The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1881-07-21
Ny One CLEAN Of Roman ce.

/ am ulfdlU lllaU ! am Only plOSdlc
sort of being. Now and then the young
ladies whom meet in society think me
unromantic and perhaps uninterestng.
The gay hues Of morning become lost in
that eight of common day which belongs
to the afternoon Of life. For me it is a
quiet, cheerful happy afternoon with
the music of the voices that | love, the
fragrance Of the flowers | tend. | know.
too, that for me the bracing evening
hreeZes will rise, and the evening skies
be flushed with immortal hopes.
once had Il gleam of romance, which
grew, indeed, into a steady radiance :and
plain and prosaic as am now-and 1t is
mainly the ordinary episode of a Woman's
lite-l think it perhaps more romantic
than happens to most young ladies OF the
period, and | hope that they, too, may
have gleam equally propitious.
We were the six daughters of Il coun-
try vicar; we lived four miles from the
country town, which was also the cathe-
dral city. Wewerc a very happy nest of
girls, save for certain unpropitious love
affairs, which, however, came all right
before the end OF the third Volume.
our Squire's son was very attentive to
my elder sister, and our Squire, though
very civil to us, was not supposed to like
it, for he had trotted off his son for long
tour. and nobody knew how long it might
be. My second sister was engaged to my
fathers curate; helplessly. hopelessly
engaged. He had only hundred year,
and was not 70 think OF marrying until he
had at least another hundred. | came
third. The rest of my younger sisters
have become engaged to the series OF
subsequent curates. My father could
not afford to send us to school, but we
grew up somehow, and like flowers. We
grew up toward the sunlight. The edu-
cation our good mother gave us was
something like shakespeare, taste, and
the musical glasses: y but our father
added Il rObuster fibre. He considered
that boys and girls ought to a certain eX-
tent. to have the same education. Like
Shakespeare aforesaid, we had a little
Latin and less Greek. As far as Greek
goes, never got beyond the irregular
lerbs-those rocks which have ship
wrecked many young scholar-but in
Latin | read several of the easier classics.
did not compose any Latin verses, be-
cause my father had very properly said
that young ladies should not write verses,
but have verses written to them. | had
done the first three books of ''Euclid,"
and in algebra had gone as far as quad
ratic equations, but not into them. | do
not mention these humble attainments
boastfully, but because it will be soon
seen that they have something to do with
my little story.
My father was able to give us a good
home, but then knew that it was not a
home thai would last always. | did not
see that there was any necessity in the
nature of things that six maidens should
always be living together. OF course, it
is necessary that one or two girls should
always be at home looking after the father
and mother, but halt dozen were really
more than sufficient.
| made up my mind thus: | should
like to go out as govemess, My father
and mother did not at all like the notion.
The living was a fairly good one, and the
notion had never entered their heads !;
but it had fully taken possession of mine.
| was naturally fond Of teaching, and had
done even more than my share in teach
ing the younger ones. Moreover, should
like to see q bigger world than that which
our village made up, except that on Sat
urday we went to the neighboring city,
where we did some shopping and market
ing, walked about, and went to hear the
anthem in the cathedral.
One day | saw an advertisement which
seemed to suit NE precisely. \ gevcrness
was desired by country gentleman in
the Mdlands to teach three little boys
Now it was, that my boyish education
came in excellently. These lads were
intended to go to Rugby, and it was dis
covered, after some little correspondence
and comparing of notes, that | should be
able to educate them up to the point of
entering Rugby; even my father said so,
and my father was man who was sternly
Just and particular in these things, and
would not for worlds let any Of his chill
dren fly false coors. Then this gentle
man and lady wanted my photograph,
and was rather ashamed to send it, for
was only poor small brown little crea-
ture. Those who loved me said that
had loving eyes, just like our dog Pompey,
who, am sure had eyes that were simply
magnificent, only eyes do not come out
very well in photographs.
However, the matter was ultimately
arranged between my father and these
people. | suppose few young ladies
made so good start in the governess
world as | did at nineteen, and all be
cause | was able to teach the boys Latin
and mathematics. | was to have fifty
guineas year, with laundress and trav
cling expenses, SO that | really should
not have to pay away anything out Of my
salary. In fact, the Reverend Jones, who
was engaged to my sister Fanny, told me
that | was great deal better off than he
was When he had paid all his expenses
he was hardly fifty shillings to the good.
If it had been guineas instead of shilings
he thought ne might be tempted to per-
petuate matrimony on the strength of it.
In order to get to my ''place' as we
laughingly called it, down in the shires,
it was necessary that | should 90 up from