The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1876-12-24
PRICE THREE CENTS.
THANKFUL BLOSSOM.
A ROMANCE OF THE JERSEYS
f7,a.'

BY BRET HARrn

drew up her sweating mare beside the
! Blossom farm gate. She had never looked
| pretticr, she had never felt more embar-
| rasscd a. she entered her own house. Dur.
ing her rapid ride she had already framed
speech of apology to Major Van Zandt.
which, however utterly fled from her lips
rs that officer showed himself respectfully
on the threshold Yet she permitted him
TO usurp the functions of the grinning
Caesar and help her from her horse, albeit
she was conscious of exhibiting the awk-
ward tmidity of % ba-hful rustic until at
last, with stalnmcring "Thnnk yc,' she
actually ran mp stairs to hide her glowing
face and far too conscious eyelids
During the rest of that day Major Van
! Iandt quietly kept out of her way, with
out obtrusivelv scoiniug to avoid her. Yet
when they met casually in the performs
ance of her household duties, the inno-
cent Mistress Thankful noticed, under her
downcast, penitentin eyelids. that tho
eyes of the officer followed her intcntly.
And thoreat she fell unconsciously to imi-
tating him, and so they eyed each other
! furtively like cats. and rubbed them'elves
along the walls OF rooms and passages
when they met, lest they should seem de-
signcdlv 10 come near each other, and
cnactod the gravcst aud most formal OF
! CcnuhcNions. couitcsicS, and bows when
they accidentally did meet Aud just at
the close of the second day, ns the elegant
| Major Van Iandt was feeling himself fast
becoming drivolling idiot and an awk-
ward country BOBBY, the arrival of
courier from headquarters saved that gem
tlcman his self-respect forever.
Mistress Thankful was in her sitting
room when he knocked at the door. She
| opened IL in sudden. conscious trepidntion.
"l ask pardon for intru1ing, Mistress
! Thankful Blossom" he said, gravely, but
| have here"-he held out u pretentioua
document-"a lottcr for you from head
| quarters. May | hope that IT contains
| good ncws-the release Of your inthcr-
aud that It relieves you from my preseice,
aud an cSpi indgc which assure you can-
not bc more unpleasant 10 you than it has
! been TO niysclL'
\, he entered the room. Thankful had
risen to her feet with the fun intontion of
d.iyciing to INN her little set apology.
hut as he ended la. speech she looked ut
him hlankly--aud burst out olNine.
Of course hc WAS in an instant at her
NiA' ANil ltitit- ii'.l 'V.'l HAAt' hhl's
Then she managed to -ay, between her
tcar-. that She had been wanting To mako
an apology to him; that she had wanted
To say ever since she arrived that she had
been rude, very iudc. and that she knew
he never could forgive her; that she had
been trying TO say that She never could
forget his gentle ioibeaIanre, "only," She
aidod, suddenly raising her tear-fruged
brown lids To- the a,toui,h-d man, "gnH
.''l'icrrr hf u,."
" Dear Mistress Thankful sali the
Major i'm cou-oienc"-,trickcn horror. if
have made myself distant to you, believe
mo II was only because feared 10 iutruie
upon your sorrow. lrcaliV-dcar Mi.troii
Thauktul- -"
When you took all the pains To- "a
round the han instead Of through the dll.
ing-ioom lest | should ask you 10 for.
give me- -obhrd Mistress Thankful "l
thought -you-must- hate me, and pre-,
fcircd to-
Perhaps this letter may mitigate youI
sorrow, Mistress rhauhlul,' said the Off.
cer pointing to Othelcttcr she stih held un.
consciously IN her haud.
With blush al her preDccupliion,
Thankful opened the letter. IL wa, half.
official document, nnd ran a. folloW-:
" lhc Commnndrr-in-Ch Chicf i- llal 10 in.
form Mistress Thankful Blossom that the
charge preferred against her father have,
upon fnii examination, been found ground.
less and trivial. The Commaudcr-in-Ch Chicf
further hcgs TO inform Mistress blossom
that the con'lcman known to her under
thr name of the Baron romp1so, wu- his
EXprllcncy Don Junn Morales, Amha.,l,
dor ana Envoy ENtluortiuar, OF tine Court
of ~puu, and rhnt the gentleman kuowu
To her as the Count Ferdinand. Mai
Senoi Godov, Secretary 10 the Embassy
The Command,I-n-CAlcf Wshc, to add
TINT Mistress Thankful Blossom IS relieved
Of any further obligation OF hospitality
toward these honorable gentlemen, ~ th,
Communicated llef regrets To record th'
sudden and deeply-to-be-dcp dcntt
of his EXcencncy this morning by ~ phoid
tcvcr. and the possible speedy return VI
the Embassy.
" In conclusion the Coulniu Ter in-' mri
wi,hc, to bear testimony lo tho Truthful
nos, Intuition, uuJ Dl-,ieuou of Mistress
Thankful Blossom.
" ,.orI. rof h'. rvcrlleucy
Gou. GLoHrL MA-ulNer"N.
ALIEN II NNiLfIN, Secretary.
J" M,,trc,, 1uA>ErcL blossom ol B!,s
rom taIu.
Ihmhfd Blo-.um wa, .lcb t'r a few
moments. nud then raised her abashcd
eye, 40 Major Van Iuplt single plauos
satisfied lcr that lac kutN nothing of tho
mpo,,urc that had hccu piaoii-ei upon
hcr-hucw nothing Of the uup into which
her vanity and -clf-". % bad led her.
Dear Mistress Thankful, ,Wd thq
Major, seeing the di-tI,-. ia licr face,
trust the news i-u't IN. surely gathered
from tho sergeant that"
What said Thankful, looking a, Inn
intcutlY.
"Ihut IN twonty-tour n.u- no T1hp-t
your father would l. u.D, .. ''.i I
suou'd hc rel py,d--
"Ikuow that Nuuh'. .-wruy v.WiA-s
M0ior," said 'ruup .ll, h.NoI'. trI". 10.
uul, 90 know Nom .'olI.l' |Ol- .ni'.or
and thit my WLp rNou"u .Itio"
-uuly,- TIN, /, a lor-.'y auti''r. Wp.h.
mgton should tum oN' l' 'a saWDhody