The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1875-01-15
A SECOND LORLEI.

A SECOND LoRLEI.
Unfortunately for myself and every
| body who evsr saw me, am very beau
| tiful. It is not egOtism to make that
remark, for have had plenty of mis-
| haps on account of my looks, and every
| i'll that can befall family has been laid
| to the score of Franks terrible ap-
| pearance." When I was a child every
! thingwent wrong. Once on ferry-boat
a young and lovely lady, petting end
| talking to me, became so interested that
she quietly backed off the edge, and
| only the presence of mind and daring
of her husband rescued her in a very
| damp and choking condition. Nurse
scolded, mamma raised her hands in
horror, and the lady gave me the name
of LOrlei," which have ever since
retained.
was q continual source of anxiety
lest I shGuld be kidnapped by some
childless people, and made into a cir
cus-rider, or an heiress. My life was
miserable, with the guard set around
me, to say nothing of q dozen or two
toilets a day, my hair to be combed
and brushed necessarily, and myself
kissed and fondled like q lap-dog. It
grew no better, later. Ny sisters hap
pened to be very plain, and couldn't
help il if / got all the invitations,
bouquets, and proposals, and they re-
ceived none To make il worse, one Of
my admirers died of heart disease, and
left me the large fortune that should
have gone to his sisters ; and then they
loved me excessively. Of course
Icombed my hair in the most horri-
ble way / could invent, u ore stiff col
lars up TO my ears, plain dresses of sober
color, made faces at myself in the glass
by the hour, and all to no purpose.
Ny hair would turn into the cunniDgest
little ringlets about my forehead, and
fall down il q golden mass of curls Just
at the wrong time. The neck above the
ugly linen no amount of sun could make
other than white and well-turned and
the clumsy dress hid q form OF the most
perfect mOuld-stately, smooth and
rounded as only a healthy English girl
can ever hope to be.
/ couldn't have any girI-friends, for,
without meaning it. captured their low
ers they grew jealous and called me
names: and the attachment usually
ended in q storm of tears and reproaches
on the ono part, dismayed repentance
on the other. I couldn't have gentle
man friend, for, if single, he proposed
in a month, and if married, the wife
came to the rescue, and I got the worst
of il. I tried one plan, and you shall
have the result: I cut my hair off
nearly close, and mercy me II had
done the business. I was bandsomer
than before I looked q very picture
of mischief, my hair ourled tighter than
ever, and my eyes would dance, spite of
all the sober books / read, and all the
sad things I tried to think of. I took
Aunt Hetty into my confidence, one day
when she came to the city to buy some
furniture for her country house, and
promised as soon as her sons started for
school, would be with her TO spend
the summer. made my preparations
secretly, and only on the day of my de-
parture asked and received permission
to go unmatched and alone. Used to
my freaks, mamma asked no questions,
but gave me some advice-to "wear
thick veil in the cars, not to take my
gloves off, and not to wink at any one"
As though ever knowingly did wink !
My own sisters would not have known
the little brown mouse of q girl that
sat so demUrely IL the car on its way to
ROckbridge. [ had ordered a wig made
of bright red hair, and il was a very
marvel in it's way. Short, crisp, fiery
curls covered my head closely, well
down on the neck, and twining lovely
around my ears. A dress of water
proof of the most ungraceful cut |
and make, green glasses, shoes and |
gloves two sizes too big, and with the |
exception Of mouth and complexion, [ |
was hideous. Auntie would not believe |
that it was myself, until I had shown |
her my eyes, and spoken to her several |
times.
There was not a soul on the place |
that had ever seen me, except amt and |
uncle ; and as they called me ''Lorlie," |
the servants never suspected that | was |
the Frank Morrison they had heard so
much of from the young masters. |
There were few neighbors, and rather |
avoided them. For the first time in
my life I was ugly, and consequently |
happy. rode the horses, eat on the |
barnyard fence during the milking, fed |
the chickens, ate apples and new butter. |
took long walks in the woods, and my
big feet and scarlet hair never invited a
second glance from any one I passed.
What happy, jolly days they were to
me, only those who are blessed with too
much beauty and long to fee from the
consequences can imagire.
One morning took book, and 60
ing through the orchard, followed the
stream to a favorite nook, lay down,
and laughed the pretty, musical laugh
that was at once a pleasure and a bsne.
I laughed to think of myself in this
rig in an opera-box: and, looking at the
water. I said, "Why not be a real
." Lorlei for q while ?" No sooner
thought than done. Off came the
clumsy shoes and knitted stockings,
and holding my dress up went splash
ing in the shallow waters. I stepped
on big stone it rolled with me, and
sat down costly in the middle of the
brook, wet to my waist, and MY dismay
finished by the heartiest laugh you can
imagine. Looking at a part of the
bank that had not before noticed, I
saw a gentleman, in sporting dress,
holding a fishing-rod in one hand and
waving the other at me in the most
genial and pleasant manner. 1t might
have been that my eyes did not match
my hair /; at aIv rate, faucied that he
stopped laughing rather suddenly, aud
coming close down to the water stood
cycling me inquiringIy. l had been
angry at first but my usual sense of |