The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1875-12-30

with me, I shall be very much obliged
to you."
The young lady finished her sentence
as If she did not know what to say, and
80 said the truest thing she could think
of, which is what we are all in danger of
doing ut times.
"Well, I'm sure ~ said Deb's mother.
Dabitra, tell the LADY,
But Dabitra could not tell the lady,
for she was already out of the door, and
down stairs, and away into the street.
And, indeed, Deb could not have told
the lady-has never told the lady-can
never tell the lady.
If all the summer skies, and the gold
of summer sunlight, and the shine Of
summer stars fell down into your hands
at once, for you to paint scrap-b books
with, should you know what to say2
Into the poor little scrap-book of
Deb's life the colors of heaven dropped
and blir ded her on that bewildering,
beautiful, blessed ride.
In Just an hour the sleigh was there,
with the easiest cushions, and the warm
est robes, and bells-the merriest bells
and the straight young lady. And
Jim McMahoney was there and he car
ried her down stairs to "set" her. And
her mother was there, and wrapped her
all up in an old red shawl, for Deb had
no "things" like other little girls. The
young lady remembered that, and she
had brought the prettiest little white
hood that Deb had ever seen, and Deb's
face looked like bruised day lily bed
between the shining wool, but Deb
could notsee that; and Mrs. McMahoney
was there, pairing onions at the door, to
wish her good luck and all the little
McMahoneys were there, and all the
children who did wonder and the
grocer turned in at the alley corner, and
the baker stopped as he turned out, and
everybody stood and smiled to see her
start. The white horse paved the snow,
and held up his head-Deb had never
seen such horse-and the young lady
had gathered the reins into her brown
gloves, and the sleigh bells cried for Joy
how they cried-and away they went,
and Deb was out of the alley i'll
minute, and the people in the alley hur-
rahed, and hurrahed, and hrurahed to
see her go.
That bewildering, beautiful, blessed
ride How warm the little white hood
was! How the cushions sank beneath
her, and the fur robes opened like feath-
ers to the touch of her poor thin hands
How the bells sang to her, and the snow
drifts blinked at her, and the icicles and
the slated roofs, and sky, and the peo
ple's faces smiled at her
"What's the matter ?" asked the
young lady; for Deb drew the great
VOLTS robe over her face and head, and
sat so for a minute, still and hidden.
The young lady thought she was fright
ened.
"But only want to cry little" said
Deb's little smothered voice. 81 must
cry little first"
When she cried little she held up
her head, and the shine of her pretty
white hood grew faint beside the shine
of her eyes and her cheeks. The bewil-
dering, beautiful, blessed ride
Streets, and d crowd, and church
spires were in it-yes, and wedding
and funeral, too; all things that Deb
had seen in her high chair in the day
time with her eyes shut, she saw in the
sleigh on that ride with her eyes opened
wide.
She was very still. The young lady
did not talk to her, and she did not talk
to the young lady. The horse held up
his head. 1t seemed to Deb to be fly
ing. She thought that he must be like
the awful beautiful horse in Revelation.
She felt as if he could take her to heaven
Just as we'll as not, if the young lady S
brown gloves should only pull the rein
that way.
They rode and rode. In and out of
the merry streets, through and through
the singing bells, about and about the
great church spires-all over, and over,
and over the laughing town. They
rode to the river, and the young lady
stopped the white horse so that Del
could look across, and up and down al
the shining stream and the shining
bank.
"There is so much of it, said Deb,
softly, thinking of the crack of it that
she had seen between two houses for
fifteen years. For the crack seemed to
be very much like fifteen years in high
chair, aud the long, broad-shouldered,
silvered river seemed to her very much
| like this world about which she had
wondered.
They rode to the mills, and Del
trembled to look up to their frowning
walls, and to meet their hundred eyes
but some of the girls who wore the little
pink bows, and who knew her, came
nodding to look down out of them, and
she left off trembling to laugh; then,
in minute she trembled again, for, all
at once, without any warning, the great
bell pealed the time just over her head,
and swallowed her up in sound. She
turned pale with delighted terror, and
then she flushed with terrified delight,
Did it pray, or cry, or laugh ? Deb
did not know. 1t seemed to her that il
the white horse would carry her into
the great heart of that bell, she never
need sit in high chair at window
again, but ride and ride with the young
lady. 1t seemed to her like forever and
forever.
They turned away without speaking,
and rode aud rode. Daylight dimmed
and dusk dropped, and see all the town
blazed with lights. They rode and rode
to see the lights. Deb could not speak,
there were so many lights.
And still she could not speak wher
they rode into Brick alley, and Jim Nc
Mahoney and her mother, and the chill
dren who did not wonder, came out tC
meet her and take her back to her higl
chair.
She was too happy to speak. She
need never wonder any more. She coult
remember.
But the young lady did not want he
to speak. She touched her white horse
and was gone in a minute; and when thu
bell rang them to sleep that night-fo