The Louisiana cotton-boll. [volume] (Vermilionville [i.e. Lafayette], Attakapas, La.) 1872-1883, 1878-03-06
My First Love Letter
BY GRACE GREENWOOD.

BY GRACE GREENWOOD.
Have l ever told you, Nell, of my first
love letter. / presume not. 1t is a
story have not been very fond of tell
ing. But years bring to me, if not phil
osophy, a comfortable sense of the COM
.ical in regard to all early illusions and
The moment Of opening and reading
the first love letter is thrilling, an au-
gust point of time in which all the spring
tides of passionate young life seem to
meet in swift, dizEying whirl of emo.
tion. If from the right man, what tri.
umphant joy! If from e suitor one can
not smile on, what sweet pain But you
know all about it, dear.
was very young when I received my
first love letter Indeed, not permanently
out of short frocks and the bread.and.
butter age.
Having lived the greater portion Of
my life in the country, the companion oi
my brothers, ! was desperate romp and
gipsy, delighting to roam. the fields and
the woods, preierring the fishing rod to
the needle and even the stable to the
parlor. As yet, fine horse was the rival
Of all mankind in imy young affections,
Still I had read Scott, Edgeworth,
Hemaus and L. Z. L., with an occasional
stealthy dip into Byron, and had my
own foolish little romantic dreams Of my
hero, my fairy prince, who was to come
in loves goo time,
used to dream of him, as ] sat like
little Ellie, among the alders, with my
feet in the brook, or as / rode along in
the woods. / thought little Of his pedi.
gree, but resolved that he must have
a patrician Greek profile, dark blue eyes
and black curling hair, coming down er
his lofty brow in Byron peak.
made no account of houses or lands II
loves Arcadia; but my hero must pos
sess fine horse, The steed Of steeds,
was sine qua non.
The removal from country TO towl
was an absolute sorrow to me, with m.
/ nature.loyiog heart, and wild, free habits
hated the busy monotony, the thronget
i loneliness, the dull whirl ofcity life.
could only console myself with occasional
flights back into my old rural haunts
From the longest, roughest tramps / re
! turned refreshed, prepared to endur
! what ] could not cur
=, I"came out prematurely and tenn
/ porarily when / was scarcely fifteen, o
) the occasion of large wedding party
i wore d long dress and white kid glove
: for the first time. My hair was curlet
Q Oh, the torture of a night and the hide
usness OF day in curled papers
t wore natural flowers and carried larg
t bouquet.
DistressIngly diffident, not TO 50
awkward, / early in the evening retire
Q to deep window seat, where RENAME
watching the merry groups Of weddir
guests, and listening to their easy cha
ter, with childish wonder and delight.
Among the gayest Of the gay was
, certain fair young lady whom ha
: known for some time as my doubl
> Not that she was in the least like no
She was q blonde--very much blonde
while was a very brunette. She W
! distinguished for stump ptuousness OF attir
: and dress was not then, any more than
: Is now, my besetting sin, or peculi
= virtue, which ever you incline to estee
= IT, But, oddly enough, tins fair lac
= bore my name precisely, surname al
= = baptismal. used to think the circur
" stance annoyed her, almost as though
8 had stolen the fashion Of her Parisii
bonnet, or the pattern of her cost
:, embroidered shawl. Aside from d
= name there was little in common betwe'
: as, certainly no love. At this party q
quite outahone the bride. I found
Z curious TO watch her.
y Her lightness and brightness did shine vi
!, such splendor-
al which was al very proper, she being
70 rich taIIow chambers daughter.
i But not long did watch my doub
,e for, nv dear, Vt this very party | 81
d him, my ideal hero, my fairy prin,
It Frem ill that goodly company l singl
i. him out glance. There were the da
I. blue eyes, thefe was the Greek prof
"a tie black curly hair she Byron pc
ct and ell.
,y Imagine the emotions Ct your frie
se when Il her secluded window-seat Y
be very young gentleman was brought a
ve presented b Mr. John Trsvnlyan,"
b. il wasn Just Trevalyans Il vas quite
= respectable name. The John Pll sta
be by.
NJ for & bright, wondrous half he
ial precisely as though I had been q {
lal grown belle; and |, under the spell
We his pleasant fl4tsery, fell in with
* little make.belioi, and ehatted aw
d. auits Il ease, and said sonae things d
nt, were really not - bad. Yet,when spo
'se Il seemed to me II was some ems |
II = talking ID i second double Ny "
voice bad an unfamiliar sound,