The daily Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1878-1???, 1883-05-18
A LITTLEQUEEN.
BY MRS. NJ. l.. RAYNE,

BY MRS. NJ. l., RAYNE,
Could you have seen the vioets
.ug That blossomed In her eyes
Could you have kissed that golden hair
And drunk her baby's signs,
You would have been her firing maid
As joyfully asl;
Content TO deck your little queen
And let the world go by,
They used to gopast clubhouse eyry fine
day, summer and winter-the man, shah.
by, emaciated as with long sickness,
and with feeble hesitating step, and an
old-young face that was far from pre-.
possessing; the child, beautiful, regally
dressed, seated in summer in pretty
carriage tastefully decorated in winter,
wrapped in soft fur robes in her little
sleigh that was hung with musical bells,
and drawn always by the faithful seryi-
tor, who from much practice seemed to
have managed the difficulty of going two
ways at once; at least, he walked for
ward and looked backward, and never
fell over anything or endangered the life
of his precious charge.
do not remember who it was told us
that the man was servant, or whether
we gathered it ourselves from him, as
we stopped to notice the beautiful child.
We were two old maids, sisters, and
with enough of an income to enable liz
to live in a genteel neighborhood but
not rich enough to be able to associate
with the owners of the more splendid
dwellings arouudus. We were, however,
quite too rich to be patronzed, so the
good people left us severely alone. This
explanation is necessary TO account fol
our interest in all that passed our door
- We had little else to do but to speculate
on people, not in general gossipy way
but in that semtromantc strain of tx
preston which people are apt to acquire
who live much alone.
So we made a history of our own foI
the little queen, as we called her, and il
certainly seemed to hit her. She was
we decided, the only child of very ricl
parents, and this faithful man, who wa,
not exactly q seryant-not being il
livery, or as well dressed as servants il
such families usually are-was a sort o
attache 70 the little queen. and kept L
attend her because be was so very fonC
Of her-msids not being Trustworthy GU
II sight We felt sure that she came
3 long line Of heroic aneeStry--thert
was no ditch water in those blue vein!
that traced her pearly skin, and the fear
less blue of her lovely eyes was that o
8 conquerur. Then the small shspell
cara, the dainty hands and feet-oh
yes, blood win tell, The very fact tia
no ladies ever appeared on the street
with her, told the story of select human
ity by right of birth. We were just
enough tainted with inherited aristocracy
ourselves to approve Of the baby's lin
cage.
But, strange 10 say, we never became
well acquainted. The man had quiet
way Of going right on with his little
mistress, and whenever we saw our
bright bird she was on the wing. She
would smile and throw Us kisses and
toss her fine, richly dressed doll. in her
arms for Us TO see, and then her patient
steed would start into gentle trot, and
the little equipage would be gone, and
il would seem to US two lonely women
as if q cloud had shut off the sun.
1t went on this way for years, and the
baby could walk and was quite large
child, with long, curling, golden hair,
and the fairest complexion | ever saw,
with the color Of a dog-rose on her
cheeks. and just Drumming with health
and happiness. The man was always
with her, seedy, detected looking, but
absorbed in the child, often looking al
her with sort of rapture in his face as
il he imagined she might vanish into
Heaven while he watched her, and when
he touched her to arrange her wrap
pings, doing it in deprecating way as
if he We're not half good enough. never
saw such devotion, even in lover, and
but this is not of myself.
Three summers and winters we saw
these two 90 past our door, in their lit
tie happy journeys, where one was blest
in giving and the other in receiving when
they both disappeared. Days went by
and they did not come; the trees which
were bare and leafless blossomed out in
living green; birds saug-wherc was our
little queen? Sister and took turns in
watching for her; but we were disappoint-
ed until one morning early ,when Hooked
up the street saw, not the little car
riage with its pretty burden, but the man
attendant running distractedly toward
me. As he came near | saw that his
face was white and haggard, his eye-lids
red, lips compressed; he would have
passed directly along, but called to him.
"How is the little onep"
VERY sick, he called back and sped
on his way
He had reluctantly told me once that
her home was on the corner of certain
streets above us, but Twas not familiar
even with our own locality, and had
only an idea that it was distant, perhaps
two or three blocks. Now Icaught up
wrap, threw something on my head and
hurried away determined to know il
the beautiful child was in danger, and
feeling no fear Of intrusion, for TO those
, people would not DO Of the slightest
Importance; but | hoped some of th,
domestics would kindly relieve my anx
iety, for 1 too, loved the child, and
was devoured with secret fear that
should never see her again.
IL was long way there, Walked anc
walked and at last ! stood AZ the mum
Der. And then | felt sure Of what ha,