Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1876-04-05

i
waited for the regular three weeks pub
lishment," one Of the legal forms essential
In those days. They were to be cried" for
the first time on that pleasant Sunday
afternoon on which this story opens. And
Mr.. Beaman, whose duty 1t was to per-
form that office, stood up before the con-
gregation and published the banns Of
marriage between Elizabeth Heath and
Mark Boynton! No wonder the people
| were thunderstruck, and that they moved
| in silent amazement out of the church
| But once the crowd was fairly out
| side the sacred edifice, comment and
| question were free. MFR. Beaman was
| beset by inquiries. Ezra Jocelyn was
| there, angrily accusing him of wantonly
| insulting his daughter and his brother.
| The poor man was completely bewil-
| dered. He did not understand that
| anything was wrong. He had been
| called upon by Robert Jocelyn to pub
lish the intention of marriage between
himself and Lizzie Heath, and he had
done it.
"Why, man alive!" exclaimed by
stander, 1T was not Robert Jocelyn's
name that you called, but Mark Boyn-
TONS"
The unlucky clerk could not believe
it possible that he had made such mis-
take until the reiterated assertions of all
his neighbors convinced him. He could
| only explain it by the fact that he had
thought good deal of the peculiar cir
cumstances of the case The had heard, he
said, the women folks talking it over
and had pitied the adverse fate of the two
young people crossed in love; and he
must have had Mark Boynton so much in
his mind that he had spoken the latter's
name unconsciously A fine commotion
his blunder had raised.
Mrs. Jocelyn, with flushed and angry
face, took Lizzie's arm and hurried her
| away. She believed the whole thing was
| trick of Marks; and she suspected that
Lizzie might be privy to it. But she
prudently repressed her anger until they
reached home, and there Lizzie quickly
| escaped to her own room and locked her
| self in SO the good woman's lecture had
to be postponed
| AS for Mark Boynton, the last syllable
| of the benediction was hardly spoken be-
| fore he was out of the house. Curious
| eyes followed him, but no one had time to
| speak to him, for he quickly sprang over
stile leading from the churchyard to
foot path across the fields, aud disappeared
in the wood beyond.
But doubtless the saddest, the most
plying sympathy of the crowd went
after Robert Jocelyn, as, with face
white and immoyable as that of the
| dead, he moved through the throng,
which divided to let him pass, and walked
| away to his home. He sat down by the
open window through which the pen
sive autumn sunshine streamed in warm
and sweet, and hurying his face in his
hands, remained long time lost in
gloomy thought Bitter memories crowd
ed thick upon him. The struggle in
his soul was cruel one, but it was the
better part OF him which conquered. Aft
er a long time he lifted his head, and
drawing out his watch, took from the
inner part of the old-fashioned silver
case lock of hair, faded now, but once
bright, warm brown. Over it lay lit
tie watch-papcr on which was painted in
watercolors wreath of forget me.nots
encircling two clasping hands. Under
meath the whole was the name " Phoebe"
tie gazed at these treasures long and
steadily, while the hard look OF suffering
went out of his face, and his eyes grew
tender and moist with tears. He leaned
his elbow on the window sill and looked
out across the happy autumn fields to the
church-yard where for so many years
poor Phoebe had rested from her sor
rows.
Then his eye went on to his brothers
house, from the door OF which he present
ly saw little Lizze pass out and take the
path to the orchard AT sight of her his
lip quivercd slightly he heaved one great
sigh, and then said, as if summoning
strength for some final resolution, Yes,
l will go and tell her"
Poor Lizzie had thought her cup was
full before; bu. this day she was sure she
could bear no more; and escaping as soon
as possible from her mother, she sought
the only place where she was likely to be
uninterrupted, that she might cry her
heart out alone. She hurried along till
She reached her favorite seat beneath an
ancient apple tree whose long branches
dropped so low as to almost touch the
ground. On one side was the wall, and
on another huge barberry bush, so that
she was almost entirely shut from view,
and any one approaching could not be
seen until close upon her.
Now, not far distant from the Jocelyn
| orchard, and separated from it only by a
small field was pleasant strip of wood
land. II was part of Mark Boynton's
farm and up and down its shaded paths
their owner had been restlessly walking
ever since lie left the church. He alone,
of all present that day, had understood in
a flash the old mans blunder and its cause.
In that moment, when he drew himsel
proudly up in the face of all who looked
at him. he was saying TO himself, "She
belongs to me, and she shall be mine.
That notice shall be repeated here, and it
shall he no blunder"
Now, rs he resllessly paced to and fro,