Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1874-03-19

"Woll, dear, it seems mucl, to per.
sons Of our limited income," Mrs.
Ward replied" "And he must hive q
new suit of clothes. But l hope t.
manage it without running into debt,
If you can help me little.
Lottie did not speak, and her mother
thoughtfully added, "The girls will
have to do without tho new hats
promised them; md baby's pclisss
must lust another winter and
But here her daughter stopped hc'
by pettishly saying" Oh, mother! pray
don't tell us Of any more wants they
seem endless. How miserable it is t.
he poor how sick of contrivances and
makeshifts you must be. I know
am. And somehow the children al
ways seem to need most when one has
least to spare"
II did not know you were in that
predicament, dear or I would not have
spoken so plainly" Mrs. Warde re.
piled; "but don't let it worry you,
she added, with the cheerful mir that
coveredn multitude of anxious thoughts
tive shall =. manage very we'll, I dare
say"
Lottie went away with her money
still in her pocket, but with a load al
her heart-half shame, half selfish
ill-humor-which was not lessened by
standing at the MERGERS window fol
another half hour before she went back
to Sir Johns. While her gaze was
fixed on the silk, her rebellious spirit
was murmuring at the difficulties of hel
position. It was so hard that she should
always be hampered with the home
cares. Other young people could
spread their salaries on themselves
while her purse had such constant calls
upon it that there was nothing left fol
herself. And mother was not thought
full for her; she never seemed to remem.
Der that girl of her age would natur'
ally wish to be smart, especially when
she visited persons in better circum.
stances than herself.
Miss Dayton wanted some trife
brought from her own room that even.
ing, and Lottie had executed her COM
mission and was retreating, when the
voice of Sir John, who was reading the
evening paper, arrested her. "Dear
me ? how sad these cases are one never
knows who to trust. Listen to this,
Lottie: The confidential clerk of
Smithson Brothers absconded last night.
His employers had their suspicious
aroused by some circumstance or other,
and limited ON intention of looking into
his accounts. As soon as he learned
this he made business in the country a
pretense for his fight, and it is sup
posed that he is on his way to America. ,"
To Lottie's strained ears every word
of this was horribly audible, and the
next minute she was running down
stairs, putting on her hat and shawl as
she went.
eff I am asked for" she gasped to
the wondering housekeeper, "say that
I am ill-that have gone to my moth
er's; but don't stop NEEDN'T question
me, or shall die"
But it was to the home of Austin
Crawley, a fellow-clerk of Charles, she
first took her way. She would not give
up all hope till she had seen him, and
heard his lips confirm the dreadful
tale; and as she went along she tried
to comfort herself in repeating, "It
cannot be! Charlie Morrison default
er, fugitive from justice-it is impos-
sible J"
Mrs. Crawley herself answered Lottie's
knock, and her smiling, cheerful face
made the girl feel her own misery grow
sharper.
"No, Austin had not returned from
the city yet," she said. Would not
Lottie come in and wait for him i? She
was quite alone, for Mr.. Crawley had
been at Smithson's all day, taking the
place (she beieved) of Charlie Morrison,
whose absence seemed to have put the
firm very much out of their way. There
was nothing amiss, was there?" she
added, as she took a closer survey of
her visitors face.
But her question remained unan-
swered, for Lottie was already hurrying
away. The last faint hope that the
report was dreadful mistake had per-
ished before Mrs. Crawley's placid
utterances. Austin, the gay and careless,
whose spendthrift habits had often dis
pleased his parents, had preserved his
integrity; while Charlie Morrison, the
son of many prayers, the steady, intel
lectual young man, who INDUCED in no
low taste, no. cloud" attire, had for
feited his high character and disgracetl
his famil y-this was her conclusion.
Away through the busiest streets of
London, hurrying on with her face
unified in her veil, lest any one should
perceive the anguish depicted on it, she
walked, till she found herself before
the we'll known Offices of Messrs. Smith
son. They had been closed hours
earlier; but the old man who was porter
and care-taker was standing at the door,
talking to some curious acquaintance.
Unpesceived by the garrulous speaker,
Lottie paused long enough to hear he1
lovers name coupled with words
indistinctly caught relating to the sums
of money that were missing.
His father was here this morning,
as soon as the news was made public, -
the porter went on" such respecta.
BILE old gentleman. But here his voice
was lowered, and Lottie passed by, hear.
ing only something about the young
mans broken-hearted mother as she
went but it reminded her that she was
not alone in her grief; that the loving
parents, who had cherished their son
in his childhood, and seen him gradtl.
ally expand into the bright, intelligent
man, must be we'll nigh crushed beneath
the blow that had 80 suddenly fallen
upon them. Oh! what was her grief te
theirs?
| And now Lottic flew to her own hay
en-, the arms of her mother, and there
wept the first. tears her burning eyer
had shed.
Shocked, and for some time incredu
lous Mrs. Warde, with infinite patienc.
and tenderness, sustained her child du
ring those hours in which her anguish
was almost more than she could bear.
Never again would Lottie accuse Thu
dear friend and comforter of bein,
wanting in sympathy. Who else would
have borne so kindly with her wilt
bursts of impatient sorrow-her restless
Ipacings to and fro-her passionat
complainings? Who else so skillfull,
taken advantage of her better feeling
to bring her to her knees, and teacl
ther to bow her head to the Divine will
"How good you are to me, darlin
mother !" she sobbed, when Mrs. Ward
had prevailed upon her to lie down, an
was bathing her aching head "And in
deed don't deserve It. I have bee
so selfish, so ungrateful that if yo
knew all my hard and bitter thought
/ you would surely cease to love me q
ALL!
Mrs. Warde's only reply was to stoo
and kiss her and that kiss 11DrOOte1 IL,