Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1873-08-21

SHOWS am grateful, grateful to Him and
~ You. Yes, it was a beautiful dream.
anu remember it like Yesterday. Int
IG'9lythlng Is thousand times better than
!: ueaht II, and you, love, Thousand
liiies prettler and dearer than the yonnr
moniah VINO appeared in my dream. But
40 iesaios tne tree, my darling, this is nv
opinion: Ii man loves dancing. he
VIII soon md the music to dance TO and
echo repeats the words that are spoken to
| her. l had been for so MANY wears
| wretched and miserable amongst strano-
ers' IL was no wonder if once in a wav T
dreamt pleasant dream.n
but stlll 1t was strange that you should
ol ga you were to marry me-"
never dreamt that! All saw was a
young woman with two children. but She
was not half as pretty as you are, or the
fle!' cried the wife; "do you mean to
uehy me or the tree? Didn't you tell me
the hrst day we metz 1t was in the even
ing, out there in the arbor. Didn't Won
tell me you had dreamt you were to marry
me ana become the landlord of the Crown
Inn 2" Wv " Il
iheh the man remembered the Joke he
mad played his wife, and said:
1T can't be helped, dear wife. I did
not really dream of you, and if I said so,
1t was only joke. | remember you were
so very lnqulsltive, and | wanted to tease
you" '7''''>
Upon this the wife burst into flood OF
Tears ana LETT the room. When he fol-
lowed her, she was standing in the court
yard, still crying. He did all he could to
comfort her, but in vain.
tHOu have stolen NV love an5 oboo+od
me out of my heart" she said; II shall
never be happy again, no! never"
Then he asked her if she did not love
him more than anybody in the world, and
if they had not been the happiest couple
in the whole village?
She could not deny this; but, neverthe-
less, she remained sad and miserable not
outstanding all he could say SO he
thought, "Let her cry herself QUITO
morrow she will be herself again" But
she was not herself again; for the next
morning, though she certainly had ceased
weeping, she was sadder and graver than
ever, and pointedly avoided her husband
Every attempt at reconciliation failed :;
nearly all day she sat gloomily by herself,
starting whenever her husband came near
her.
This state Of things continuing some
time, he also began to grow melancholy,
fearing he had altogether lost his wife's
love. Silently he moved about the house,
thinking how to cure the evil but no idea
occurred to him; so at noon he went out
into the village, and loitered carelessly
through the fields The rich, ripe corn
waved like golden lake, and the birds
sang sweetly enough, but his heart was
full of sorrow. In the distance stood the
old Dreaming Beech, queen of the forest
it lowered towards heaven. 1t seemed to
beckOn him with its green waving branch
es to come nearer like a good old friend
He went and sat beneath its shade, think
ing of days gone by. Five years had
passed since he, poor miserable wretch,
had rested there for the first time and
dreamt that pleasant dream. How pleas
anti for it had lasted five years, and now
all gone all gonel for overland ever
Then the beech began to rustic again,
as 1t had done five years ago, and to move
its mighty branches; and as they moved
there fell, as then, the golden glittering
sunlight across its leaves, and through
the boughs peeped ever and anon the
deep blue sky. Then his heart grew calm
er and he slept. Soon he dreamt that
dream again Of five years ago The wO-
man at the table and the little children
at their play; but now the faces were the
faces of his own dear wife and children
and she looked at him with her large
brown eyes so kindly, alb, so kindly And
then he awokc and found it was only a
dream! More sorrowful than before, he
broke off small green twig from the
tree, and went home and placed it in his
hymn book.
The next day was Sunday, and as they
oh, -, III IL
wife's feet He turned scarlet as he
stopped to pick them up and put them
into his pocket But the wife had seen
it and asked what it was
"Only leaves from the Dreaming
Beech, which is much kinder to me than
you are. Yesterday was resting beneath
it and fell asleep. 1t wished to console
me- for | dreamt that you were kind to
me again, and had forgiven everything;
but it is not true. The good old beech,
though it is no BILE tree, knows nothing
about the future"
The wife gaznd at him. and it was as if
ray of sunshine had crossed her face.
Husband, did you really dream that %
Eyes, " he answered, positively.
And she knew it was the truth by the
twitching about his mouth, like one who
has difficulty in restraining his tears
And | was really your wife?'
'Really my own true wife" and she fell
on his neck, and half suffocated him with
kisses.
"Thank God" she said, "now it is all
right again! | love you so dearly, how
dearly you can never know. And all
these long weary days have been in such
dread lest l was wrong in loving you
and that God meant me to have another
husband, and you another wife! for you
certainly did steal my heart, you bad man !
and there was deception at first-yes, you
stole my heart, but it did not do me much
good, for you know things must have hap
pened just as they did whether we would
or no." Then, after pause, she contin-
ued-
"Pronlise me never to speak slightingly
of the Dreaming Beech again? %
II never will, for | believe in it as
much as you do, depend upon it, though
in different way, perhaps. And now let
us paste the leaves in the beginning OF our
hymn-book so that they may not be lost"
Chambers Journal
Educating the Will.