the table, up stairs
and down again-and then it strikes Halle
what foolish thing she is doing and,
turning suddenly on the front stairs, she
twists her ankle slightly, and falls in an
exhausted heap. The pain brings out the
cry, which she has stifled all the day, and
she lays her head on the stair-carpet and
sobs aloud, and cries as only tried woman
can cry.
The children, melted now, of course, all
gather round her, sobbing and crying, too,
and, just At this interesting crisis, when five
pairs of eyes are raining down tears on the
front.stair cnrnet, and when fresh chorus
of"oh, ohs!' bursts from the dolefu quin-
tette, somebody stops at the open halldoor,
and General Trefethen's voice, grave and
plying, says: "What a rainy dayv'
Poor Halle the color leaves her face,
and starting up with n stifed cry of pain,
she never stops till she reaches the farthest
corner OF the attic chamber. There she
sinks-d down, and begins to moan piteously.
"Oh, 1t was cruel, it was cruel, dear God!
Why did he come then, why did he come
then-and I was weak and naughty all
weak and naughty ! and I've failed-oh, he
will think I have-and he trusted me-but
he won't any more-never-any-m
Oh, I have been good. Dear God, you
know have been good but he will never
know-oh, mover known
Then she lay in kind ofapathy, and
Hallies God must have known what she
suffered, with the thought that all her long
dream had ended for soon his little girl,
looking very pale and heavy-eyed, In a
soft-falling, black grenadine, was going to
meet cher hero" with those thoughts whirl-
ing in her head.
81 must do my duty, and entertain him
till mother comes. These three years have
not been a failure-they have been full OF
, pearls! 1 wonder how God will help me
talk, with this lump in my throatr'
She did not know how the hours ever
passed; but when the greeting, and the
berry-supper, and the children's twilight
talk were over, she remembered dimly
that it had all been very gay, and they had
all been laughing and chatting very merrly.
She had recollection of feeling of shame
that made her draw back the little hand
she had offered to General Trefethen, when
she met him Jingle of shame for the
burns, and scars, and rough places which
housework had made on the hand she put
out, and the thought that, of course, all his
friends had soft, pretty white hands, which
would be pleasant to take. Then she re-
membered the sudden resolution which
had made her hold 1t out again, and keep
back a blush, and deliberately draw her
sleeve back little and expose the new
made scar on the wrist. She was almost
reckless tonight. Her head whrlcd so
After she had carried the little ones to
bed, and heard them say their good might
to God, she came back and began 10 play
and sing with wild pathos in her voice
and manner, which didn't seem at all like
her old, frank, childish self. Careessly
she took up 'The Rainy Day." the sweet,
sad "Rainy Day." and began TO sing.
"Some days must be dark and dreary,'
she sang, and wondered If hers would ever
be bright again.
On the last verse her voice grew fainter
and fainter.
'He still, sad heart, and cease repining
Behind the clouds is the sun still shining,
Thy fate Is the common fate OF all,
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
and then tho pallor deepened on her face, a
whirling faintness took her strength away,
and she would have fallen had not General
Trefethen caught her In his arms. lie