The weekly register. [volume] (Point Pleasant, Va. [W. Va.]) 1862-1909, 1882-09-27
DORA'S TRIAL

mld-alr ior moment over tne coarse
blue sock she was mendiug, 81 do
wish you could see your way clear to
marrying Seth Hallett. He wants
you the worse kind, and hSd be such
good provider."
"But / don't like him well enough,
Prudy; and l want something besides
meat and drink, and two calico
dresses a year."
Mrs. Prudence Hall had sprained
her ankle, and was forced, sorely
against her will, to sit day after day
in an upper chamber, witha terrible
consciousness that everything about
the farm was relapsing i1.o chaos
and old night for isart q Me- hosor.
sight. Her pretty sister Dora had
come to stay with her; but she was
"only a child, you know"
"There are two kinds Of love in
this world" said Mrs. Hall, after a
pause, in which she had been taking
counsel with herself whether Dora
was old enough to be talked to on
such matters at all, and it flashed
upon her that "the child" wasinearly
twenty years old. Perhaps you like
Seth well enough to marry him, only
you don't know it,"
"Tell me about the two kinds of
love-" said Dora, innocently. 81
thought love was love the world ov-
err"
81 have, never known but one kind
/ think, Dora. When ] married
David Hall, he was the most well-to-
do young man in these parts, and
we never had a quarrel while he
lived. He was a good, practical sort
Of a man, and he never asked me to
do anything unreasonable"
"What if he had2" asked Dora.
"Well, l guess l should have or.
gued him out of it. But there is a
kind of love that will draw women
through fire and water. 1t makes
them throw themselvs away on poor,
shiftless men that will never provide
for them nor their children, and they
know it as well as anybody else does.
1t is the greatest wonder to me why
such a useless feeling should ever
have been created"
Dora had bent low over her work
to hide her rogueish smiles at her SIS
ter's discourse; but at this point she
fixed her deep gray eyes on Prudence,
not smiling, but simply earnest.
"Such love brings happiness some
times" | suppose" said Dora.
Next to never!" said Prudence,
with great decision. ave amt made
to be happy, and. anything that's
too good always leaves a bad taste in
the mouth. Comfort is q bird in the
hand, and you don't gain anything
by letting it fly on the chance Of hap
piness."
"Did you ever know any one about
here, Prudence, that threw herself
away for love? 1t seems to me they
won't look at man unless he has a
house and farm all ready for them"
"That's where they're right" said
Prudence. "You are rather given to
high flying notions, and it's high
time you found out that bread don't
grow already buttered. Yes, l did
know one girl who was pretty and
smart, and had no end of chances to
get married, q think my David court
ed her a spell, but he never would
own it,) and she would have that
shiftless critter, Joe Raymond, who
never could make one hand wash the
other. Even when she was a-dying
she pretended that she had been hap.
py, and wouldn't have done no other
way if she had it TO do over again."
"Was she Joe's mother?" asked
Dora, quickly.
"Yes, to be sure; and when she
died we took him to bring up and
work on the farm. He's more than
paid his way, but he's a rolling stone
like his father, and won't never come
to anything. l forgot 10 tell you
he's going to morrow"
"Going tomorrow" cried Dora
with great start. "I thought his
time wasn't out for another month";"
"Well, it ain't rightly out till he's
twenty.one, but he was in such a
hurry to be of that gave him the
last MONTH"