The Camden journal. [volume] (Camden, S.C.) 1866-1891, 1878-12-19
A Midd|e-aged Love Story.

They had come, a little group O
friendly faces, to watch me off, with wa
wing haudke.chiefs and kindly good-bys
and I stood on the stern, nodding and
waving back, till the steamer swept
down the river .out7of their sight. : =,
81 knewAthat T should have thei,
prayers that the great sea might be
gentle with me; knew they would
watch the weather, and look for the tele.
gram of the arrival of our ship; yet
knew L was taxing nothing from their
lives, and that they each would 90 home
hardly missing me; so it was with M
great wrench Of heart that | saw the
pilot put off from us, and took the last
look at my native shores.
During most Of the passage I was just
comfortably sea-sick, so 1 sat all the day
long tna chair on deck. watching the
white caps on the purple and green
and blue waves that mounted and fell,
down and up, away out to the horizon.
I saw the shining nautiluses float by,
and now and then whale, or a shoal
of porpoises, or q sail, speeding white
and full across the water. d q. .-. -
Isaw many good other things nearer
by; for didn't Tut my eyes in my
rocket along with my shortssighted
classic; and nobody was very fikefy To
mind a middle aged woman in hood and
water proof.
The first thing I saw was a young
Girl. with dark eyes and brown hair that
rippled itself into tangle of rough
curls when she took off her net. She
wasdnot very pretty, nor so very bril-
liant: but there was piquant charm
about her that attracted half the pas
sepgers before the first day was over
By the end of the second day, every
BODY. from the captain to the ships
surgeon, and from the cabin boy, was
eager to show her attention; and every
BODY was met with the same smile ano
lively retort,
She won her way at once into my
heart By the Kindly thought that lec
her to bring me little relishcs from tht
table to tempt my sickly appetite. ane
to soothe my forehead with bay wate'
and gentle touches of her shapely brown
hands where a great emerald glitt"red
epcirc!ed By diamonds. Very soon sht
GOT into the habit Of draUing her rug
beside nv chair, and sitting on tht
deck leaning against me, so that nigh
"pet her," as she said.
This is how it happened that my
ouiet corner came to be the centre o
| life and gayety and romance of th'
whole shipboard.
It seemed this young girl, Rose Ar
mour, was an only child and an orphan
Going to an uncle in Germany, her near
est Of kin. -, ~,
Dear heart hope her uncle will b
wise as we'll as loving" said l to my
self verv often; for she seemed too ira
o;le a bubble of humanity to drift oI
through life alone. -
The tins of her brown curls wer
lighter than the rest and here an
there we're little bright touches all owe
her, as though the sun were sh'hing
spots on it. One morning | sat collln
these CLEANS of sunshine through M
fingers, and watching flock of Mothe
! Carey's chickens skim restlessly owe owe
the water, thinking these thoughts abou
Rosa. and having her soft presence alon
to myself few moments. Not man! @'!
however; for soon up came q Se'
Zealander-of course there was Me-
zealander, or an Australian on our boa,
You are very lovely, Miss Armour
said he. LET me bring you CHAIR
THANK you; I prefer to sit here o
NV rug and have Miss Wells pet me
rcplied Rosa, turning :p. her eyes Ian
ru;alv. The deck is my favcrite sea
If I can only have an excuse to sit on 1t
But you need souething over you
nersisled the New Zrelander, g"ln.
pwav and coming back directly with h
own heavy gray wrap. Then he seate
himself on q low camp stool beside ne
folding the wrap over the two; i neve 1
cav 80 rough o, sea as this all the wa
from Honolulu to San Francisco : sal q,
he, laoking upon the gentle smell OF II
lszi|y-m"unJpe waves r =.
= sRongh y cried Miss Ar'n'Hr' ! I"
..rra rho ocean is as smooth as a mi
8 pond!' uod with n
Paci.ic-pe,ceIui. Twas ri2h''y name
: We, have .pover- such, -ases : on 4. Una.
sweep I'VE on the Atlantic, bnt ooly d
3 rs6t est we westerly bfccz's III NV ne
nnVhf IuU ~