The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1877-1885, 1877-12-13

promise To another. Alice cried, "a
well as a and anger would allow
..Navbe | never can marry him;
but | never. never, never VIII mar
ry ANYBODY else. So there ma.
"You unnatural,
girl aoob
: Il should think 1t was reproach
70 ha q Girl" cried the sauce-box.
you had better call to mlna
hal whose mocketh his mother,
said Mrs. Magilvray, III hollow
tone. ..the ravens shall pick out
his ewes. and the young eagles shall
eat them"
Then the naughty girl laughed.
Il don't believe you have 1t right,
ma" she answered. MAYBE its
the eagles first. Anyway, Eugene
will not let any ravens get at my
eyes. | love him. And you'd love
him too. ma, if YOU knew HIM"
And. the little minxs tears beng
gone: she kissed the " and aw-
full matron, bending her head back
under her arm to reach her mouth,
with a gay sweet impudence that
none of the other children would
have dared use, and skipped from
the room in a happy peal of laugh
ter, presently to be heard Warbllng
out,
"Oh shall l marry my ain '
As if that settled the whole matter.
you know perfectly well, ma,
she said, when they were talking
over the same untiring theme again,
that if Eugene's uncle had left his
money to him instead to that instl-
tuition for the Blind Feejeeans-as
he said he always meant to do after
he found Eugene, and as he educa-
ted him to suppose he would-you,d
have never said a word"
POSSIBLY not replied Mrs.
Magilvray, with dignity. But he
didn't. And the circumstances re-
main to be considered that we are
all poor, too, and that your good
looks and good manners are the
only hope We have of improving our
condition: for what" said Mrs.
MagiIvray, "will Marie do with her
squint or Ella, with her teeth like
a row of grave stones: And SO it
is the very depth Of seltishness IN
YOU to think for a moment of ere
ly gratifying, yourself and marry
ing 80 as never to be able to help
your family"
"'The very depths of s%elfishness
for me not to sacrifice my whole
life" And then there were tears
again; for, in fact, little Alice's
| whole life, between her naturally
joyous temperament and her daily
reverses, was quite resolved into
| April weather of sunshine and show
erS.
st is enough to ruin any body,
to turn a~nybody's head completely,
being told that she is sufficiently
good-looking to lift her family by
her face. should think you'd be
afraid, ma, of such injurious treat
ment. If | wasn't an angel any
way" she cried, with her merriest
laugh, ''between you and Eugene
together, | should be fit for moth
ing but to throw away"
1t was only that afternoon that as
Alice was parting from Eugene,
just between daylight and dark. he
added to different class of remark
some other observations. "Bv-the-
way" said he, "the greatest joke of
the season happened at our house
last night; the house was broken
into"
"Oh, Eugene. burglars. Oh,
did they attack you::"
"Attack memo: they attacked
uncle old desk there, burst open
drawers and compartments. found
secret places hat | never knew be-
fore, and left them open and clear
ed out much as they came. | fancy,
except for the old silver tankard
that the directors had overlooked.
Battered up the house a little; but
as that belongs nov to the Blind
Feejeeans, | don't feel the active
interest which | might if it were
mine. l wasjust going to move out,
though. anyway"
"Oh, it's "a wonder they didn't
kill YOU, DEAR" she cried, still
dwelling on the danger"
Kill me-" | slept beautifully
through the whole. and | should
never have known it but for Bird
gets cries this morning. and | ran
down to find her bowling over the
open desk. 1t was a great Joke.
the idea Of robbing me. as | should
have told them if | had seen them"
Alice went home trembling. and
as she never kept anything to her
self, took the occasion at once to
make herself tremble again with
indignation at her mothers scorn
OF burglars so stupid as to try and
rob Eugene Descamps, and at her
sisters SatIrlcal muSemen Per-