The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1881-01-22
CHOICE FICTION.
DRIFTING.
By L. A. CHURCHILL.

warm myself by tie fire: My clothes
are saturated and | am very cold"
lie did nat speak Ikea common tramp,
but he certainly looked like one. His
coat was tatterad. his pants torn. his Old
colorcd shirt was begrimed with dirt, and
his boots and hat looked as if they had
seen much and severe service.
Mrs. Howe llesitated. Her kind heart
forbade that she should turn the man
away. for his garments We're water soaked
and lie looked indeed very cold But
there was no fire in the house save the
one in the library and in that room was
seated Miss Dell Abbott. guest from
Boston, She and Annie Howe were
, spending the rainy afternoon in select
| ing from. and reading aloud to each
other. favorite poems from the poets they
admired.
Mrs. Howe had left the library dool
ajar when she went to answer the bell,
and the tramp's request was heard by
the young ladies mentioned. Miss Alb
| bolt noticed the hesitation of her hostess
and guessed its cause. In another in
slant she was standing in the hall say
ing, coaxngly:
I" Do let the poor man come in, Mrs.
Howe. The open fire in the library will
soon dry his clothing. 1t must be dread
ful to be SO wet and cold"
That decided the matter. and very soon
the tramp was sitting before the glow
ing CRATE, with perfect cloud of steam
from his garments.
y person looking attentively at this
man as he sat there with uncovered head,
apparently half doing, might have seen
that the forehead over which fell the
almost entirely gray hair was high and
broad: that the habitual expression of
the face was a sort of sorrowfully des-
perate one. If the large grizzIcd NOUS
tache had not SO completely hidden his
lips, sensitive and not unhandsome
mouth would have been revealed.
Now, go on with Seaweed, please,
said Annie Howe, when her friend had
returned to her seat. that is my favor
lite of favorites."
Where did leave off," said Dell. as
she looked up the volume she had SC
hastily laid aside. 80, | know" and i'll
clear. we'll modulated voice, she read:
"From the strong will and the endeavor
that forever
Wresrles with the tides of fate;
From the wreck of hopes f;lr-scattered, tenn
pest shattered,
Floating waste and deSolatc.
'Ever drifting, drifting, drifting on the
shifting
Currents of the restless heart;
Till at length in books recorded, they, like
boarded
Household words, no more depart"
There was momentary silence in the
room after Dell stopped reading; silence
which was broken by the man by the
fire. He seemed speaking rather to him
self than to his companions when he said
in half-bitter. half-weary tone:
"Ay, the strong will and the endeavor
must forever wrestle with the tides o.
fate the strong, overwhelming tides OF
relentless fate, however useless the strug
gle may be. And heaven knows it is
useless enough for some people,
With establishment did the three women
present gaze upon the man whose gart
told of wandering, dissolIte, vagabond
whose language bespoke the gentleman.
Bending towards her friend, and speak
ing in il very low tone, Dell Abbott said
depend upon it. Annie. this person
has had some strange experience. | an
going to ask him to tell us Of himself
With an emphatic bow Annie signifet
her concurrence in the supposition ant
approval of Delrs intentions.
People seldom refused Dell Abbott
any thing. and this man, after listening
to her request to tell them something
of his experience, only hesitated mo
ment before he said:
. wonder why YOU, whose life is ap
parently so happy, should care to lister
to the story of n tramp. You display
singular taste, young lady. but your wisl
shall be granted. Possibly the story 70,
are anxious to hear may save some mai
from fate like mine. if any thing Cal
change the order of things in this world
No matter where | was born. 1t is i'm
material where | spent one of the hap
piest boyhoods 4 child was ever allowed
to enjoy. 1t is enough for you to know
that it was 4 bright childhood, that
kind father and tender mother watches
over me, their one child, giving me tn
most devoted care. AS | grew from
childhood to young manhood. | was care
fully and thoroughly educated. My par
ents were far from being rich, but the
managed to send me to high school AN
afterwards to college.
In the person before you, can you trac
any likeness to man who would be like
ly to occupy the position of teacher of
number of languages in Il thriving co
legc' Does the tramp you are listenin
to look in the least like a man who's
company was once sought after and higl
~ priced by those whose positions in lit
, made them welcome in the most aristt
cratic and cultured society? Nay. 20
need not answer: know what your +,
ply. if truthful one, must be.
My boyhood's friend and collea
chum was Fred Allen, a whole-soule,
honest fellow. with whom | never qua
relied till after it was discovered by eac
of us that the other loved the girl /
wished to make his wife. We tried har
not to be jealous of each other. Fred an
I |, but did not quite succeed. was I'll
favored one, however. With hal
told my friend of my engagement. ii
face was white with passion AS he hisse
J between his closed teeth:
John Ellis, | tell You your promise
wife is an Infamous, despicable firt..
Oh. why did | not remember that n
thing but the deepest pain. the sharpe
disappointment, wo lld have made hi
so unjust. | cannot tell. only kno
that fierce anger held me in contr,
and seizing some object near me-v
were in my room in the college buldir
i struck him. | cannot state cleal
. what followed | think must have pa
n. - tIo .;nlt 80 A., ,.