Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1877-05-30
81 NEVER WILL.

81 never wil|!' said Madge Rope
her beautiful brown eyes flashing
with Indignation.
Forgive me, Miss Roper said Mr.
Schenck. Il said it in a sort o
desperation, for | can not-I coult
not think such passion as mine coult
fail to call out response sooner o.
later"
You are mistaken" she answered
| haughtlly: land, as you know, this i
not the first time haze assured yo,
Of this fact. trust it is the last"
Il withdraw my plea and myself
finally, Miss Roper. Good morning =
He said it with such dignity tina,
Madge respected him more than she
had ever done, and her face softened
But Mr.. Schenck did not see it; be
took himself and bis troubles out of
sight. if not out of mind. Bus as
Madge turned to leave the parlor,
she heard boyish voice from some
hiding~place singing loudly, with mis-
chief in every infection:
''Hear what Highland Nora said
The Larie's son will not we'd
Little wretch y muttered :iadge,
biting her pretty red lips, he must
be all this time in the conservatory.
And now Aunt Phemy will know all
about it. I may as well tell her.
So she trailed the folds of her deep
blue dress slowly up the stairs to
Aunt Pbemy's room. Euphemia was
sitting in her arm char by the win
dow. tiny old lady, with soft silver
white hair, and a quaint, black satin
wrapper, illustrated with delicate laces
and the sparkle Of one great diamond
on her little hand She was cripple,
whose sole change was from her bed
to her great chair; but, for all that,
she was the heart Of the house, and her
keen and kindly eyes saw every thing
that was to be seen, but her tongue
kept charitable silence.
Madge's mother had died young,
and Aunt Phemy had come to her
brothers house to take care of him
and his child till his wife's place might
be filed f; but that bad not happened
Mr.. Roper was grave, reticent man,
and when the one love Of his life
futtered away from him like weary
aud storm spent moth, his heart shut
itself for all time; be even seemed to
have little fatherly love for the willing
baby, whose birth he resented in his
secret soul, as one reseDts a murder.
But now he was proud of his beauti
full and graceful daughter, proud of
her spirited character, her good
breeding, her crowd of admirers; and
Madge was equally proud Of her
handsome, high minded father, though
there was little of the divine element
of love lost between them.
Many and many an admirer fell at
Mad2es feet, and no wonder. The
girl was young, fresh, lovely, and
intelligent, and every charm she had
was illumined by the ittest results OF
wealth and taste. A beautiful girl is
beautiful in spite of calico; she is ems
chanting in lace and pearls. Madge's
profuse red-brown hair. dazzling yet
tenderly tinted complexion, her sof.
proud eyes, her slender and exquis-
itely nodded figure, her feet, her
hands, were all perfect, and the in-
sipidity of perfection was removed by
the vivid and variant expression of
the soul within.
AS she entered Aunt Phemy's room
this morning, with the dark blue
folds of her fine wool dress falling
from her delicate waist, and her face
heightened by color thas shamed the
carnations which fastened tie abun-
dant lace scarf about her throat, the
dear old lady looked at her with ador
ing eyes, for Madge was her aunty's
idol. But the girl did not come at
once for her daily kiss; she smiled,
aud then she walked the room to the
other window, and began to NEEDLE
with the mignonette and pinch the
rose geraniums. Aunt Phemy waited
she was woman who could wait
and presently Madge fitted suddenly
across the floor, and dropped softly,
as little bird folds up into its nest,
on to the brioche beside her aunt's
chair, and laid her head on its arm.
II could not comeup before, Aunty
Fee. Mr.. Schenck was down
stairs"
Miss Roper said nothing, but laid
her hand tenderly on the rich folds of
hair, and looked at that beautiful head
like . benevolent old fairy. She