Litchfield enquirer., 1876-11-23

Gd11y 0opbCuU0E OCAt1d OH the rocks by the shore alone. She never was afraid to go where she chose, and somet res her hardihood made me anxi- ous fcI i,er, Tonight l sat down beside her. and was welcomed as usual, silently, but with smile. Neither of us spoke, and. strangely enough. I d1d not think of my plans or myself. The soft langnor of the oceans breath stole oyer the rock like caress; a warm wind came across the Gulf Stream, and bathed us in the Nereids' summer, the Hull of life, the rest of nerve the sense and brain.
 I do not hnow what subtitle conscious ness of the truth inspired me, but be- came suddenly audacious: I folded my arm about Gratia: she did not repel me: she dropped her beautiful head on my shoulder! Don't expect to hear what we said. for to this hour can not tell myself; only that the heart of the rose told us it's secret of perfume, and we went back to the house no more full of gay or thought full speech, but in silence like the still ness of dawn. In it was the break of day to us. --- it5 1
 In November we were married, and as Gratia was not altogether strong, we went South to pass the winter, and returned in May to New York, ,whereL took upon myself the harness of business in Wall Street, and Gratia ruled over our household, the mildest and frmest of sovereigns.
 can not say that became so used to my wlfe's presence and affection that love cooled off into that mild friendship rec commended by novels. Something always charmed and captivated~ me more and more about her, She was not verbally 1a., q ,I>. rarely called me any thing but John, "' in the most matter-of-fact accent; but if I slept, as sometimes did, after fatigu- ing day, on the sofa, she would wait till seemed unconscious, bring her little at messtill II woke; all unconscious herself how often I feigned sleep to see her pret- ty pantomine of tenderness. Or she would fling herself on the floor beside my chair, and rest her head on the arm, ly my hand sought aer hair and caressed its silky bands, or reposed quietly upon that shining surface Rarely, very rarely, when I used my best persuasions to draw from her some word of love--a capricious amusement confess-she would say only "dear!" but with such unutterable into
 
 ture, and gave it more force to content me than the widest protestatiOns of pas sion from any other lips could have car mony, "My dear!" never passed Gratla's lips. She hated it as I did, and never ei- ther of us used the expression; nor even heard it from others without Q certain in- ward cringing at it's possibilities.
 c0N her dress. I never saw her otherwise than delicately neat, and in well-chosen and becoming colors. Every detail was punctilious in freshness and fitness, and certain picturesque charm was impart' ed to her simplest costume by her grace full figure, her pure taste, and the cOlors that her style demanded 1t was 8 per- petual compliment to feel that so lovely a woman daily adorned herself for my pleasure, felt my admiration full recom- pense, thought of me when I was away. and reioiced in my return! You perceive dear reader, am neither more nor less than a man!
 And yet grew into the knowledge, day after day, that Gratia was infinitely my superior; not merely in those holy femi- nine instincts that are common to women, or in quickness of intuition, but in real scope of mlnd; in judgment; in that rare trait in women; power to plan course ot action with contingent resources. But did not regret this knowledge, was too we'll aware of Gratia's humility to fear that she would usurp authority, or exalt herself in consciousness If not in action. but had either of these possibilities come to pass in her heart, her exceeding sweet ,,oeo of %aro,>or xx,or7l1 hovo rriv thoOO rO room to act. There was never any jar be- tween us-no jealousy, no dispute, no re- elimination. l have seen marriage pur- gatory without purifying in it's fires; have seen it like he'll except for limita- tions of existence; I have seen it altogeth- CT earthly; and there have been brief rap lures, cut short in their full promise by death, that are heaven-like while they en- dure But my marriage life was ikest what Swedenborg tells us of the states af- ter death, where men who gravltate to- wards goodness are taken in charge of a good angel and divinely educated up to higher and higher plains of spiritual beauty: for my wife taught without inten. tion, by her lovely life. All that feared was that I should, in spite of myself, learn to tyrannize over such want of
 
 hateful to myself in that tyranny even more than to her. Perhaps this would have ensued had she been merely gentle and lovely; but there was certain spirit and piquancy in every thing she said and did, that vitalized, as it were, all her life from hour to hour, and kept me always expecting. because I never knew certainly what was to come. @
 nd r in " hnr hQ n ever! The frail passion that impelled me to seek her for my own I looked back up- on almost with amusement. and wondered how could have supposed myself in love when as yet I knew scarce a thousandth part of her nature or her power. It was love, no doubt, that held for the girl; but if that was love, what was 1t that l felt now for my wife? gr..e.... ..-
 Nearly three years after our marriage Gratia fell very i'll; night and day for a week she was in danger, and her recov- cry was slow and insecure. The physician ordered her to the seaside as soon as she could be moved, and took her home to my mother in June; returning, as my business demanded me, to the house that almost seemed strangers without Gra- tia. The summer erept slowly away. l missed my wife more and more; the care less servants needed her eye upon them; dust gathered thickly wherever it should not have been; the formal furniture, ar ranged in order suggested the idea of a funeral; and the solitary meal I took at home was ill-cooked and worse served. No flowers of bright warm day, no fires in the chill of rain, no perfume, or grace, or vivid color, such as she diffused in the house she inhabited, wherever or what ever it was, but comfortless shelter, whose luxuries were dreary aids to exist ence-an empty nest from which bird and brood had flown.
 was not able to leave my business all that summer A financial crisis impend- ed over the country day by day saw it's blackness gathering afar off, and knew it must soon sweep across every merchant, far and near, with ruin and desolation. Could escape? What would my wife do? Still it was impossible for her to return to the city; and. verse than all, she was for bidden to write, even. to me. My only information was gleaned from my moth- CTS weekly epistles, and was scarcely ever any thing but statistic bulletin of symp- | L.-.. T