The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1876-08-03
rus ns>rrp PORTRAIT

DAYS she Wa grifiuR sorcly for bef dead
husband, 20 sorely that her good.hearted
braiherInaAw, E1ward El,iug made or
Biz mind that i wst part Of his mission
is life 70 i've ucsr bcr, 90 that be might
be able to look after The little widow aud
slieHd 70 her af.irs.
he announced Biz intention In ihe
following words.
Jennie, want house, and have sn
idea about the little brown stoue. next
door. Tom Harris Is going 70 Europe;
he told me hc expected to sail some time
+ in May lie closes bis house, no doubt
Now II occurs to me that for such ten
ants as mother snd myself shall send
for mother he will be willing TO rent the
place uull bis return next fall. should
be cioso al hand, my girl, aud able 10
keep an eye upon you aud also upon the
children.
The convenient Tom Harris, who had
not thought Of the possibility Of renting
bis bouso ia summer, and who was look
Ing for responsible person TO leave 10
charge, gladly accepted Edwgrd ftine's
proposal to rent the premises for siH
months. BY the middle Of May the wild
ow Eltng and her son were comfortably
established there.
Poor Jennie was wonderfully sustained
by the aiIectiouate arrangement next door,
She leaned upon it, she said bat Edward
Eiing there was something very lonely
shout the strange house with the strange
furniture that lacked all the old assoea-
tions which could make il seem like 4
home.
One evening in late September, when
the heavy storm, the equinoctial, had
brought a keen autumna chill, while
musing in the nfe-lght OF hi. chamber,
he remembered that flippant proverb,
Lucky in cards, unluck, ia love.
Not that he played cards, or that he
was in love, But the adaSe started up
whimsicaly, and reflected upon bis life
Rarely had a self-made man attained so
easily, by such honorable means, a fair
fortune before middle age; and rarely
had man. 30 capable OF tender affection,
reached Eiling's age of lhirty-six without
a taste OF true love- To be sure, circum-
stances IN part explained this: there had
been SO many helpless ones dependent
upon him, there had seemed no time to
think of self
The half good of the ilippant proyerb
brought no smile to Eting's face this low.
ering September night. No; all summer
long, and at its close, when the sad scenes
shrouded bis brothers home, there had
b zen growing in his heart, even while be
comforted others, aIongiDg for something
nearer aud dearer than the love of sister
aud mother and brother.
Perhaps the room which he occupied in
TIE rented house had exerted some iufu-
ence to the effect, II walls have ears,
why should they not have mouths? And
these walls had much to say of delecta.
bic affection aud happy married conf.
dences
Elting himself himself ascribed the phe.
nomenon TO the influence of picture
the picture of a woman's face that hung
above the fire. place directly opposite his
bed. Every morning that sweet grave
ace was the first object that met his
eyes, At night, as he closed his Bible,
and was about TO extinguish the lamp
on the reading stand, he gave one parting
glance TO the expressive canvass. Act
ually the pictured canvass had Influenced
his summer. How must the heart of
man repose Itself, he thought, with a
sigh, upon a woman whose soul should
prove soberly sweet aud daintily
compassionate, ike the face in the pic.
ture.
lie arose from bis musing, fastened to-
gether some little packages he had brought
up town for tho children, and presently,
All selfish dreaming cast aside, appeared
Ia the expeetant parlor "neXt door,
Mrs. Peter r. Perricaste was u crea-
ture OF impulse, and some of her impul-
ses were kind. II was one of her kind
impulses that induced her TO invite TO the
Perricastle summer-place, as guest for a
week 10 July, "poor Miss Dexter" the
I teacher ia town OF select infant class,
Of which the infant Perticastles were
Z members.
The truth is, said Mrs Perricastlc to
her audience OF neighbors, the girls
pale face haunt's me. Besides, she add
ed, with unconscious mixture OF motive,
.he is Of excellent fanily-related 10 the
De1ters Of u; and just now nobody
/. with me bat sally Deyeraux, whom |
do not count auy body, you know.
When the stylish envelope, with II.
+ mont gram IN lreolor and gilt, reached
Miss Dexter, that pale young woman
was beuding over her desk, which had
been removed for vacation from tie
sehool.roOm TO The small upper room Of q
diugy boarding house, aud she was ia
i the midst Of sum iu arithmetic. Two
columns to be added; the greater TO b,
snbtracicd from BY the less. Tie items
OF one column: board for an invalid moth
er, loans TO a waywsrd brother, board
and clothing for little sister, rent fol
scuopl-room, board aud clothing for SELF
NJ earnings The other column Add
I'D subtract. Simple enough! Tie
yeriest tyro IL that scboolroom tare aud
tfet, the inveterate tii-,artoe of the ia
iaat elass, would have laughed At ih,
easy task. Aud vet