Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1877-02-15

more. l rowed her over, and, as she
would not let me go in, stood waiting
outside until she should come again.
An hour or more she said, regretfully,
that she had kept me; but the time
did not seem long, | remember, for I'd
been thinking how fair my home
would be if had Kate for its mistress
She had been crying, / saw, but |
could not account for the joyful glad
ness, that through her tears lit up her
girlish face.
Something pleasant has happened,
child" l said; twill you tell me
what ?"
And then it all came out, and
mothers little romance proved TO be
not romance after all.
A steamer had gone down OH
otormking in the night, and Jim
Morris, rowing about. had fonnd little
Kathie with life-preserver, fastened
to her, floating up toward Cornwall,
and took her home. Tied about her
neck was little oil silk bag with
fifteen thousand dollars in bank.notes
and a little, blue enamelled locket,
with fair woman's face inside.
After day or two there had come
cut in the papers an advertisement for
the return of "child lost on the Hud
son steamer, who had little oil-silk
bag tied about her neck with re-
ward of five thousand dollars.
Jim and his worthy sister decided,
with the fifteen thousand safe in their
pockets, that it could not be the little
stranger whom they called Catharine,
after the name on the locket.
But eighteen years was long, long
while, and we decided, mother, Kate,
and I, that we had the only claim TO
the sunbeam of our house, and Kate,
with her head on mothers breast, said
she would never leave her.
Rosy October had been very busy
lighting up the torches of the maple
trees upon the mountains, that all day
long waved their yellow flames in the
STILL hazy air. The Virginia creepers
seemed here like flock of gorgeous
fiamingoes haunting the dark-green
cedars, and there flung themselves
like a scarlet cardinal robe about the
old trunk of the dead chestnut upon
Rose Hill. All, autumn does her best
with the Hudson's Highlands!
Our gay friends left us when the
summer did. and one rainy day,
mother and Kate and | were quite
alone. Stormy days in Eden are not
as stormy days elsewhere. and | loved
them every one, and used to ensconce
myself with my paper and cigar upon
the front piazza watching the rain
clouds droop lower and lower over old
Bull Hill, and tease the river in
to roughness with their constant
splashings, and dreaming pleasant
dreams, love dreams meanwhile. |
sat thus this day when Kate, coming
down to the dining-room, stopped for
word of greeting.
'How contented you look she said,
land how it rains. Thank fortune,
we can have no visitors to-day. I do
not believe that even Captain Dacie
would care to pass Cro'snest, and as
for those that are left at Cornwall, who
would dare to round the point, do
you think 2
Certainly not, Miss Kate. 1t
doesn't look very inviting. does it !?
The white-caps are holding high car
nival there to day
Yes, and mamma has headache,
SO you will have to content yourself
with my society or your own to-day.
Aren't you sorry?'
Very l said, gravely, looking off
on the river.
very polite she laughed, a little
CLEAN of white revealing itselfbetween
the sweet, fresh lips, as red as the bit
of scarlet geranium at her throat.
Why it was l do not know, but a
sudden longing to call this dainty,
brown-clad maiden by dearer name
than sister, thrilled me through and
through.
Kate l said, softly, Eden is not
Eden to me any longer; woman's
love is wanting. Do you think that
| can ever gain it, Kathie E
She gave me one quick look, that
told me she understood. How pale
the girls face grew Then she stood
silently, leaning against the doorway
looking quite beyond me to where the
driving rain made scores of dainty
cascades from the top of old Storm
king, over which the rain clouds were
dropping lower each moment. How
wished / knew of what she was
thinking
Kate, said |, last, i am waiting;
don't torture me longer than need
be-
She turned toward mao thou, ana
just wnen / was sure that her tear
wet eyes and childishly-drooping
mouth foreshadowed my success, she
raised her head proudly. 'Ishould be
disturbing element in your Eden,
SIR she said, oddly, and with bow,
perfect in its dainty GOODNESS, she was
gone.
Away from mother. from Kate, from
Eden, how YEARLY the days dragged
onI Gazing into the fair Scottish
lakes, climbing the Alpine mountains,
treadinS the gay French capital, or
idling among the pretty hamlets Of
merrie England that one fair spot,
under the shadow of Stormking, whore
the gentle river lay calm and sweet
under the autumn sky, and the noun
tains below looked up to the noun
tains above aud trembled, and drew
back under the rivers ripples again,
keep repeating itself over and over
again, to my homesick eyes and yet
could not 60 back, for Kate was
there and once under the witchery of
her brown eyes | feared my love
would revive again. 1t was dead now,
utterly dead, | told myself so often,