The Carbon advocate. [volume] (Lehighton, Pa.) 1872-1924, 1880-08-07

voice. WnOsc uullONutSS lhusb nave obl uSh q
warning 10 any heart less preoccuped than
her own. But Alice was only conscious Of
her own exceeding fullness, and happily
had no thought beyond, al am his, and he
is mine," which the occasion might well
justify.
Yet surprise and pain grew in her bosom,
when, in the bridal tour that followed, the
hand was not withdrawn. If ho caressed
her, that mute, unintelligible member was
always there, chilling and thrusting her
back with strange power, And, even it
she rested in his bosom, the hand was still
between, like thick wall, through which
heart could not answer unto heart; so 81
lence fell between them; for Alice could not
forget the dreary, intervening hand; and
yet that was the one theme upon which her
lips sealed themselves. She could not shape
into speech the deathy fear that possessed
her, she had no words for the vague misgiv-
ings OF her soul.
have said she could not forget yet this
would sometimes happen, as once, when
wandering with Roland in peaceful valley.
embosomed like nest of greenery, in the
bend of slvery river she cried, with pas
| sionate yearnlng.
"oh ifit were possible for the water to
wind around, and lock us here, foreverj from
the rest of the wordl' To which his absent
smile must have been sufficiently chilling
without the pain of more unmistakablC
reply.
"Wish fot no such isolation, at least fol
me, Alice; it would be slow death"
And his eye dropping, she remembered
the covered heart, and was silent again
knowing it would be, indeed, as he said; Sc
the wish went out in the very moment o
its kindhng and never Ackered again.
1t was not long before a feeling came owe
her, as if the doors Of her home were locked
"a feeling which grew and strengthened
when the two were fairly established in tn,
quiet and security of the noble old country
house, descending upon Alice with the re
mainder of her patrimony; and whittier he
husbands sister, at his earnest invitation
had likewise come 10 live.
Elvira Home, in many respects, strongly
resembed her brother. Tall, dark, anC
gravej she had the same high lineaments
the same mysterious sweetness haunting tn,
wllful mouth; with the same full, melan
choly eyes. But Elvira's contained NOR
intensity than his; indeed this was so mucl
the case that her presence was oppressive l.
weak and nervous organizations.
Alice instiuctively shrunk from her. sh,
knew not why. Possibly Elvira made N
effort to win the confidence of her youn,
sister-in-law; lor she was taciturn in com
mon with most thoughtful natures. But
however that may be, the two lived entire
ly apart, not estrunged, since they had nev
er been together, but removed like souls il
separate spheres; Tor Elvira was strong an,
Insufficient, while Alice was human ivy
weak, and clinging to every support aroun
her that did not positively repel.
Not unfrequently Alice behcld Elgira'
intense gaze riveted upon Roland, and es
pecially it dwelt upon the covered heart; ai
ter which she never failed, herself to be
come the subject of those bright and search
ing eyes, in which sorrow and compassion
with something of seosn, forever blended
Often and again she would think to evad
that gaze, whose secret sympathy, with it
still disdain, grew insuileraDly painful e
last. Yet ever it searched her out, as wit
a sort of fearful magnetism, constraining lac
to look up and face it like an ugly truth /
truth, in occasional losses of leveris
thought, both those eyes of Elvira's seeme
to melt into one large, luminous orb which
ginning from the center of her forehead pre-
sented clear and mirror-liko surface, il
whose depths, brokenly reflected, would ar
pear the dreadful mystery of the covere
heart; yet ever before she could pluck it u
from its drowning depths, diving bae
again, it would be swiftly lost, like do
phin, summing himself for a moment on til
surface of the ocean, and then buried him
self beneath the broken brightness of th
waters almost as soon as seen; whilst moth
+ ing remained behind but pair Of intell
gent eyes, with which Alice could not wor
der, as they bent over book or drawing
that her wild fancy had taken such liberty
aud sense Of intolerable pain, sinking a
, the more deeply that it was namsless an
unspoken.
Neither was Elvira's the only face tht
cast a troublous shadow on klice's e,Tru
the other was but seen at long interval
and yet, glancing past her in giddy dance
in picture gallery, church, or street, it wi
). lighted with the triumph of an eye avenl
ing ancisut wrong, speaking more plainl
e than in words
/ 81 wish you joy of your covered heart A
- ice Home"
4 After which Alice was sure those eyes,
some time or other, had been permitted
: look into the covered heart, and if the
i, would, could tell her more than she knew
5 Yet that fair woman never crossed Rolan
d
, spoken in his house. But Unspoken nam'
- are none the less present And most likel
Alice had some such vague thought, as 81
D ting apart i'm silence and shadow, which "a
I the ruddy glow Of the evening fires coul
4 not light up, she would hear Roland an
e Elyira speak strange words, to whose NEAR
RI ing she could attain by no effort Of though
= And after which Elyiras smile would seel
r to say:
S you cannot comprehend u.s. We are pt
, culiar and sacred hmily--the oldest ari
; tocracy under the SUM whilst you are {
, the people, born to serve as a hand-maidel
r Foolish childl to look so high, it is no VI
f; ion, but an alliance! Bear it as best yo
, may, and let the covered heart alone, nC
) fret your poor brain with our strange speecl
, for You will never know it-nevor!"
"Aspirs not after us, poor child! It is
great a gulf as that between Dives and La,
{ arus, At the castle Of gods We are fed b
s invisible priests-warmed at a greater alt,