The St. Cloud journal. [volume] (St. Cloud, Minn.) 1866-1876, 1875-06-17
LAURA'S LOVERS.

LAURA'S LOVERS.
Every one in Summertown thought
that it was all over with Laura.
There wasn't a soul in the neighbor-
hood but had settled her long ago as
the dependent drudge in some cous.
ms family when her aunt should die;
for though Mrs. Devon had worldly
goods" as the Rev. Mr.. Lovett char
acterized her stocks and stones-she
owned an interest in a marble quarry
still there were so many nearer
heirs that Laura stood q fair chance
Of coming off with a Mountaineering
and Grape veil merely: very insufdci-
ent means for beginning life on ones
own account, as any impartial observ-
er-viz., not one of the said heirs
would acknowledge. But this is only
supposition. However, at the time
Of which I speak, Laura had been
booked for the outside ; there positive
ly was no hope for her, in the opinion
Of Summertown. In the mean while,
whether or no Laura was herself con-
firmed in this belief of her friends
and neig ghbors who shall say? No
little maneuvre of hers betrayed anx-
iety or despair no word pro or eo',
escaped her-she received and kept
the condolences Of others, and if she
had any little passages Of her own
she kept those too. Nobody knew
e@actly how things stood with her, but
every one fancied he did, which made
it comfortable all round. Still, there
was one incident-trifling enough, if
you please-which perhaps served to
mitigate her misfortunes. Very like
ly there had come day when Laura,
looking about her a little curiously,
had seen herself reflected in no other
eyes-unless it was when she wiped
the cherry stains off Geordie's mouth
and had wondered somewhat sadly
why she was so uninteresting, why
the young men made love to her cous-
ins, laughed and chatted with the
married ladies, without appearing to
observe her any more than one would
a shadow why nobody said pretty
things to her such as Rose sometimes
repeated, or begged her to let him
button her glove, or sent her presents,
or flushed when she spoke; why her
handkerchief always fell unnoticed
and her questions unheard; why no
one asked her opinion on any earthly
topic. 1T would be so pleasant il
somebody would just take the least
bit of interest in one."
So thinking little about these
things, observing every thing, and
sensitive as the mimosa, she drifted,
maybe, into the natural conclusion,
and put the thought aside, as \ prob
lem that would work out its own an.
| swer in time or eternity.
But leading Geordie up and down
the gravelwalk one morning for q
constitutional, Major Thorne's crutch
was heard in staccato movement over
the gravel, falling into the legato Al
he joined them. There was a little thud
of pleasure down somewhere il
Laura's being, rather neutralized BY
the remembrance that Major Thorn'
was one of Geordie's slaves. Nov
the Major was no hero: he had lost .
leg, to be sure, if that is any qualifi
cation-lost it by the accidental dis
charge of a gun, not in any Balaklav,
or Blenheim; and though bred a sol
dier, since that had dofed the swor'
and donned the crutch then, in
financial point of view, he was not &
picturesque as a beggar, for nothing
makes so much interest for a lover a
a limited income, a hat with the ma
a trife rubbed off, crutch won i,
the fray, and pair of eloquent eye
Now the Major had none of these
poor fellow! but the very question
able crutch and the eyes, and when h
turned these last full upon Laura sh
felt as if something were being sci
beyond her comprehension, som
some language was uttered {
which she had never been taugl
the A B G.; therefore the Major, fin,
ing that he spoke an unknown tongu
undertook to be his own interprete,
and put into English what he ha
previously put into his glance.
Il 1t was the confusion Of tongue.
Laura was confounded !: she had m
J him, on and Of, for six weeks, sat b