The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1875-04-30

/
| rretty girl was the parsons daughter
| in natural beauty, the belle of the town
and all the prettier, she seemed to me,
| because Of the simplicity and purity of
| her attire. For many a morning l saw
| her pass and repass mywindow or, with
| in range thereof, her plump little arms
1 richly brOnzed by the sun, laden with
| fragrant and beautiful flowers, the re-
suit of her morning walk and finally
come to my window to look for her
alone. The freshness that seemed even
| to enshrOud her was, to me, my morn
| ing bouquet, and to have been deprived
of its fragrance would have made the
| day of my deprivation desOlate.
1 finally became acquainted with the
| parsons daughter, and when our ac-
| quaintance was of sufficiently long dura-
| tiOn to render my visits to her father
house quite proper, we learned to like
| each other very much in contemplating
| the grandeur of the scenery, the lovely
| points of which she seemed to appreci-
ate with an artists eye. Her language
was the language of the flowers, and her
voice as silYery as the waters of the
| golden brook that flowed gracefully at
the foot of the mountain. Her eyes
were soft, yet searching at times, and
] HA4CA i 4OOEASu 4uBO bLlO4L I4C1A CCD DIlSg
concluded some glowing tribute to ma
ture, l must confess I felt startled at
| the severity with which they were re-
| garding me. So suddenly, however,
would they melt again, and half OBJ
| scure themselves behind their satin lids,
that l half believed I was mistaken
when I imagined them capable of
harshness. At length I became deeply
| attached to my pretty little companion.
l felt that I dearly loved her, and would
have told her so, were it not for the
stony, freezing stare, with which she
checked all allusiOn to the tender pas
sion. had partially resolved to leave
the matter of our union to the agency
of time, when a circumstance occurred
that admonished me Of the dangers of
delay. One bright morning, some ten
or twelve weeks after my arrival, the
social atmosphere of NJ, for which
had long since ceased to furnish the
fragrance, was alive with rumOrs Of the
return of Roland Powers, the bankers
son, whose long absence from the town
had been OccasiOned by his European
tour. Roland, of course, had seen the
great wonders of the old world, had
lived in the capitals of Europe, and was
0u .fHit in whatever appertained to
Partisan life. He was tall, well-built,
handsome fellow, just the kind of man
to catch the eye and entrap the heart of
a romantic maiden. His face bore the
lines of dissipation, too, and for all the
world, he looked the beau ideal of a
mantle personifcatiOn of genteel
recklessness. l was Jealous of the at
tentions he received at first, but, finally,
when I discovered what a Jolly, good
fellow he was how entertaining, intel
ligent, devil-may- care and unselfish, [
learned to like him very much, indeed,
and finally ceased to think of the lion s
share of attention, which he invariably
received at the hands of the ladies.
He was dexterous at cards, and many
a game we played together in my apart
ments till the gray dawn was upon US.
Our acquaintance soon ripened into
friendship.
The summer had fled, and golden
autumn was about exchanging it's
lOveliness for the bleakness Of winter,
when, one evening, Roland and I saUn-
tered laziIy from the town for a short
tramp III the oDen country. He had
been exceedingly gloomy for several
days, and on this occasion, was partic-
uIarly so. His step seemed to have
been forsaken by it's accustomed eIas-
JlC1I1 LIS fCACC hGANA 4ODb Ag0 L4C41 0WCCS-
ness, and a deadly pallsr Overcame his
face.
g Are you i'll ?" I asked, as I sud
denly noticed his singular appearance
and demeanOF.
81 never felt better In m" life, old
boy-that is to say, physically. a
man has to think now and then, though,
and thoughts, you know, are not always
pleasant companions.
There was an earLestness IN his
strange words that startled me, and l
could not refrain from beseeching him
! to explain himself. We had grown so
very intimate that I fe.t authorized to
make the request.
''WeIl, as you wish it, will" he
said.
We sat down on the stump of a fallen
oak, by the side of the road, and for a
moment Roland buried his face in his
hands, as though in deep thought.
Then he looked up, and turned his
| eyes upon me with an earnestness that
I had never seen him tetray.
''Philip," he began, his voice trem-
| bling with some emotion which I could
not divine, "yOu do not know me.
am no more the man you believe me to
be than I am worthy d your esteem. .
Proceed" I said invOluntarily, q
strange sensation overcoming me that
made me dread, I kew not why, to
hear his revelation.
"DO not hurry me-" he replied
'' you will know all soon enough. You
have told me that you were about to be
married, and have asked me TO be your
groomsman. What would you think
of me if were to forbid this mar,
riage?"
"That you had taken leave of yoHl
senses, " 1 replied, annoyed by the as
perity of his tone.
Then let me tell yOU," he cOntin
ned, springing to his feet and scOwIinf
upon me like a demon, " that do for
lid ii ! Sooner than ToU should marry
that girl I'd" the words seemed tC
choke him, and his face was distorted
and livid, with wild, and, to me, unac
countable rage.
The insult that he had offered me
, however, was too palpable for me t.
overlook, and I rose from my seat de
termined to quit his presence and seeI
the satisfaction to which, as a gentle
: man, 1 believed myself entitled. He
sought to detain me, but with a strength
: to which I had long been a stranger,
shook him from me and hurried back K
2 the town. I proceeded at once to m!
/ room In the hotel overcome by the eX