The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1879-06-12
VOLUME VIII.

fifNH~I fNHfs|a JOS ffNlNN AAiNa AANN'aNAA''AA-
.Elinor Norton" she went ON, vehe
meuuy. You do marry my sou, vii
never furgi We you, nor him either. No'
need uo, think I will change my min'
after while, and allow you 20 reap th'
results you have labored for; no,
never will. II De chooses you, he nee'
never speak 10 me again. will not al
low it. viii not see him. viii no
acknowledge him as my son-no, not i
am on MY death bed, and be come
with Tears of penitence. You shall boti
of you feel that there is a curse on you
I for there is "a curse on uudutifnl, disc
bedient children %
/ Ia the midst Of Eliuor's cOndictin.
emotions, one thought now forced itsel
upon ber for a moment with resistles
power. She remembered her resolution
to do whatever might seem 10 be duty
aud now the time had come to make
sacrifice. But she hesitated, aud fel
that this was too much. This cold
naughty woman, who so cruelty mis-
Judged her, could never appreciate such
a sacrifice, and would not give her credi
for pure motives, even for this. Ough
she to do il, after all? Had she reaIl,
any right TO sacrifice Franks happines.
as well as her own? Was the mother
then, worth more than the son? sud.
denly she felt overwhelmed by the con.
sciousness that he was more 10 her than
she had imagined. Ii seemed AS if she
could not live, should she give him up.
She felt then that it would be easier to
yield up her life than TO give the prom
ise required Of her. Then the reverse OF
the picture appeared before her, aud she
saw herself the loving and beloved wife
Of the man OF her heart; but ever in the
midst Of their happiness up rose the
specter that haunted them, the vision OF
that wrathful, veugeful woman, alone in
her widowhood, cursing in her heart her
only son and the woman for whom he
had abandoned his mother. These
thoughts, and many like them, flashed
through the troubled mind Of the wom-
an who was thus confronting her des-
tiny. She felt that she stood ut the en-
trance Of the diverging paths that lead
TO such different goals, and she sighed
deeply to think how hard il was 10 de-
eide which one 10 enter. Just then she
glanced at the woman whose pride was
causing so much pain 10 all Of them,
and she felt a great pity surge over her
soul for one who was so blinded by the
glitter Of mere baubles that she was ut
terly unable 10 see the glory Of truth, Of
purity, Of seif-deuial, aud Of love, sincere
and unseiiish. As she thought Of these
things, she felt able at last 20 rise above
all selfish considerations, which sud-
denly looked so unworthy she felt
ashamed, aud TO DO what but few mo-
ments before she had felt 20 be impossi-
bie. The man OF her heart seemed no
less dear TO her-no, lie seemed even
more precious-but her feelings toward
him were, for the time, at least, abso-
lutely unseli-h. She felt just as she
would have done had she been about
to freely offer herself TO save him from
death. She was upliiIed by The spirit Of
heroic devotion that comes sometimes
to rare souls, who show us what noble
and glorious deeds human beings NAV
perform.
The time occupied Toy these reflections
was far less than that necessary 10 re-
cord them, and The pause, at last broken.
was not a very long one, though il
seemed such 10 both women.
Mrs. Stoddard was beginning TO think
that her last hope was gone, her appeal
TO Eliuor's love for her son useless,
when Eiiuor spoke calmly, and with but
slight trace Of the conflict through
which her soul had just passed:
"1Irs. Stoddard, perhaps you will be-
lieve that I am neither ungrateful nor
hypocriticsl, as you think, when I say
that I have resolved never to consent to
marriage while you oppose IT,"
Then, as If the sound Of her own voice
revealed to her the full extent Of her
sacrifice, and the desolate life before
her, she buried her face in her hands,
and her frame shook violently in her ef-
fort to control herself
Mrs. Stoddard was disturbed by this
new turn Of events. She wanted TO
have everything arranged to suit her
self and she had no fancy that this
strange, self-contained. independent girl
should be free to correspond with her
son. and retain hold on his heart that
would prevent him from allying himself
to the lady she had chosen for him.
She sat in moody silence a few mo-
ments, and then said:
II am glad 10 see you more reasopa-.
blei but warn you that You need NOT
expect me to change my mind in this
matter, for it is impossible should ever
DO So II YOU will now give me vonr
word that there shall be no corres,o,,,.
enee nor secret conferences. I ain s,ir
fulfill my part Of the agreement,
Elinor drew herself up proudly and
a. she looked fearlessly into the ewes Of
the older lady, she said, in tones tho,
convinced her hearer that farther at
tempts at bribery were useless:
81 shall make no other concessions or
promises. l have done all that feel ]
ought to DO. 1 viii not promise to re-
frain from conversation or correspond
ence with Frank, if he desires it, for he
has right to the poor privilege Of a full
explanation, at least. could not touch