Rapides gazette. (Alexandria, La.) 1869-187?, 1873-10-04

II read books that she flncied he must like
i aud which he had no time To read himself
q and told him about them at dinner: and IA
t would interrupt her with some such irrel
!, eyant question that she saw he had not lis
a tened to word she said. Or else she prac
0 uced some song, and spent labOrious hour
t over it; and when she thought the tim,
5 was ripe, would seat herself at the plan,
to sing, only to see Roger get up and take
| his hat and go off on some errand that haC
just occurred to him in the middle of it.
Once or twice his own consciousness:
I smote him as the remembrance of tn,
grieyed look at some of these Interrupt
tions, which he had seen without noting
came back to him; and so, on the night
, when he had completed the purchase OF
the cottage, he explained TO her that his
whole soul was wrapped i'm the effort TO
advance their fortunes, and if he ever
seemed Indifferent, she must understand
that it meant nothing, that he loved her
better than he ever did, and presently
would demonstrate it.
"By-and-by, when i have accomplished
my object" he said, " there will be plenty
OF time to enjoy our love but if | stop
now to enjoy it, / shall never do the other
thing.'
And he saw Laura brighten so at the
words of tenderness that he resolved he
would never let day go by without as
sIIring her of the old steadfast affection.
But each day brought its own distractions
and preoccupations, and presently love
making was forgotten in the more serious
business; for in the one case there was
already complete achievement--Roger
had won the woman he loved but in the
other case achievements yet eluded him
the fortune, that is. with which he should
retire and enjoy, by-and-by, the daily COM
panionship of this woman whom.he loved.
One evening. at length, as theyslingered
little unusually over dinner, Roger broke
the silence of tremendous thinking that
he had keptup.
Il have made the beginning, Laura"
he said.
1.-The beginning, dear?"
II have the money i'm haRdf6r the first.
quarters payment for the house on the
hill.r
on don't mean so ~.
For the house on the hilfwas fhe only
one of all the houses on the hill that was
for sale in their day and generation. and
Roger had given up his IDEA of building a
new house in view of the attractions of
this-the property of old Squire Benham,
who had placed himself beyond the scope
of Rogers envy by dying, andsbYxl xleavipg
SO many heirs that nobody coql1 affordSo
keep the mansion. And tho6yh he knew
it would be years before he could maintain
it after Squire Benham's generous fashion,
Rogers soul had gone out i'm longing for
the house, and now he had chance to
have it.
"Yes,' he said, we have lived carefully
no fine clothes, no company, no stable bill
and with what | havemade, and what you
have saved, we have just enough to pay
the first quarter: that is, | can mortgage
this house to the bank for Just half its
worth-for twenty-five hundred, say-and
have five hundred in hand, three thOls-
and i'm all, just the sum for first payment
on the terms they propose, with interest
and three other like payments to come.
What do you say to it?''
1.-The house on the bill y, ANSWERED.
Laura, refiectively. ,:Ihave thought it
would be beautiful ever since we talked
about it. The view is so perfe6-the lawn
and the elms, and all the intervale. and the
blue and snowy mountains beyond
''And such rooms as there are in that
house, and such a hall -
But it would take us long time to
furnish it properly, | have been thinking"
said Laura, dOubtfhlly.
spoon on the edge of his cup with nicely. |
las soon as the first payment is made the
place is ours, you know"
And wesneed not move in at once"
said Laura, rather eagerly.
"NO. was going to say we can lease |
it, and all of the rent money that there is |
over the interest we have to meet can go
toward the future payments: and in the |
mean time we can be gradually collecting
the furniture for it. piece by piece. and then |
another years rent after it is all paid for |
will buy the carpets.
with those we have already, and straw |
mattings for the bedrooms, yes. But do |
you really feel, Roger darling, as if you |
want to leave this dear little place? Don't |
you feel an attachment to it?'
''Oh yes; always shall. | don't in |
tend it shall go out of my hands either. |
shall pay off this mortgage some day. |
But care much more for that one on the |
hill / set my heart on it, or something |
like it, when / was boy. And when / |
heard of Squire Benham's first attack Of
apoplexy said to myself, Now I'll have
aoh, Roger, dSE't believe it, 1t isn't
a bit like your
Indeed it is. Exactly like me. l |
didn't kill him, Pshaw! / didn't even
wish him out Of the way. But as long
as he was getting out of the way, l |
didn't see why shouldn't get into it. /
said I'd have the house, and / will. I've
got the best wife in the town; don't |
know why / shouldn't have the best house
in the town to put her in"
"Oh, Rogert'
But some things are more easily done
than others.
The next day the cottage was nortgaged,
and the money was paid to Squire Ben
hams executors, and there were three
notes given for the remainder of the price,
secured on the house on the hill, falling
due in consecutive years, with interest.
Laura was appalled, when Roger told of
the notes, which she had not understood
about before, but he laughed at her, and
said, "Strict economy is the order of the
day, and all will come right" and went
gayly away to his business, leaving Laura
to decide where she could economize any
further than she had done. But there were
many ways, she found. She could dismiss
the second girl, for instance. Two
young people by themselves, she said. new
IL 1