The weekly Elko independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 1872-1887, 1875-05-22
When ElilIu Came Home.

All her life long Sara Holmes had ha;i
romance. 1t began and ended with
these words: "Whcn Elihu comes home"
And though she was but nineteen wears
old ut tho time of which write, il seemed
TO her on the evening Of that burning July
day, rs she sat in her bedroom and looked
out upon the moonlight fields, that she
had been living one or two centuries in
this world, and all the time dreaming
golden dreams of Elihu; only to find
them shivercd into atoms Mt the last.
For Elihu had come. And the time
and the manner of his coming were so
unlocked for and so unexpected to her,
| as well ms TO everyone else, that the girl
sat there in the moonlight, saying to her
self, lie is here. I need never watch or
wait for him again. In the next chamber
TO mine he is sleeping il if he can
sleep, poor Elihu!'
The earliest at0rics she could rcmc;n.
Der had been told TO her by her mother,
about "Cousin Elihu" and the numerous
fortunes he had made "dOwn South" at a
time when fortunes could yet he made in
that unhappy land. She had heard fab
ulOn1 tales oc the palace in which he
lived, Of the negro slaves who flew to do
horses that bore him from place to place,
and of the jewels, the silks, satins and
vclvCts that fortunate woman would pos
sess who would one day become Elihu's
bride.
Other girls had heard these stories also,
and the belle of the school at i!olmcsdaie
often said that, when she was sixteen,
she should Ego travelling" and find her
way down South, and "srt her CAP" for
iilihu Holmes. That the result would fol-
low for which she looked, no girl among
them all doubted, for even "thc mastcr's''
stern face softcncd and smiled upon Ro-
sanna Meadows, when she shOol; back her
golden curls and lifted her large blue
eyes, with blush, Ia his.
Poor Rosannal Sara leaned her check
on her hand, and looked over the hilltop
toward the village graveyard, where the
village beauty was now lying, with her
blue eyes closed, her golden rimglcts
smOnthCd back from her white brow, and
her hands claspcd in mn uncarthly quiet
on her breast. Elihu hal never known
how her girlish heart went out toward
him. And now Elihu had come home.
AS Sara Holmes grew up, and dcvcl.
opcd from the tall angular girl into the
Imccnly and sclfpOssrsscd young woman,
| the thought would sometimes occur TO her
ns she stood before tho mirror braidinn
her dark hair, ar lac should come back,
would he think me pretty, now that 10.
Sanna Ia guncW The broad, low brow, tho
oval checks and dimplcd chin answered
the hrnlihful color, the deep, dark eyes,
the sudden, bright, bcwildcring smile,
said, "Ics." For hers was now n higher
beauty than lIosanna's pink -nnd-whitc
lovclincss had ever been, and the treasures
Of her mind and heart might we'll have
won MI older and wiser mau To love hcr
long before Elihu came home.
And now she drew II long breath, and
set herself TO recall all the incidents oi
That sudden and startling return.
Tea was ovcr--thc milk was strained
and they were all sitting on the front
piazza, under The SHADE of the naples and
locusta, while her father rcad bits from
the weekly paper aloud. IIrr stcp.mothci
was knitting; her sister Grace was lninl
q hat aud her brother Bcn was whitilini
ont toy bUat from bit uf wood while
she, Sara, sat beside him mud held hi
tools ns lic needed them, and lost hcrsc
in rcvcry about our hero in the South.
A caTrugo drove up the village roat
and halted nj their gate. Thu driver dc
seconded from hiI seat and hcckoncd &
her father who hurried down TO meet him
After talking for some time together,
small trunk was lifted down and left be
aide the gate. Then tho carriage doorwa
opened and tall figure descended, and
directly after, Ben, who had followed hi
father in Gt Of boyish curiosity, gal
lopcd back with distcndcd cycs and wills
pcrcd loudly:
"Mothor-Eirl' Cousin Elihu has come