Tolland County press., 1883-02-22

spiritlessly. Nobody ever comes here.
 But she rose and opened the door. There stood stout, middle-aged man, with cheerful blue eyes, 8 ruddy com plexion, and leg-of-mutton whisksrs, slightly sprinkled with gray.
 "Does Mrs. Walter Robbins live here ?" he asked
 Miss Elsa had made waf1es for supper, and had fried some fresh crullers, brown and light as butterhy-wings. She had brought in the psrlor-lamp, and hunted up two little china-mugs, handleless, and with the gilt inscription faded of, which had been hers and her sisters, as children, long ago.
 s'They'll please the little ones," she thought. sas
 | And Mrs. Robbins, in her clean cap, sat smiling by the hearthstone, when l Walters widow came in, her black dress powdered over with the snow which had begun to fall at the gathering of dusk, and with tLe two little girls clinging to her hand. l #
 "My dear," said Mrs. Robbins, ''you are welcome-kindly welepme you and the dear little girls l'sgsHs
 And Elsa came in, her face softened for the moment, and led them hospitably to l the fire. &sa @# fsT
 s'Its poor place." said she; ''but mother is right-you are welcome Y | The children looked timidly around at the black beams which traversed hssroof overhead-the deep-set windows, with heir broad ledges filled with musk-plants aud fish geraniums--ths strings of red Ipsppers above the mantle--and the brass Icandlesticks, which glittered as if they were made of gold. And then the fire the great, open chimney -place-the blaz- ing Iogs-the funnily shaped andirons, with round heads, and the great Maltese cat, asleep upon the gaudy rag rug. Was it all true or wers they dreaming?
 But when it came to hot waf6es aud ma- ole molasses c6okies, with fennel-seeds ln them, and milk-just as much milk as they could drink out of those dear little antique mugs-the children decided the matter in their own minds, that they Were not dreaming at all. And after they had gone to sleep in bedroom just of the kitchen, where the sheets smelled of sweet clover, and the wallpaper was covered with punches of cabbage-roses, with lm- possibly green leaves, and blue ribbon fl- let's around the stems, Mrs. Walter Rob- bins found courage to thank the friends who had been so good to her in her neces- sity; you yet, she said, timidly. 'I couldn't write it, because did not know it myself at the time that I appealed to you. l am not so poor as everyone thought Poor, dear Walters mining ventures have turn- out better than any one expected. A law yer from the south came to see me last night, and told me that am te have at least thousand dollars year."
 "Eh ?" said Elso, almost incredulously.
 ''It ain't possible ?" clipped Mrs. Rob-
 "And," went on Mrs. Walter, eff you will allow me to live here and share 1t with you"
 "No," said Miss Elsa "We have no right to it."
 "But," pleaded the widow, ''you wert
 willing to share all that you had with mel"
 ''That's quite another thing" said Elsa "No, it isn't" said Mrs. Walter. s'Itc the same exactly. And I have always
 longed for home in the country, and it , is SO lovely here and-and I feel that 1 love you already, and should be misera-
 ble anywhere else. Please-please let me stay 1" 3SSi : EtE&
 And what could Mrs. Robbins and Miss Elsa say but 'Yes."
 And when the gentle widow retired to her room, Miss Elsa looked at the old
 lady, with tears ill her eyes.
 :, "Mother," said she, ''you were right. Providence has provided. The moment :, made up my mind to leave off caring and planning, and trust In God, He has laid a blessing at my feet. think will nevel doubt or despair again"