Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1880-04-02
QUIET RUTH.

She was very quiet, my friend Ruth
Earle. Repose was in every line of her
graceful form and every feature of her
pretty face. The soft waving hair,
brown in the shadow and flecked with
pale golden CLEANS when the shone
upon it; the solemn blue eyes, the
straight brow-all very quiet to in
tensity. She never blushed, or trem-
bled, or went into ecstacies of admira-
ton or fear or fun; her smile rose on
her face and lit it, as the full moon does
the sky on q still summer night, and
every tone of her voice was low and
musical. Some called her cold, but |,
who knew her so well, would have
laughed at them. In one sentence she
could embody the sentiments another
girl would have spent an hour in delin-
eating. In one glance she could reveal
tempest of Joy or love or scorn; but
the glances were rare and words rarer;
but Ruth's heart was usually a sealed
casket to all about her. A quiet interest
and sympathy in Others veal and woe,
a peaceful sort of happiness-onlyt those
were on the surface, and the torrent of
emotion rolled on silently beneath.
| WHY, of all the men on earth, Ruth
| should have given her heart to my
cousin, Charley Campbell, could not
guess. How he-fery and emotional to
a degree, acting on impulse altogether,
| loving everything that dashed and gilt
tered and made noise, adoring martial
music and passionate poetry, and always
smittcn by talkative, black haired.
waltzing, coquetting belles-ever tel In
love with quiet Ruth Earle, was still a
stranger problem. When one fine Au-
gust evening he bounced into our par
Tor, where | was sitting alone, and in
formed me, without parley or preface,
that he was engag ged to Ruth, |, In my
astonishment, exclaimed: " should as
soon have imagined mad bull engaged
to a ring-dove!" and was very sorry
afterward, it was such foolish, singu-
lar speech. Still, it did describe my
feelings exactly.
Every one wondered. Young girls
"wondered what he could see in such {
quiet girl;" young gentlemen 'won
dered how she could like such a wilt
scapegrace." But when, at last, sh'
came to me one day, with b th hands il
mine, and said: MARY, you do no
know how dear he is to me-he is m!
life," I wondered no longer, for knew
that Ruth had given him one of thos
irresistible. unconscious glances of hers
and shot him through the heart.
/ think they were very happy all tina
bright autumn, and when the winte
came the quiet contentment of Ruth
, face deepened, and every evening he wa
at her side, reading, or singing or talk
ing to her in soft, loving whisper:
Was she tanning down my wild cousin
= Could mortal woman do such seen
ingly impossible thing? Were all th
wild oats sown-all the scrapes overP
seemed so.
, The careless boy was maturing into tt
high-bred man, passionate and impu
= sive still, but with higher aims an
higher principles.
1 The winter rolled away, the brigl
spring came, and when the fragral
apple blossoms were upon the ire
Ruth told me that the day was fixed fl
|, her bridal, and we rode out together Ol
morning to purchase satin and lace al
muslin for the brides attire. Goil
= home together with the parcels stow
away in the bottom of the vehicle, '
met Cousin Charley, his cheeks aglo
and his eyes dancin with suppress
!. merriment. He waved his hand to
, and we paused.
"Take me in won't youp" he sal
pleadingly. 81 have been to call up
YOU, and of course found you not
. home. You have seat for me,
know"
/ signifed my approval, and
- Jumped in and seated himself besi
Ruth.
"The Petral came in to-day" he sa
. as we drove along. "Did you hear
D. gunsP She is fine vessel, just fir
India, with set of the yellowest p
sengers you ever saw. Liver compla
is as common among them as amt
French geese, and pepper is the CT
article OF their diet. Such tempers
TO they have, too! 1t would puzzle R
an ns herself to keep quiet among them"
md md "How do you know so much alb
themP" l inquired.
"Oh, I've been to breakfast with
of their number" i" replied Charley;
;. old nabob who is as rich as he is u
and who has the handsomest wifi
pu- By the way, an old schoolmate of yo
ern Mary"
IN "Who is sheP" l asked.
irtv He replied by another question: ''
fer YOU remember Kate Glynne"
lkle "Kate Glynnp Yes. Is she the
hell bob's wiiep"
ion "Of course she is. l met her con
n as off the boat this morning. She k
eek me at once. We had desperate fiji
NH. tion long ago. She is one of the Il
not CAP girls | used to like before met