The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1875-07-17

for the bleak days and nights of a New orS
winter He had no friends to took to, for his
Young aunt wa, left poor and tricndlcs- u
himself and his mother had been dead as long
AS he could remember; and he knew that II he
were to become anything above an Office
drudge-to win name or tOrtune-to climb
one step up the ladder OF lite--it must be by
his own unaided eXertions.
He was ambitious and hopeful, as all boys
are; but the winning of his daily bread ana
shelter was all his young hands could accom-
plish as yet And so the days passed on,
! bringing little change with them. Al night
| he studied robbng himself often OF han a
meal TO pay for necessary light ana hre, Ou'
sustained by the thought that knowledge Is
the keystone of all power, and that by appiI'
cation and self-denial as boy he might
some day become a renowned and wealthy
man.
1t was a hard lfc--a sad life, too, and he
grew into carly manhood gravcr and older
at heart than he would have been under other
circumstances. Slowly advancing, as the
years went on he had changed his old posi-.
ton for that of clerk in the same Office.
Another boy ran the errands, and Preston
was promoted TO high stool in the inner
Office where six other young men wrote from
morning till night in great soleMn-lookng
lcdgers, that made your very eyes ache they
were so ponderous.
! There it was that he first saw his old en-
ployer's daughter.
Often and often when the clerks were at
their business the sound OF carriage wheels
would break upon the silence, and q girls
laugh, and the rustic of silk, and a step as
that of fairy, would cause every pen to
pause upon the paper and every eye to iii
itself from the weary columns; and then,
past them, in all her bright young beauty
so adorned by costly robes and JEWS that she
scarcely seemed q common mortal-wouId
glide Miss Herbert, never casting glance at
any of them, but hurrylng towards the In
most office, where her father held solemn
conferences with his partners; mysterious
place in which the machinery Of that busl.
ness was, metaphorlcally speaking, old and
set IN motion.
And there would come from the sanctum
such merry sounds of girlish chat and laugh
ter that the clerks would pause again to tell
each other how sweet her voice was, and how
beautiful her face grew as she grew older,
and what an heiress she would be; for how
many thousands old Herbert could leave her
no one knew.
Preston never spoke one word; not because
he was Indifferent to her charms, but because
they impressed him more than they did 9th.
ers Without having spoken to her, without
feeling sure that she had ever seen him, al
ways understanding the impossible barrier
which her wealth and his poverty made be-
tween them Paul Preston had fallen in love
with Rosa Herbert. He could have knelt to
kiss the floor her feet lad trod. He felt a
certain reverence for the insignificant thing
she touched or trhed with.
Once he found glove dropped in the
passage, and knowing it to be hers, could not
bear to give it up, but kept It hidden IN his
bosom like some holy relic. twas roman
tic sort of boys love, but not the less pure
and earnest He was twenty years old now,
and tall and we'll developed for his age; and
in his lonely life he had found companion
ship in books. Many an old romance had
he read, and his ideas of life were, perhaps,
In measure borrowed from their pages, At
least this was the programme he had marked
out for himself.
| To love Miss Herbert all his life-and to
keep that love hidden from every mortal eye.
To win name and fame for her sake, that
though she might never know It, he should
be worthy of her, and at last to find her in
some peril, save her, sacrifice his life for her,
and, dying, let her know with his last breath
how he adored her.
And so amidst the long columns of figures,
Paul Preston wOve his day dreams Of romance
and love
Once only he was brought in contact with
his idol. During visit OF hers 10 her faith
er's office, a shower came on Between the
carriage and the doorstep lay just ten feet
Over that space of ground he walked beside
her, holding an umbrella to keep the rain
from her summer bonnet of misty gauZe and
NJ IInrbnrt hal lnlaptal hi m for
the purpose. He said;
paul Preston, carry this for Miss Herbert
and never guessed how the boys heart beat
at the words.
In the carriage the young lady turned her
lovely face toward him.
"What did papa call you" she said, inqu!r'
ingly.
Paul Preston-Miss Herbert
II thought So Thank you, Mr.. Preston"
And then the carriage drove away, taking
Paul's heart with it. He never guessed that
from that moment a secret influence was
working for his good. A vacant post await.
ed some one. To the surprise of all, Paul
Preston filled it, no one could tell why. lie
began to get on, Some of his dreams were
realized. Old Mr. Herbert took notice of
him. At last the old gentleman falling i'll
with govt, and being confined to the house,
\ SOulc OHc was HAUL upoh W atleuu hl NcA "a u
hours, with sundry ledgers always placed
under his own august eye at intervals That
some one was Paul Preston.
/ When he first heard this, and knew that ne
should absolutely pass hours beneath the
roof that sheltered the lady OF his love, the
boy fancied himself dreaming.
. There was more than this awaiting him
In her fathers study he found Rosa Herbert
lie heard her speak, watched her at her nee
die, saw her as the lovely household goddess
, that she was, in the great mansion, and fell
more deeply IN love than ever.
e. After awhile his feelings grew more intense
I and what was at first a JOY grew pain TC
= see her daily-to speak TO her-to know wha
she might be to him were he but rich iaaL
and yet to feel that never, never might hC
hope To approach nearer than he now stood
} Ia that beautiful creature, made his heart
ache.