Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1878-05-17

door-steps in the early morning. Hour
after hour Erasmus heard the hum of
her wheel. He had seen it carried in
with the other things-a genuine old
fashioned spinning wheel, which an
antiquarian might have coveted for its
quaintness, but which "Sister valued
for its use. 1t was she who took the lead
in reforming the garden, where disorder
aud neglect we're giving place to thrift
and neatness, groundsel and pursley to
peas and beets, and where pot-herbs,
pinks, and multitudinous cabbages JOS
tied each other in true German fashion.
"Sister" took the lead, but every one
helped. Even the little ones could weed
and dibble holes for the insertion of
infant roots, and in the cool of the day,
the sedate old pastor himself would
descend from his study, knife in hand,
to prune, not in the most skillful man.
ner, the fruit trees whose best days had
gone by with the best days of the old
house round which they grew.
Hilda was the prettiest of the sister
hood. Her blue eyes had the advantage
OF q fringe of long golden lashes; her
hair waived naturally through all its pale
length; there was tinge of color in her
fairness which deepened at times into
lovely pink. People in general might
not have called her very pretty, but
Erasmus learned to think her so-and in
fact girl must be plain indeed not to
look pretty in the picturesque frame
work of an old garden, ivy-hung and
bosky, with glints of sunshine and dusks
of shadow. Erasmus watched her fit
in and out and to and fro, her veil of
Aaxen hair blown by the wind, her plant
figure in its plain black frock looking
slender as a fairy's, and presently, to his
surprise, he found himself in love with
Hilda. He had not meant it, but how
could it be helped A young mans fancy
is easily caught, and most easily of all
when, as in this case, he is lying on his
oars for while, and has not much to do.
Had Hilda noticed him. He could
not tell. She had never given look, SO
far as he could detect, nor had her sis
ters. But good deal can be seen with
out looking, and it is so little in the
course of human nature that seven girls,
with fourteen eyes between them, should
not see young man who sits at win
dow and gazes out at them all day, with
only fence between, that am inclined
to think they did.
Meanwhile, though he knew their
names and was familiar with their habits,
Erasmus had never exchanged word
with his new neighbors. It was not
from want of inclination; but he was
modest fellow, and truly he did not
know how to begin. Pastor Lubke was
"strict" father. "Be sober, be Wig
liant, was his motto. He had no sym
pathy with the frivolities of youth,
among which frivolities, it was rumored,
young men were conspicuously included.
Erasmus studied his stern, placid face
from behind the blind, and saw nothing
to encourage him there. And so, while
thus his "hopes belied his fears, his
fears his hopes belied," the days went
on. He made no progress, and might
have made none for much longer time,
had not Fate taken pity and sent her
messenger to assist matters. That mes
senger was-a monkey!
The monkey appertained to a hand
organ, and the man who ground the
organ-and the monkey also, it is to be
feared-sent him in to levy the custom
ary black-mail on the Lubke sisters,
who, sitting on the doorstep, in the
pear-tree shade, were knitting stockings
of the blue yarn spun by "Sister's
wheel. The sudden apparition of the
diminutive messenger, in his red coat
and cooked hat, startled the simple
family, whose lives heretofore had in
cluded few monkeys. They jumped up,
screamed Hilda dropped her thimble
Bena and Naunul clung to each other
even "Sister" lost her presence of
mind for moment. The monkey, en-
boldened by their evident fear, danced,
chattered, and, suddenly pouncing upon
Hilda's thimble, ran across the garden
with it in his paws. Hilda pursued, but
the monkey ran fastest, and, scaling the
wall with great agility, would have got
off with his prize, had not Erasmus, who
had realized the situation and hurried to
the rescue, caught him as he reached
the top and held him tight.
"What shall do with HIM ?" he asked,
grasping the scratching, biting prisoner
firmly.
"Don't hurt him oh, don't hurt
him !" said Hilda. "It's only my thin
BILE. If you could get that away from
him. He stole it, SO I ran after him."
"Here it is, said Erasmus, handing
her the thimble, he dismissed the mon
key, with an unseen kick, to its owner.
"Oh, thank you p replied Hilda,
shyly. She walked away as soon as she
said it, and did not look to see whether
Erasmus went or staid, but all the same
he felt a joyful sense that the ice was
broken.
And SO it was; for common gratitude
compelled Hilda into recognition after
that, and forced her to bow in return for
the low bend and the raised hat with
which Erasmus met her. "Even father
would say must" was her secret refec.
tion. Common pohteness made her
linger to exchange few civil words
when this obliging neighbor leaned over
the fence to admire the garden or the
sunset. Gradually, as her shyness wore
away, these lingerings grew longer.
Now and again she ventured to raise
her eyes, and Erasmus met their full
blue gaze. These fragmentary inter-
views held food for thought for long
hours. Every moment, every syllable,
was dwelt upon and dreamed over. Lit
tie as had been said, it seemed that they
had said much and there was always
the delightful uncertainty at what mo-
ment she might drift that side of the
garden again, might glance upward,
might speak. Time seemed made up of
Hilda; nothing else was worth consider
ing; and yet the sum of these import
ant conversations, had all his words and
all her words been written down, could
easily have been condensed on half
sheet of note paper. Of such stuff are
loversmadel