Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1873-01-23
PRICE $3.50 PER ANNTTW

Not so, you are wrong. 1t is the
fault OF others, who are fond of MAX
ing cruel decisions"
mot cruel" earnestly, only con
| siderate. The person who hurts you
strives TO obey reason rather than i'm
pulse.
This person has neither reason nor
impnlse-she is simply perVerse." ~
F'You are unjust. eE
''Why unjust? She shows no i'm
pulse, gives no reasons, makes hard de-
cisions.
yet, you liked her once-a very
little.
''No, I worship her now"
There was moments silence.
Go on, Sybil."
The woman faltered.
she loves you in return.
NO, she casts me from her"
She loves you, but fears your
pray, what may those faults be?"
The eyes looked up from the palm on
which they had rested. They looked
pitifully up from under the shaggy brOws
into the mans face.
THAT is all"
No. it is not all. What arc the
faults ?"
"Why-why-she thinks"
''What?"
''She thinks you are generous before
you are just. She thinks you are splen-
didly selfish.
Indeed! What nextF This is In
| teresting"
'.She thinks you selfish, partly through
self love, partly through Indifference
thOughtlessness.
''To herr"
'Oh no, no! You put diamond
on her finger, and,-for instance-neg-
lect to pay your laundress.
'And then 2"
you remember your business and
pleasure. You make large subscriptions
and fine speeches. You forget 10 give
the cup of cold water"
''Go on"
"You have no deep tenderness for hu-
manity-no great love, ike the love Of
Christ"
These words came slowly and with
desperate effort.
And that IS my sentence! Has
she not one redeeming thought foTme 2"
she thinks that you have a great.
slumbering soul, that has never beeA
awakened"
The man had a fne face. Now 1t
crimsOned over and was full of emo
ton. He stood silent. Suddenly he
took the old wOman's hands (Which were
small ard white) reverently between his
own. and put them 10 his lips. saying
''NoW, do not wonder she despises
me, She. the selfless woman. Sybil, you
have awakened me-
He hurriedly left the room. soon with
flrazav from 4Bea MILD rssarrifs,agof Of ha
parlors, went 10 his hotel. entered his
room and locked the door. Then he sat
down at the table and put his face be
tween his hands. The clock struck one,
two. Still he sat motionless. I cannot tell
what he thought. Some Of the greatest
battles are without a single witness.
There was look Of great humiliation on
his face. He at length arose and opened
his desk, and drew forth a small dust
covered volume. Il opened at these
words:
Zone thing I know; whereas I was
blind, now I see.
His compressed lips seemed to assent.
His eyes rested a long time on the pages.
Suddenly, (for he was q resOlute mani
he made a great VOW. You could see If
in the lip and cye-in tact. the whole
face and figure told it-besides, he ex-
claimed:
$50 God help me"
Meanwhile the old fortune woman
glided from the room where the young
man left her, and, in no infirm maner,
sprang up the long stairway, and shut
herself in her room. She removed the
gray old mask. revealinga pale. troubled
face, out of which all the merriment
had died.
III 4 H.
''They are no holidays. / am an old.
old, woman-a thousand years old! ]
am ALWAYS biting my own nose off
Other people do not question themselves
or turn censor to others-and they are
happy, | suppose, / am very tired, my
heart and
So she wearily unbrai]ed her hair,
and knelt down by the bed side, and
asked of God New Years gift-for
that other one whom she had lost, and
for herself. She asked piteously for the
gift Of peace, and then she went TO
sleep.
The holiday time passed away. Weeks
and weeks followed in its train. The
Young man was as a ''little child" in
asmuch as he was learning the alphabet
of spiritual life. He was learning the
mastery of soul over self.
At length one day a note passed
through the mail. These were the
words:
"Dear Sorceress: If I come and lay
a true purpose in your palm, viii you
tell my fortune for me q
And the answer was this:
''COme ="
He went, and the fortune was told
Just as many and many fortune is told
in this world 1t was a sweet but sa-
cred little scene, so let US not curiously
peer into it.
Just in the dusk of the next New
Years eve, again two persons stood BY
a window looking out upon the night.
The snow flakes were falling. and one
by one the lamps were lighted. Now
it was a man and woman side by side.
Two hearts had come together, and
about them had gathered that mysteri-
Gus atmosphere called home.
She said: ''After all, Charley, holi-
days are not all hollow days, are they ?"
No, darling" he replied; ''they are
full and rich-full of love and peace
rich with good will toward men.
$50 life is very much what the heart
makes it,