Weekly Trinity journal., 1875-09-11
NUMBER 81.

a little while.
"You were wrong, Miss Agnes, about
her-I mean Lucy"
WAS /, Martin ?"
Yes. l don't blame her. 1t was
natural for her to feel so. If l had been
well and hearty l should have got over
it somehow, l suppose, instead OF" he
stopped abruptly, then drew a note and u
card photograph from under his pillow.
81 want you take these, Miss Agnes,
and afterwards send them to her, and
just say that loved her to the last, aud
don't thinl, hard in any way. Read it it
you like; the note, mean. Don't let
her feel bad. Don't tell her it killed me.
Oh, Luly, Luly !"
These words of complaint, the only
ones heard him utter, were his farewell
TO conscious life. After that all was thick
cloud and delirium or peaceful, mercilul
unconsciousncss Now aud then through
the wanderings came murmured words
Enough of your body to hold your soul
- enough Of your body to hold your
soul" "Luly, you like the cherry hin
road we'll take it," "Smcll the lilncs,
Luly, smell the llacs." And sgain,
"Ah, Miss Agnes was wrong " Out OF
theso dreary shadows, out of the life so
CALAMITY borne, the love wounded and
betrayed, on the evening Of the fourth
day after Luly's letter came, our Martin
passed into tho full awakening.
We read the note, sitting beside his
chill and peaceful presence. His wander
ing words had betrayed the truth, and /
did not withhold it from Jessie. Her
face seemed cut in stone as we read
"MR. JosEPH MARTIN II take up
my pen to say that | got your letter, and
ma and all OF us are very sorry for your
accident. About our engagement, we
was both young, and it's only natural for
II girl to feel bad Mt having n husband
that ism. like other mon. So think,
and ma, too, that we had bottcr call it
broken Off. You was real generous to
mako the offer, and hops there won't be-
any hard feelings about it.. Ma sends her
respects and hopes you'll soon be we'll.
SO no more at present from
ours truly, LUCY ALLEN.
"I'll take it to her." said Jessie.
She was very pale. Her set face looked
old and gray. In her hand she held Lu
ly's picture, the photograph of II girl with
long, lustrous ringlots, and n face whose
delicate beauty was only marred by
certain coqucttish pose Of the head and
quality of expression.
"You must give Martins message,
them" and | repeated it Ns exactly as |
could.
"Ill give it"-with the same set look,
That evening Martin went home in his
coffin, and tho following morning Jessie
followed to attend the funeral which was
fixed for the ensuing week.
81 shall come back" were her last
words. "There is nothing for mo to do
there. | shall come back and work here
for SPELL"
We darod not count on this promise,
much as wo wished her return; but ten
days later she appeared, looking some
older, but the samo cheerful, capable lit
tie woman. All that Summer and Au-
tumn she staid, giving most valuable
aid quiet always, handy, indeintigable,
tender-al that nurse should be.
1t was more than n month before she
in any way alluded to Martin or to the
errand she Ind undertaken. One eve
ming, in a hull of occupation, AS wo sat
under the trees for half-hour's rest, she
spoke, won to confidence, perhaps, by the
dewy quiet and soft twilight sounds OF
the birds twittor and the sleepy insects
hum.
81 gave that noto"-ablupty.
"Yes, Jessie, knew you would"
"But | didn't give il as you meant
should-or-as- meant - she went
on with n tremor in the steady voice.
"She came TO the funeral, that girl She
has another beau now; but there was
such stir in the village about Martin,
that she wanted to share in the glory
somehow Miss Agnes, she put on
biack :"
ImpOsslDle
"She did We we're all in the room
with him-mothor and his father and
aunts and uncles and me. And she came
in like widow, in II Grape veil, and sat
down by tho coffin and cried md held her
handkerchief over her face boreit till
they took him away, because he loved
her SO but when they carried him out,
| couldn't bear it any longer ljustgot
up before them all. | took the note out
OF my pocket, and went across the room
and said
Here. Lucy Allen, this is for you
"She was frightened, and caught her
breath.
Take it, / said. IT'S the note you
wrote Joe Martin, breaking Off your en-
gagement because he had given an arm
10 the country. And here's your picture.
You're pretty enough, Lucy Allen, but
you've killed the boy who loved you, just
as much as though you'd sent the bullet
through his arm He was doing we'll
the day your note came, and three duys
after he was dead. He died because he
did not Want to tue any i0nger IN Tho
same gO,M NTH girl like yOu! Ho
forgave you; but | don't, and | never
will Take your note and go away !
loved w Joe. You didn't love him, or else
you would not have killed him ,"
The passion of her energy made me
shiver in that warm August air.
"Oh, Jessie And what did she say?"
"Nothing. She tainted, or made be-
lieve, and they got her home somehow.
| never want TO see her again"
"Martn forgave her. And the dear
Lord forgives us all, Jessie"
81 can't-don't ask me. Martin for
gave her he was good always; but for
me-" She hid her face for moment
and then raised it suddenly.
"He never once spoke my name MISS
Agnes. never once in all his wandering
II was always Luly. Luly ! And she
k.ol,a bis beart and then came 10 his iu-