Ashtabula telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1874-1880, 1874-03-07
SERVED Her RIGHT.

Alice shook her head. "Better
not" she said; ''much better not"
Still the denial was faint.
HBut l shall write" said the young
man, warmly; 'it is all the comfort
1 have. 1 don't ask you to write to
me; but 1 will write to you, and
''He would be angry" said Alice,
shaking her head; ''no, you really
mustn't"
"AlI right" said the sailor, with a
warm sunny smile; "to youe sister,
then-all right. know you'll go
and ask her for letter sometimes.
Goodbye, darling-one kiss
The kiss was given hurriedly and
sureptitiously, and the sailor sprang
from the landing-stage into a boat
that lay waiting alongside, and
presently the oars were flashing in
the sunshine, and she made rapidly
for bark lying in the stream. AL
ice stood and watched the receding
watched it till it reached the
ship and was hauled upon the da-
Wits. Presently the CHEEKY song of
the sailor was heard over the water,
the clink of the windlass, as they
hauled the anchor home. A shore
boat, however, had put off from the
ship at the very last moment, and
came slowly toward the land. It
reached the landing stage, and a wiz
ened, elderly man landed and came
up the stairs.
"WeIl, Alice" he said, ''you've
waited a long time for Dicky-good
girl! Now, my birdie, we'll go home
to our little cage"
Alice sighed and put her hand in
his arm, and they went off, he with
springy, shambling gait, meant to be
sprightly and juvenile; as she with
a slow, hfeless step, that yet kept
pace with him.
Richard loft, the shi hip-owner, who
had just landed, was seventy wears
old, or more, and he married Alice
Graham, who was only nineteen.
But then loft was the richest man
in the port, and everybody said she
had done well for herself. There
had been some silly love-passages
between her and William Black, the
son of widow Black of Woodblne cot
tage; but he was only a mate in one
or Richards ships, and never would
have made home for her so say
nothing of the misery of marrying a
sailor, and being widow, as it were,
for four years out of five. Now, it
wasen't IN the course of nature that
Dicky loft, should live forever;
and then if she played her cards
well, what a happy woman she might
be! She would have to play her
cards, mind you, for she was a poor
girl when she married, and Dicky
had kept all his money at his own
disposal; but then, what fool like an
old fool and a pretty girl like AL
ice, ought to be able to wind him
around her little finger. Certainly
Mr.. loft was wonderfully proud of
his little wife, and with good cause
for she was one of the pfettiest
girls in Melford. To be sure, after
her marriage she seemed to fade
little, whilst Dicky seemed to grow
young and green again, and respond
ed to all the railery of which he was
the subject as archly and wickedly
as any grizzled old Monkey on a
perch. aa
Nothing was too good for Alice
in Mr.. Toft's opinion. He bought
her shawls from the Indies, beautiful
muslins and silks that would stand
on end, he gave her jewels, too, and
decked her out with chains and
earrings, till she grew ashamed of
her splendor.
By and bye Willie Black came
home from long voyage, and one
of the first to welcome him and to
invite him to his house was Mr.. .Toft,
the ship owner. He had heard all
about this love affair, but he had
such confidence in his wife-she
was such jewel, SO devoted to him
he was anxious that his rival
should see how completely she had
forgotten him.
"You brought him, YOURSELF" said
Alice in her own heart, looking
rather hardly at her husband, as he
tolled up the steep hill that led to
their house, painting and shaking,
but refusing to acknowledge that he
was tired. 81 had schooled myself
to be content, and with your own
hand you shattered all my good re-
solves"
"Let US stay here for a moment"
said Mr.. loft, "and admire the
pleasant view. Oh, I'm not tired
no, no,-not at all; see the ship
standing out to sea, She's capital
sailor, eh, ah, yes"
Her sails were spread out far in
the distance, rosy with the beams of
the setting sun, but chilly mist was
creeping up, and presently the glow
vanished and the white sails were
bl otted out, disappearing in the
great vague world of mist and sea
and shadow.
"Why, what's the matter, Alice ?"
said Mr.. loft, turning sharply
round. clears! All, well, yes, we
know-a little hysterical, eh ?
Don't excite yourself, dearest. My
dear poppet we will walk home very
quietly, and then we will have tea
in our nest.
She followed her lord and master
slowly up the hill to thier home on
Lookout hill; it was a pleasant little
villa with fine garden.
Things went on quietly enough at
LookoutviIIe for another couple of
years. Mrs. loft had not been blessed
by children, as Richard had hoped,
and the old man was a good deal
crestfallen thereat; still he lived in
hope, and seemed fonder than ever of
his young wife. By and bye the
rumor went about that he had sent
for Lawyer Emlyn to make his will
he had always been very stubborn
againt his will; and presently, when