Northwest enterprise. [volume] (Anacortes, Wash. Ter.) 1882-1887, 1883-02-10
ACORTES W. I, SATURDAY, FEBRUARY

home was miserable, and within a
year he died.
Il was too ill to know what hap
pened for a long time after that.
Strange faces passed before me,
strange voices spoke kindly words Of
pity, and once every day it seemed to
me that Andrew came and stood by
my bed. When at last / woke to rea-
son again, you were beside me. Oh,
now l loved you! How passionately
l loved you! You seemed to me to
be all the world, and you saved my
life!
MY husband had not left me in
poverty; l had no need to work, and
spent my whole time in watching
over you. l made no friends, for l
cared for none. 1 forgot the mis-
cries of my fathers house; forgot
even my love for Andrew, and was
scarcely moved when / heard that
death had visited his home as well as
mine, and that he was indeed desc
late, for his wife had died and left
him childless.
Three happy years passed away
almost without a cloud. You grew
and throve. Every day seemed to
my delighted eyes to give a new
charm, new beauty to my treasure;
and then in the midst of my joy you
fell ill. Day and night, night and
day, / watched by your bed-nay,
Janet, give me no thanks; it was
selfish love! 1t was all in vain that
doctor and nurse argued with me. 1
would not leave you. 1t was fever,
and must run its course, they said
If you should recover, my strength
would be needed when you could
know and call for me; but l would
not listen, and one night as l sat be-
side you all the room grew dark, and
| knew no more.
when 1 recovered I could not
rise from my bed, but 1 implored
with passionate tears to be taken to
you. Then some one came forward
and sat down beside me, and took
my hand, and / saw that it was An
drew. 1t gave me no surprise to see
him there. l dimly remembered
that had seemed to see him before
when was i'll, and for q moment his
presence calmed me.
"'Mary,' he said, in his old quiet
tone, If you do not do as / tell you,
you will die; and what is more, the
child will die too"
81 sprang up with a scream, and
struggled to go to you.
My child! my childr' / cried.
"'She is not your child-she is
miner he said, in that calm tone of
truth which had never failed to con-
vince me, and which now pierced like
sword of ice into my heart. Yes,
she is mine! Listen His quiet eyes
controlled me, his quiet words sub
dued me. when you were very i'll,
dying they thought, my name was
often on your lips, and they discov-
cred and sent for me. On the same
day child was born to each of us,
and my wife and your child died.
"We might have hoped for her If her
baby had lived" said the doctor; and
gave my child to you. Can you not
bear what ! have borne?'
"Oh, Janet, my child, his words
were healing. and the sorrow that
from that hour / tried to bear was
taken from mer'
At first when mother ceased speak
ing, the world, and love, and life
seemed to me to be blank and hollow,
but in few minutes rose from nay
seat and kneeled at her knees.
"Oh. mother dear-my father?"
"He died long ago. Janet, do you
love met" she pleaded.
Then, as we kissed each other, l
knew that in all our lives of happy
love dear mother and I had mover
been so near together.