Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1880-11-12
BRAVERY.

little under the medium hight, was
plain rather than good-looking, and wore
spectacles. He was spiritual adviser to
the parish of Bethany, with a salary
of a thousand year and small par
sonage.
Bethany was semi-rural parish,
close to the coal district of Wyoming
valley. 1t was a small town, with an
inhabitancy of a thousand scattered
over large surface-a village rather
than town-a careless, struggling
place full of houses, with pretty garden
plots.
Rev. Richard Heath had not occupied
the parsonage at Bethany more than
three months before he had reached the
serious conclusion that it was his duty
to marry. And he had strong theory
of the kind of wife q rector should
choose-a kind-hearted, motherly sort
of woman, earnest in assisting her hus-
band, indefatigable among the poor,
and peacemaker to the whole parish.
Bethany, out of its ten OF twelve
young ladies, had three or four who
were within Mr.. Heath's theory; either
Of the Miss Stuarts, the doctors two
daughters, or Miss Hoyt, or Miss Phelps
would do. Three months had elapsed,
yet Mr.. Heath's choice was as far off
as ever. According to his theory, here
were the only four young women from
among whom to choose one likely to turn
out Il good wife, yet none of them, least
of all, Laura Haines, would suit him.
Laura Haines was Bethany's belle un-
questionably. Her father was proprietor
of one of the collieries, and she had been
sent TO a fashionable board.ng-school
and had come back a finished young
, lady.
: AS it was, the less he saw of her the
bottcr- an exoellent resolution Only
somehow he conversed very frequently
with Mr.. Haines about schools for the
cOlliers' children, and about the wants
= of the men and their wives, converse
tions which usually led him into Mr..
Haines's drawing-room to chat with
Mrs. Haines and her daughter, or
even with the daughter alone some
times.
With July came Reginald Haines,
Laura's only brother, a year older than
she, who was being educated at Yale.
The following conversation after one oi
the rector's visits indicates that Miss
Haines had no more idea of marrying
Mr.. Heath than he had of marrying her
, 1T is too bad Laura your going on sc
9 with our little parson.'
Poor little man, Laura laughed che
is very harmless, Regy."
/. You are an arrant fiirt, Laura. But
r. you'll not suit him. heard him explain
~ to father, the other day, his ideal of {
Us clergyman's wife / can assure yor
there was not one single point of resem
blance to yourself. Miss Stuart is likely
=, to be the happy woman" Laura tossed
L her head contemptuously, 81 dare say
of neither of us would suit him very we'll
don't care whom he marries. All
> know is it won't be me. No, thank you
When l do marry, it will be some one
l. can look up to-"
- 81 understand; some Hercules, VIII,
can ride and shoot, and do everything
) better than anybody else; if with
mystery, so much the better"
This conversation occurred Will
brother and sister were pulling thei
boat up the canal. 1t was interrupte,
by the appearance of Mr.. Heath, VIII
was walking along the tow-path. An in
vitation was extended to him by Reginal
to join them. Mr.. Heath assented, al
though in opposition to the advice of al
inward monitor.
AS the boat drew near the shore, Mis-
Haines offered the clergyman her oal
He was obliged to decline it, confessin
his ignorance of rowing, and that he ha
an oar in his hand. Laura's face Gel
tainly' expressed contemptuous pity
however, she only said:
Very well, Mr.. Heath; you take th
rudder strings, Reginald and I will pull
like it above all things"
But Mr.. Heath's steering was little,
at all, better than his rowing. Unde
his guidance the boat made sudden an
abrupt rushes first to one bank and the
to the other But Miss Laura was i
front of the rector, and he could not h
expected TO notice any other obstruC
tion. From pleasant forgetfulness in
81. to which he had fallen he was reused b
m. the tramp of horses along the towing
md path, the drivers shout of mind til
20 roper and simultaneously Reginald
lis- order to Pull the right hand string
ly In his confusion the rector pulled til
left string, and in another moment til
ace rope had caught the boat and upset i
"c- Laura struck out at once for the shore
rcd as did her brother. After a stroke c
two, Laura looked about and saw I'll
rector's face, full of despair, appea
above the water and as quickly disaI