Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1882-10-06
NO. 40.

that one fluff of yellow hair upon the treach-
orous water. The young miller saw it as
soon as l.
Great Heaven" he cried, "the child is
lost. / can't swim, Bess, not a stroke"
got upon my feet. ooh, where is God p
l said and lingering one moment in bewil-
derment, l sprang after little Phil. 1t mat.
tered nothing that had only thrown my own
life after that of the dear little lad. Life was
a thing too hideous to hold. felt this even
as the water poured into my throat and nos
trils, and was fast strangling the faint beat of
my wicked, weak, reckless heart.
Then, as If on the dim shores of paradise,
l saw once more the sad dark face of Billy
Byles-no longer murderous or scowling, but
gentle and tender, and bending over mine
with an unspeakable strength of pity and
love. In his arms was little Phil, the blue
eyes closed, and the yellow hair wet and
dsnk. We were all dead, thought hoped.
] didn't care. l had found God and left it
all with Him.
A shrill whisper awoke me. "And that
there child" it said, sin his blessed ignor-
ance actually wants to go down and play with
them there frogs again. After we'd got him
rid of the nasty water and dried and warmed
him, and put him TO bed, he opened his bless
ed eyes and says to me, says he, Grandma,
Philly go see the funny frogs, please P But
as for Bess, she's been that way nigh on for
twenty-four hours, and the good Lord knows
what'll come of it."
Mothers whisper cut the air, but it was
music to me. Tears of contrition and graft
tude rolled one by one from under my closed
eyelids. Philly was alive, then and suffered
no shock in mind or body, since he wanted
| to go back to the frogs. Who had saved us
| How had we reached the shore?
''There's an all-seen' eye" pursued poor
dear mother, THAT watches everything, and
| them that don't believe in the orderin' OF
things can just tell me how it was Billy Byles
was there with his boat just in the nick of
l time. There's leaven o. good in that there
boy, and l believe he'll do well yet. He's
sold his land, you know, and starts for the
West at daylight tomorrow"
Mother" 1 said suddenly lifting myself
up on my elbow and waiting till she had got
over her first start to hear me speak, and had
caressed and scolded me in a breath, and had
declared she would call everybody in the next
room-sister, Maria and John, and young
Miles the miller, and half the village, 1 sup
pose" mother" l said, 'Ill see nobody but
the one tonight; let somebody go for Billy
Byles."
Mother stood a minute, then saying 'Its
no more'n fair and right" she left me alone.
little later on Bill was bending over me
with the same look of pity and love that had
met my fainting eyes in that last awful min
ute of consciousness. l threw my arms about
his neck.
''Forgive me, Bill, whispered; "forgive
and love me if you can"
When he could get his voice to speak he
said that as for loving me, he couldn't stop
that if he tried And as for forgiving,
Bess, need forgiveness more than any one.
You may as well know, darling, that plan
ned to murder you for many day, and il
was only the mercy o'God that led Philly to
fall into the water, or you'd a been dead
along with yonder sprig in tn other room,
and by my wicked hand that's as sure as
that there's a God that mended matters the
way He did. But I'm cured now Bess Mar.
ry whom you will. I'll not be here to see
I'm going West tomorrow, Bessie and now
give me one kiss, for the sake of all that's
been between us"
Would it be believed that loved him all
the more for his fierce wild part in the bale.
ful past? Though he had planned to muir.
der me, my heart went out to him in love and
, submission. The miller seemed ever so tame
beside him. He stopped and put his lips t.
mine. They fingered long; my weak arm
served to bind him. "Oh, Bass Bess !" he
groaned, and murmured his name with font
caressing
Stay, Bill" said, "and get the timbe
together again. I'll learn to milk SO soon a
2 1 get strength"
r 1'Tll get the timber together, Bess, but i
will be thousand miles from here. 1 won
/ risk it again, Bess, unless you are content Il
Y go away from all sorts of beguilings Choos
here and now; will you go, if wait for you
> Will you?"
. Bills was a stern sort of wooing, but I lik
ed it the best then, and it's served me wei
> this many year. As sat here tonight oi
my wide veranda, and looking far and nea
could see nothing but the fields of grain, an
- the billowy waves of the bluegrass in whic
q the herds plunge and revel, 1 found it fair t.
look upon, but something set me to thinkin
q of the past, and l turned to a handsom
: young fellow at my side.
;, 'Phil, wouldn't you love once more to hea
q the frogs at dear old Frogtown?"
4 'Well, no, Aunt Bess. l came to grie
7 once in sporting with those same reptiles
and might never have heard sound that bel
g ter suits this glorious part of the country
Listen, Aunt Bess; that's the sound for me,
said my nephew Phil.
>, 1t was the wild cry of the coyote. Mrs
y Frank Nc Cdrthy IN Harper's Bazar.