The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1878-10-05

gentle figure in the arm chair. He held,
he remembered, his mothers hand
while she sang the hymn, and she
leaned forward and kissed his forehead
at its close. All this and more revisit
ed in the wilderness Harry Barton's
thought, and wrought within him a
straightforward mood
" ASK her to sing more the men
clamored; and as through the window,
clear and distinct, the sweet voice sang
the old, old hymns, voice after voice
joined IN. Such a Sabbath evening had
not been for many day, if ever, upon
the wild western plain.
This was Miss Bessie's introduction,
and when, few days afterward, she
appeared, with her arm still in its sling,
but herself quite strong enough to wan
der about the house and in the garden
beside the river, she was welcomed, and
served with kind attentions by all.
Harry Barton seemed to have forgotten
his antipathy to pretty women, for no
one was oftener by the side of Miss
Bessie than this young man; and al
though he still accompanied the hunt
ing parties, he spent more time in look
ing for rare wild flowers for her than in
chasing the wild deer and following
the roe" He brought her every day,
on his return from the chase, lavish
punches of crimson Indian pea, and
sky-blue star grass, and evening prim-
roses, and golden sorrel; or clusters of
prairie-roses, saffron and red and white;
and even that lily, hard to find, the
miniature water-lily, fragrant and per-
feet, the fairy lotus of the New World.
Many talk they had, and Miss
Alger, watching with great interest the
progress of their amity, observed that
the more they talked, the more they
seemed to want to talk, and the more
they were with each other, the more
they wanted to be. Especially one
moonlight evening, when Miss Alger
saw the two figures strolling slowly in
advance of a lounging group along the
greensward by the river, she felt that
they were talking heart to heart. And
so they were.
elf had your brave, bright spirit,
Miss Bessie, L might yet do something
in the world.n
"And do you mean," she asked, with
an incredulous little smile, that you
had ever contemplated doing nothing
in the world?n
Hardly that" he answered, seri-
ously;" but | have no purpose, no plans.
My chief motive is simply to kill time;
and here in the hunting season one finds
a chance to do that with some zest."
but time is notlike the other game
you kill, is it?n said Bessie. 81
imagine killed time is more like the
genii in the fairy tale, that when slain
rushed Immediately to life again in new
and formidable shapes"
Harry Barton listened thoughtfully,
but made no reply to this.
81 WONDER" she said, after a pause,
:" if the world looks half as beautiful to
you as it does to me-"
"No, fear, not half. But it looks
more beautiful to me since have known
you"
Bessie did not acknowledge this COM
pliment by word or blush; perhaps, in
deed she heard it not. She was glanc-
ing away from her companion, her eyes
turned slightly upward. He searched
their expression with an ardor new to
him, and the fancy that crossed his
mind was not inspired by vanity or
passionate hope, but by something akin
to reverence. Her eyes" he thought,
"have a hymn in them"
Just as the Sabbath stiffness came
unbidden into the Western wild, I'M
heralded by church bell, unattended by
observant throngs, and poured the
echoes of the old, old hymns into the
air of the solitude, so into that nook of
wilderness, unbidden, unheralded, I'M
expected, Love came.
When the people whom Bessie was to
accompany westward reached Alger' 5
Ranch, and fixed their departure fol
the next day, Bessie knew that she was
going to leave there, in that strange
place, the sweetest dream and expert
ence of her life. How many times in
the sleepless night she repeated to her.
self, more sorrowfully than she dared
to know, " l am leaving the dearest and
brightest spot of rest that will ever be
in my life of loneliness and toll"
The morrow came. The travellers
meeting at the early breakfast FASTENED
to depart. The stage was at the door
and one after another took their seats
Bessie fingered; she had many parting
words to give to the good Algers. Al
last she too entered the vehicle, already
full, with the exception of one vacant
place at Bessie's side.
Harry Barton had not been seen thai
morning. Must | CO." sighed poor
Bessie, with sad, sad sinking of the
heart, withouteven saying good-bye?'
But at the last moment he appeared
Somewhat flushed and excited, he came
quickly down from the doorway, anC
Bessie Involuntary bent forward ant
held over the wagon door her hand; he
seemed hardly at first to think of taking
it, but he did, and even with sudden i'm
pulse pressed it 10 his lips, as, witt
such glow upon his radiant face a,
made the moment memorable to Bessie
for evermore, 81 am going with you,
he said ,Harper'S Weekly.
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