The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1881-03-19

now and then; nothing very dreadful
as said before, but simply disenchant-
ing. You couldn't imagine "Jonn
Halifax y spending twenty minutes over
the arrangement OF his hair and necktie,
or " Adam Bede" sleeping late in the
morning and being sulky and disagreea-
bic because the rolls had grown drier IN
the meantime; and if it weren't for the
fact that Enid trudged down town WITH
market-basket while Yniol and Geraint
discoursed at home of pripcely topics,
never would believe that knight OF the
Round Table could be SO sublimely IN
different as he was to the inconvenience
and thankless pains of womankind at
home Now, Arthur Lawrie always car
ried my shawl and opened the door for
me and gave me the easiest chair, and
he would have done the same for Helen
Jaffrey or any of the other girls if it had
happened so.
Things went on in that way for long
time; l was proud and didn't want to
own even to myself how much I'd been
mistaken, or that fine-cut face and
those magic fingers wern't enough to
make woman happy. Perhaps they
might be enough for some women, but
you must remember l was vain as well
as romantic, and the prospect of settling
down to admire my husbands talents
and wait upon him forty years or so
with the privilege of admiration for re-
ward didn't seem SO very alluring. l
never said much to Arthur-somehow
one couldn't have the face to criticise
him directly-and he played to me and
we read German together, but keptup
all the time sober thinking. / didn't
write to you very often then-somehow
l didn't know what to say l was just
waiting to find out fairly where 1 stood !;
and it was that October that brought
my fate. st
suppose it is partly because of the
crisis it brought, and partly because I've
told SO many people the story of how it
happened. but 1 can remember every
single thing about that day as clearly as
if it were only yesterday. l remember
just how / ran up and down stairs that
morning; / never felt more completely
well and strong; and how Mrs. Steele
came dragging herself up after me. She
said her side was very bad that morning,
and said was sorry; and | was sorry,
but understood about as much of how
she felt as squirrel would in the top of
a beach-tree.
We started off, dozen or so in all,
just after dinner. Igave Will Hallowell
my Scotch plaid circular and he wore it
all the way over to Sanborn's Hill. John
went with us, too, that day; he took
Nelly Gardeners cousin in his care-she
was visiting Nelly at the time-a Miss
Something or other, Harrington, think.
Arthur had Helen Jaffrey's basket, and
they were away up in the clouds some
where in company with Beethoven or
Mozart-Helen was wise in music and
never was. If you've ever been nutting
you know what fun it is. The grove had
been used by picnic parties the summer
before, and there was an old swing, for
gotten and still left hanging from the
limb of great hemlock. George Edi-
son was swinging me; it was delightful,
with long, outward sweep that made
you feel like bird.
"Oh--just little higher" said ]
catching my breath with delight.
No Sdiu oOuu very ucCiUculy
"don't send her any higher, George
But he did give just one more ire
mendous push, and laughed and sale
we'd "let the old cat die" after that
and / went once more sailing up, ant
out, and farther into space. :
You know what happened next. IhearG
sort of cracking, swapping sound JUS
as was starting to come back-I hearc
Nelly Gardner scream-and the next
knew was falling.
You know how horrible that feeling i.
in dream? 1t isn't much pleasantel
in reality. 1t seemed hours instead o.
seconds before touched the ground.
remembered every single thing I evel
did. There was sudden terror in il
all-and then there came a binding
crash of pain and l supposed l was
dead. t.
They told me afterward John carried
me, in limp, white bundle, down tc
Deacon Sanborn's, and they sent for 6
carriage and doctor and finally got mt
home. Arthur was almost faint himself
at the sight of blood, and even if il
hadn't been for that he never could
have carried me down that steep, rough
hillside, for he was slender and light and
wasn't used to more violent exercise
than organ voluntaries and dancing
Now, love to dance, and always did
but-still but of course he wasn't tt
blame for that.
I'll spare you an account of the weeks
that followed, Irene. saw nobody for
weeks but father and mother and Doc
tor Spear-such bundle of quiverins
nerves! Still, you know the novelty
wears off from everything. Happiness
grows to be an old story after while
and so I found it was with pain. Iused
to lie there flat upon my aching bach
and try to imagine how l could evel
have awoke in the morning from SOUND
sleep to any sort of comfort in being
alive. / couldn't bear to SEE anybody
or do anything but think how miserable
| was. 1t set my nerves on edge to heal
the children laugh, or to be asked q sin
gle question in fact was the most ex
acting and querulous and dismal invalid
you ever saw.
Arthur Lawrie? Oh, yes, he was in
town, but he left the Steele's and wen
somewhere else to board because hi
couldn't use the piano there on account
of me. don't wonder that he found il
pleasanter at the Gardeners. AS for my
ever caring about that matter of Nelly