The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1881-11-26
From the Cottage Hearth
l8 BLOSSOM STREET.
by NELLIE HOBART EMERY.

by NELLIE hOBANl
He was tall young fellow with . certain
soldierly air about his erect and slender figure
that suited we'll the postman's hlue.gray uni
form. There had been . plan for West Point
in times past, but il had failed for reasons
that the politicians knew, and nov he went
about tho more peaceful and less glorious &c
cupation of dispensing postal cards IN all
manner Of heroglyphics 10 SO much OF the
general public ~ we're included iii his morn
ing route
A policeman sees the dark side of human
nature, but the pCstmau sees 1t in friendly,
nelghborly sort of way Morning calls are
necessarily somewhat unceremonons, and he
cannot but know something Of the ways Of
every household. The grimmest of natures
would gain a certain feeling of friendiness,
even If it were but from the habit of seeing
every day the same familiar faces.
He WAS rather grave by nature, and had a.
ways found his own company and affairs suf-
ficlently interesting To make those Of other
people entirely a secondary consideration, but
he soon developed an interest in different ways
with the various people with whom he was
brought in constant contact.
There was Mrs. Moran, whose husband Al
lrishman of the better sort, had gone to the
far West, and whose letters home he always
read to the wife to whom "writin'" was an
unknown and mysterious art. There were the
patent medicine folks at the corner, whose cor.
respondents seemed to have scattered them
selves to the tour quarters OF the earth, and
the various 'sociabe" of all degrees of rank
and prettness to whom it was another chance
for good time to laugh and carry on" with
the young postman Some of them were very
amusing they did not call for further thought.
At Is Blossom Street, they took mournful
looking Baptist Weekly, that always came on
Friday. There was seldom a letter TO be dellv
cred, TOR Deacon Crane and his wife were both
sere and well-dried elderly people, who lived
along in comfortable monotony, Is if they mad
got into the habit Of living and would keep
OR indefinitely without thought of change,
That part of Blossom street was old and quiet /;
two great hOrsechestnut trees flourshed in a
sober, sturdy way, by the edge of the faded
brick sidewalk before the house, that seemed
in itself monument Of moderate and elderly
lrrspectability. lie always delivered the paper
at side door little back from the street, and
this morning he went in hurriedly, for one OF
the girls had kept him until he WAS \ Eitle
late The door was opened by a stranger, .
new conner, evidently; apretty girl, he thought
afterwards, though he could not recollect any
thing IN particular about her except that her
hair waved soft and naturally shout her brows
| His morning calls had made him most used u
crlmping pms, or bangs, hastily improved for
the occasion. She had NICE, quiet little way
he thought, and then he forgot all about her
until day or two aiterward, he found a letter
tor 1S Blossom among his multitudlnous pack
ages.
| He gave it to her with glance at her face
that took in, quite by accident the sweet, vivid
blush, and shy delight that glowed beneath
the long, brown lashes. What would the
lover have gwen to see how his message was
received
He smiled to himself at the pretty picture.
What was her name?" He had scarcely no
tlced 1t; Miss Alice" lie could not remem-
Der the rest However, 1t was in masculine
would look and see,
Another came soon after Miss Alice Fair
lle," in an ambitious and dashlng scrawl.
He soon grew to know when to look for
them, and amused himself by watching her
quiet delight when he had one to give her.
| She WAS . pretty little girl, with pleasant
household ways and par of small, practical
loving hands, that it would be nice for some
body to hold in his own strong ones.
| She never made talk with HIM, but she war
not shy, and he could gain smile and girlsb
reply whenever he wished it.
| Her life was very quiet with the old people
Deacon Crane came home at tour o'clock pre-
cisely every afternoon, and smoked his pipe
with unfailing regularity during the warm
weather, under the wlstaria vine that grew, in
a sCraggling, awkward fashion, over the mar
row rellis, by the door. The old lady was
seldom visible; and broad backed elderly
spaniel completed the establishment excep,
for half-grown kitten with a pink ribbon
round its neck, and the bright gersnums She
watered and petted every day. He came tC
wish he had always something 70 give her
she was an industrious little puss, too; there
was often work basket with some snal
frilling or other III il, or book lay on the
bench beside the door. He had curiosity
enough TO try to see what they were. Once /,
WAS a little German tale she was translating
for stout little dictionary lay close beside it
sometimes 1t was only novel, presumably OF
the proper Baptist stamp. He thought If he
were this young girls lover he could not be
content SO far away; he wondered who and
what kind of a fellow he was.
She told HIM the first quite unconsciously
one day, the other he learned Afterwards
Would he take letter for her, if 1t would
not be too much troubleY" OF course, nc
trouble at all so he took 1t and read Mr.
| After q few months, the letters did not come
Ms often NJ at first; he fancied she wished they
would. She must be lonely sometimes withou,
them.
| They came still more seldom now, and he
wondered, vengetully, What that rascal
George was about, to neglect the little girl in
Blossom street" Then there came . srea,
gap, with no letters at all. He was used to
watching her by this time, SO he saw the shade
on her Isce, and knew she felt il, when day
after day brought no word or line. One rainy
morning she was waiting almost out Of sight,
by the curtains of the dreary clo.ed.up parlor,
whose windows faced directly on the street.
He wished she would not watch there; he
glanced up with a halfshake of his head q. he
went by, and tramped on through the mud and
windy ram.
He knew, though he had not seen them,
that the tears had come into her soft dark eyes,
and she was CRYING softly 10 herself in that