Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1875-09-22

who had been cast of and disowned bv hei
relatives, because she had married against
their wishes. She was now widow, with
one daughter, and she begged Dolly TO com,
to New York TO visit her, and to make hei
home with her, if she could be contented tc
do so.
To Dolly, who was chilled and saddened
by the change in Roberts manner, and who
had felt as If there were none in the world
who cared for her, this loving appeal was
TOO sweet TO be resisted. She felt an in.
stantaneous longing to go to the aunt who
could write so kindly aud aifectionately to
the niece whom she had never seen.
Upon inquiry, Dolly found that there were
people in Greenbush who remembered Laura
Eaton, when she was girl living in neigh.
boring town. The greatest beauty for miles
around, they said She was, but then thev
shook their heads sagely, and added that
Dollys father was quite right in refusing 10
ever mention her name, or to have IL men
TONED in his hearing. She had broken her
mothers heart, aud brought her fathers
gray hairs with sorrow to the grave" But
nobody had heard a whisper against her
| since her marriage, and she had had trouble
! enough to sober her down, and make her a
! better woman, Mrs. Spencer argued and as
twas now time that Dolly saw something Of
the world, she should not say a word against
her going. The truth was the deacon's wife
almost utterly unworldly as far as she was
herself concerned, was very ambitious for
/ Dolly. Of whom she was very fond. She had
watched with approving eyes the growing
coldness between the young people, and CON
cluded that If they were to be separated now,
Dolly would soon forget Robert, and, with
her beauty and her wealth, make brilliant
match.
Dolly went only for visit she said, but
Mrs. Spencer shook her head, aud prophe-
sied that she would never come back to
Grecnbush to stay. Roberts good-by was
cold and constrained, yet Dolly saw some
thing in his eyes that made her heart beat
fast, and filed her mind, all through her
journey. with dreams of her return, and
hopes that the mystery ght be solved, and
il be proved that she had not been vain and
silly--as she had been sometimes thought
Of ate-in thinking that Robert loved her.
All this was three years before, and dear
Old Greenbush and Robert had dropped out
of her life completely. Mrs. Spencer had
died within six months after Dolly left
Greenbush, and in the few letters that Dolly
had received from her before her death,
there had been no mention of Roberts name
II was so strange that he should never write
to her, nor even send her any message-so
cruel in him, she thought; so, gradually,
Dollys pride came to her aid, and she tried
hard to forget him-to put that year en-
tirely out Of her memory.
Though her aunt's letter had been affec-
tionate, it had not prepared Dolly for the
welcome which shereceived caresses and flat |
terry were showered upon her, until Dolly
poor, little unsophisticated Dolly thought |
that her aunt was the loyeliest woman that |
she had ever seen, and that she ought to be |
the happiest girl in the world to have found |
those who really belonged to her. Her cousin |
Laura a stately aud rather naughty looking |
brunette, who inspired Dolly with little |
awe, at the first glance and made her feel |
very countrified and awkward, was very kind |
to her-kind, with less condescension than
Dolly expected from her looks.
But Dolly was not without brains. If she
did have a simple, honest little heart. and
she soon discovered that her aunts affection
was all outside display. That the secret of
her apparent fondness was-the family fl.
nances were running very low, and Mrs
Seymour had discovered that Uncle Joshua
had made Dolly his heiress
1t was chilling and disheartenng thing
to learn, and for a while Greenbush looked
so alluring that Dolly could scarcely restrain
herself from rushing back there but pride
held her back, and after her kind old friend.
the deacon's wife, died. she had no excuse
for going
To "keep her position in society,"" and to
make brilliant match for her daughter. had
been Mrs. Seymour's struggle for years.
Dolly's money was a very convenient aid
and Dolly submitted TO being carried about
to balls and receptions and soirees without
lstlessly at first, and then growing
to rather like the gaiety and excitement
with always an ache at her heart and a long
ing that nothing could stihe, for the dear old
days.
Now, at the end Of these three years, the
life that she led was growing uncomfortable
TO Dolly. They cared nothing forher, either
her aunt or Laura, except as she was of use
TO them, and the life into which she was
forced was continual striving for display.
which weared and disgusted her. But
there seemed 10 be no release from it she
could not live alone aud she had no one else
TO turn to- Lovers not few had presented
themselves, for Dolly's fresh daisy-like pret-
tiness had proved a greater success than her
aunt or Laura had counted upon-but she
turned a deaf ear TO them all. The reason
why was a puzzle 10 Mrs, Seymour and
Laura. Some romantic notion, probably"
Dolly had once overheard her aunt say, when
a more than ordinary eligible lover pressed
his suit. Dolly knew what the reason was,
though she would scarcely acknowledge it
to herself She knew that no words of love
could ever hush the echo of those old-time
ones, that no lapse Of time could make Rob
erts memory dim.
Yet marriage was the only escape from
this uncongenial life. Could she live on in
this way ?
And there was Mr.. Sidney Devereux-the
elegant Sidney, as Laura called him. lie
was good deal better than elegant he was
a gentleman, honorable, cultivated, high
minded Very much more congenial com
than her aunt or Laura he could
give her. Last summer she had refused TO
listen to him. Now she was to see him once
more, and If he spoke again, would it not
be wiser to listen
1t was a temptation very strong one,
when she thought of the years stretching
away before her
DO come down from the clouds suih-
ciently to tell me what you are going 10
wear r. Laura's voice aroused her You
must wear green anyway. II is Mr. Deve-
reux's favorite color aud he admired you so
much in your green tarletan last summer"
pursued Laura. And you'll come home
with a ring on your finger %
II was a cold December morning on which
Dolly set out on her journey. A dull, leaden
sky threatened snow, and before noon its
threatening was fulfilled. Dolly was alone,
and cold and the dreary storm sent her
spirits down TO zero. She tried TO keep up
her courage by thinking that the time, after
all, would not be very long--she would reach
P, the place of her destination, by one
o'clock the next afternoon-and of the gay
scenes awaiting her. But the thought was
not very comforting, for it brought up a
vision of Mr.. Deyereux, and Dolly felt as il
She We're fastening on 10 a crisis in her life
which she would rather avoid.
Faster and faster came the snowhakes, un-
til the whole landscape was obscured to
Dolly's vision, and she was forced 10 look in
side the car for entertainment She tried
the magazines with which she had taken
pains to supply herself, but reading made
ler head ache, and she soon abandoned il,
and tried to amuse herself by taking a sur
'ey Of her travelling companions. They
we're numerous, but not particularly inter
'sting. There was the usualnumber Of hur-
business men, and anxious-look-
ng, unprotected elderly females, beyy Of
school girls, with cousin or
brother for an escort aud a pair of lovers,
whose ostentatous devotion made them the
enter Of her observation. just across the