Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1877-12-12
Two MOthers-in-Law.

"Oh, mother, il he only was an orphan
| would say yes tomorrow but I hate
| hate the idea of mother-in-law."
You might poison her, my dear" dryl,
remarked Mrs. DeGroot, stately old lady
with snow white hair, and any amount o
| Mechlin lace about her throat and wrist.
over her soft black silk dress.
But really, you dreadful old dear, yor
know IL will be awful" sighed Sue passing
| her little hands YEARLY through the darl
| fringes above her forehead.
my DEAR" said Mrs. De Groot you are
speaking in very ill-bred way; but lei
that rest. | have no idea that you will evel
be troubled with Mr.. Greys mother You
will not marry him. A girl who is dauntec
by mother-in-law does not love the sor
enough to marry him"
Sues pretty face flushed. Poor little soul
she had never yet known what love was ; but
she liked Mr.. Gray well enough. lie was
rich, kindly, pleasant man whom she had
always known; and when he asked her tc
marry him, she did not know why she should
refuse. She hated to hurt his feelings and
suddenly she thought of his mother, a disa
greeable old lady, who ruled and reigned
over all her family, and only did not tyran.
ize over John because he lived the life of a
bachelor in the city and boarded at a hotel
But here was reason for Sue and her
mothers words sank deeply into her con.
sciousness. She gathered courage to say no,
and year after found herself absorbed
heart and soul in real love affair, and ac-
cepted Harry Tempest, a young but rising
lawyer, with kind, generous, frank nature
and dark handsome face, without remem-
bering that he had not only mother but a
widowed mother, who lived with him. and
could not possibly be ignored or set aside,
since Harry was an only child. 1t is true,
Sue had never seen her, for during her six
months acquaintance with Harry, Mrs. Tenn
pest had been at the West nursing sister
who was at deaths door with consumption
and if Harry had not said much about her
to Sue, it was because other and more absorb
ing themes naturally occupied them.
Mrs. De Groot smiled when Susan laid
her fair head in her lap and recited to her
the tale of her engagement for she had seen
the end from the beginning, and had shed
her own tears privately. She had other
children besides Sue; but this was her dar-
ling, her baby, her pet always and such a
pang as mothers know went through her
neart when she saw the inevitable separa-
ton approaching, but she had the courage
and the goodness to smile and sympathize
when the girl poured out this genuine pas
sion, and threw herself with bushes and
tears into the arms that could never fail
her while they were instinct with life.
After the confidence was done with and
Sue had quieted both tears and Joy, Mrs. De
Groot bethought herself of the last time
there had been such an affair, or the like
ness of it, on the carpet and said, with the
quantest smile and accent, at once gentle
and mischievous, &" Has Mr.. Tempest a
mother, Sue?
"Oh yes She isn't here now. | never
saw her. She is in Chicago with her sister.
"What are you going to do about her 2
asked her mother.
"Oh, nanny, never thought about her
and she lives with him. How sorry | am
But guess she will be nice"
She may be very T ice 10 Henry, my dear
So was Mr.. Gray's mother to him"
"pm sure she cant be so disagreeable a:
old Mrs. Gray" pouted Sue, who was little
spoiled, to tell the truth.
Susan" said Mrs. De Groot. with con
siderable gravity, 81 want you to look thi,
thing in the face. You are young CIR
going to new home, with new people, whor
as yet you know nothing about. Now tax,
a little bit of advice. Look at yourself, no
at Mrs. Tempest, when you come to live to
gether. You know you have had an easy
life, with nobody to thwart your plans anC
purposes. Now begin to seeif you are reall,
a lady, or only pretense."
"You think ought to bear everything, Dc
you, nanny, and never peep or mutter p
No; but l want you to treat your mother
in-law as one lady should another. DON
recriminate if she talks at you, for that i
vulgar-ill-bred in the extreme. Don't Civ
up your Just position, either with your hus
band or in the family Respect yourself
Sue, and you force respect from Others"
"Oh dear | wish there weren't an,
mothers-in-law in the world" peevishl
calculated the girl.
Then | should be exterminated with tn
rest" smiled her mother.
" But you are so different, nanny"
81 had an awful lesson, Sue, when | wa
Young. You know your Uncle Tom married
Posy Schuyler when he was very youn
man, and she was only seventeen-just m
own age. You remember her picture in tn
library at the Hills 2"
"Oh yes, the lovely delicate little creatur
with hair like spun gold, and great dar
eyes, and such bud of mouth half smi
ing, like pleased baby's."
"That is her very counterfeit. She wa
the loveliest creature | ever saw. Her fathe
died before she was born, aud her mothe
only lived for the baby and from the hou
she came Just worshipped her. She wa
named Euphrosyne, after her fathers mother
but she always called herself Posy, and gre,
up with that name attached to her. Ineve
saw such affection as Mrs. Schuyler's fo
that child; it amounted to passion Sh
never trusted her from her sight; she wok
in the night to look at her. she was frai
tic with terror if illness threatened he
She had am artistic nature, but its sole e,
ercise was inventing dresses for Posy.
remember being at the Hills as a child, an
going into Posy's room-a large airy room
with two great windows looking southwark
the walls were white, with deep cornic
of every spring flower, painted to the life b
an Italian fresco painter; the white carpt
was strewn with roses and yolets, the whit
wood furniture decorated with honeysucklt
and clematis, painted by Mrs. Schuyler he
self in olinging wreaths and tendrils, wit
clusters of roses and ivory bloom, and wild
? blue blossoms looking just fit to pick theI
. were curtains of white soft woolen stut
looped up in creamy folds by an enamelle
fern leaf ON either sde and everything els
carried out in the same floral fashion, eve
} to the lily of pearl shell which held h,
, rings on the table but more curious tina
all was the child's wardrobe, which she di
played and | admired after the frank Gu
tom of ten-year-old girls. There was a 70:
dress the softest cashmere, with scallope
2 bands OVERLAPPING each other on the skirt
. deepening tints to the waist and the sleeve
were Just edged with deep green velye
2 which also bound the throat and waist
. was like fancy ball costume but Pos
was like fairy aud the exquisite tints di
not look fanciful on her unreal beaut
Then there was pansy dress, purple velve
with gold buckle at its belt and the ski
falling in rich pleats that seemed TO form
I rounded outline below like the edge of
' flower There was thunbergia oostum
! the skirt and sleeves of the delicate bu
l which that flower monopolzes, and boz
3 ice of dark brown velvet like the bio
SONS throat
: What folly !" exclaimed Sue.
Yes but very pretty folly. And hay
not told you the half. There was Ill
dress, of China Grape a violet, ol purp
= silk, soft aud glossless and actually Ca
l dinal flower, of vivid scarlet cloth, that
! thought then too splendid TO be borne bl
! it was only for skating dress, Posy said
She grew up very delicate, exquislt
and fragile, but more and more lovely.
was strange to see Mrs. Schuyler. She too