The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1878-08-19

How Mrs. MAyhew obtained those mis-
Sives which came as regularly as the lover
used to come no one know. Perhaps she
bribed the poe ni1tress, perhaps she dit
not; but, at any rate, Shs obtained each
oIe as it came, unopened, she was not
aware of what she was Withholding from
both Dank and herself.
81 hate him, the proud upstart," she
l won't know any thing about him or his
affairs, she reasoned; and when at last the
letters ceased, she began to urge upon
Dank the thought Of marriage. at is
time you were settled, =" she said; and Dank,
having no heart and no love to give away,
finally consented, and became the bride of
Farmer Claude Hopkinton. while Mrs.
Mayhew went to live with them.
One year afterward sudden illness
robbed Dank of her only parent, and the
SAME week gave into her keeping a baby
daughter which was duly christened
'Olarice," and pronounced to be the hand
som"st child in the village.
Thus sixteen years rolled by, and Olarice
Hopkinton was the pride of her home and
the belle of her humble village. In form
and feature she was exactly what her
mother had been at her age and she in
herted her tastes also, and not one trait of
her fathers was hers-notling in fact, but
his name.
During her married life Dank had sadly
changed. Not thread of her bright
glossy hair remained. 1t was silver now
and sadly kept, for CLAUDE had only mar
ried himself housewife, and knowing
this but too well, Dank little cared to at
tend to her personal appearance. Her old
friend Bessie (now married) visited her
often, and with sorrow saw the pain which
one life had been called to bear; but she knew
rothing of Edgar or his whereabouts, as he
had never written to her since his return to
England, and as they hnd never been init
mate, and she not much of correspond
ext, she had thought but little of it. But
now she had heard that he was coming to
Americn, for lie had written to her aud had
address her in her maiden name, not
knowing she was married. She had an
swcred, logging him to make her home lis
during his stay.
SO Dauk was to see Edgar Richardson
once more, and perhaps an understanding
might be brought about between them.
Dank shook her head. What WAS her life
now? Perhaps if she were single-but
then she stopped. Was she not wronging
Claude? Was he not the father of her
child ?
But deliverance came to Dank Hopkin-
ton sooner than she expected, for one day
while out on the farm attending to tue
moving of some small lots, Claude fell
from the machine he was supervising and
was caught in the machinery, receiving
such serious injuries thereby that he died
in few hours, and Dauk was free-free
once more!
Perhaps her thoughts flew at once to her
olden love, and if such was the case could
she be blamed2 When Edgar came she
met him in her widows weeds, with silver
hair and pale, sunken cheeks, as quietly
and as calmly as though she had parted
fran, hin, ,,t vaota~d,u
Edgar Richardson had never married,
and in fit Of confidence he one day
spoke to Bessie of the days which had
gone by. He lNd written to Dank i'm
on his arrival in England, and
after the estate had become settled lie had
sent for his beloved, requesting an immedi-
ate marriage. But though he had written re-
peatedly he had received no answer, SO lie
lad considered her false and had ceased
of her. Still lie had never mar
ried but had devoted himself to business
inst ad, and he was now rich man, so lie
told Bessie, who in her turn spoke of it to
Dank, who confessed the whole of her
wrongs, and went so far as to 90 to the
aged village post mistress and hear from
her own lips how many of those foreign
letters had passed into the hands of Mrs
Mayhew.
Poor Dank! How her heart rose up in
bitterness against her dead motherl But
shen she was now free; Edgar was here
and perlInps-ah! that perlaps SO she
sent for him, and together they talked of
,he days whic re, and how much each
aud suffered, AMI then they separated,
each feeling glad that the other had not
been false, and that everything was ex-
olained. So sparkle began to creep into
Dank's weary eyes and lghtncss in her
voice, until Clitrice looked at her with sur
prise and began to thi TX her fathers death
was more of u blessing than sorrow TO
ler dearly beloved mother.
But Elgar Richardson, although he
,ame often to the old farm house on the
llH, paid but little attention to his olden