The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1876-06-17
THE WHITE LILY.
CONTINUED FROM FIRST PAGE.

boy" he said. CAN will say to you is,
plans for her."
Then he turned his back upon me, and
walked away among his tulips, leaving me
angry and defiant.
| never thought of giving Gretchen up,
however, and when for days the old man
kept her from me, and do what | might |
could catch no glimpse of her, l vowed to
punish him for his cruelty by running
away with her and marrying her against
his will.
If she loved me she would not be will
ing to be separated from me, | thought,
and fancied her locked up in her own room,
kept from meeting me by force. / wan
dered about the house of old neighbor
Werner like a ghost, and almost deter
mined to force an entrance; but at last she
came to me one sunny afternoon and look
ed over the fence, with her arms folded
upon it, as she used when she was a child.
Gretchen | cried, and ran to her and
put my arms about her. "Gretchen, my
udIIuS, yOu nave COlilc W me dt
She gave little sigh, and drew herself
away from my embrace.
cit is for the last time, Ezra she said,
s'father told me l might bid you good bye"
"Good- byer l faltered.
''Yes," she said, GO must never talk to
you again.
"1ou have promised to be my wife," l
said. "You have said you loved me-
What do you mean? He has frightened
you by locking you up. You think his
power is absolute
60 No one locked me up" she said quiet
ly. 81 have been told to stay within the
doors out of your sight, and l obeyed. 1t
was wrong of me to promise anything
without fathers leave. | thought it was
different in such case, and liked you so,
but l know now how unmaidenly it was.
Father has told me-
"You stayed from me of your own free
WILL l said. "You were not restrained.
o, Gretchen
"Father gave me his orders One must
obey ones parents. 1t is Gods law" she
said.
Easy to obey when you are willing l
said bitterly. % Parents could not keep
me from you if you wanted me, Gretchen"
The tears were falling fast over her
cheeks. She sobbed heavily.
so, Ezra, if you only knew" she said.
8" must obey"
Then she drew the ring 1 had given her
from her finger.
Father says l must return this" she
said, and it seemed as though she could
not speak for weeping.
But / was cruel to her.
"Of your own free will, because you do
not care for me ~ asked.
81 cannot change my feelings she
said. perhaps they are wrong, but l
must always like you better than any one
else. But father says l must not marry
you, and that must give back the ring"
felt it drop into my palm. / clutched
it fiercely. There was flat stone close by
the fence, and l dropped the ring on that
and ground it to atoms beneath my heel.
She only sobbed the more.
'Don't be angry with me, Ezra she
said. &C 1t is not my fault
But l would not listen to her. turned
from her and walked away. Judging by
myself, she could not care for me, if any
thought of obedience could stand between
us.
That night l packed my portmanteau
and left home. l could not stay there so
near her and yet have nothing more to do
with her.
l never forgot her for moment, but
did not talk of the past to any one.
| had an uncle in Detroit, and l went to
him. He was farrier and taught me his
business, and soon l was able to make
money at it. But money was nothing to
me now, except so far as it was needed to
enable me to live from day to day. sent
it to my parents, and they, needing nothing
put it away in the bank with the little
store they were saving for my good.
Sc But we are glad to have such an in
dustrious son." said my mother; "and
when you bring home some pretty Cana
dian girl, you will be glad to have little
nest egg to start with
| had no thought Of any girl, however
pretty, for wife; but mother could not
guess how deeply had been wounded.
Day and night l kept thinking of Gret-
chen, aud always l kept on my bed room
window sill, in china pot, one of those
pure white lilies which always reminded
me of her. But l never asked a question
about her, and five years passed by-five
anniversaries of our betrothal day, and l
did not know even whether she had mar
ried, or was yet Gretchen Werner.
1t was the sixth anniversary of that day
when went home to my little room earlier
than usual. l had been strangely nervous
all day, starting at any sound, and feeling
as though, every time the door opened,
that some one had come to bring me evil
news. And l had thought of Gretchen a
great deal, and it seemed to me that writ
ing long letter home to my mother would
comfort me.
| sat down to my desk near the window,
the shadow of the lily always mentally
called Gretchen falling over the papers
when the evening wind swayed it. The
sun was going down, and all was very
calm and peaceful. A kind of Sabbath
hush seemed to have fallen on everything,
and | wondered why it was.
| told you l had never asked word
about Gretchen before; that day added "a
postscript to my letter.
Sc Is Gretchen Werner well, and living
near you"' I said. "Tell me something
about her,
Just as | said these words the lily
shadow swaycd more darkly over my
paper, and looked up. Beside the lily
stood Gretchen, white as the flower ITSELF
and robed in white. Her long, fair hair
dropped over her bosom, and between her
crossed hands lay bunch of lily flowers