The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1883-11-08

fortunate in making your acuuaint-
ance, even under such adverse circun,-
stanceS.n
1t was the most grandiloquent speech
he had ever made, but he felt amply
repaid by the bright smile with which
she rewarded him, and as he sat in his
boarding-housc that evening a namclcss
thrill pervadcd his being to which he
had heretofore been II stranger.
1t had been the custom of Peter
Fillmore for number of years past to
throw aside the duties Of life once in
the II months, and for Il few weeks at
least to be a gentleman Of leisure. His
occupation was the hard and rather
unromantic one of blacksmith and car
riage.ironcr; but he possessed a soul
above that Of the common Vulcan, and
when the summer days grew warm and
balmy, the leathcrn apron was cast
aside, and behold the grub WAS Il but
terfly. The savings Of year were
generally consumed in these annual
recreati0ns, and when they terminated,
he "Ould go pcnnilcSS back to the shop
and patiently smite the glowing ilon
and await the next respite from slavery
| But that night new impulse was
creeping into his brain, and another
| more cOmmendable had found lodge
ment III his heart. The latter feeling
was admiration for the fair young girl
he had rescued, and it warmed and
glowed and lighted up his honest. not
| unhandsome face, us he thought OF her
smillng graciouSncss ana apparent
| oDliviousnesS to the fact that he was
only hard-handed son of toll. And
THIS thought only helped to augment
far ~ III,
whispering to him that if he could win
the heart OF this contidmg maiden, he
might thereby lift himself above the
necessity of earning his bread by the
sweat Of his brow.
All throught the night these thoughts
haunted him, and visions of plump.
white arms, Il fair, frightened face
framed in the whirling water of an
angry sea, Il dainty, trim maiden, with
dewy lips and Il mischievous CLINT in
her. bright eyes, throngcd III upon his
litful slumDerS, and the next afternoon
he dressed himself carefully in his
"other" best suit, fer his wardrobe was
rot exceedingly ample, and strollGu
down upon the beach.
Miss Orrington was there, and
greeted him with childlike frankness.
81 have been looking for YOU" she
said Daiyely, as she gave him her hand
and poor Pc,er WAS vanqushcd com
pletely as the strong, yet gentle clasp of
her fingers closed upon his.
~ Shall not venture into the water
to-day" said the lady, as they sauntered
along the sand and watched the antics
Ct fftsh thS Sns2pthsg R2fhsry yycstendSSy9 tS ""'"
She did not look in the least dis
turbcd, and when they parted Peter
Fillmore felt that he was doomed
man, for he well knew that, under ordi-
nary circumstances, his case was as
hopeless as it could well be. How gra-
cious, and sweet and smiling she was,
and how different Il creature Il city
belle was from what he had imagined!
Her laugh had such a wholesome,
hearty ring in 1t, ana she was SO uEaf-
fccted III her manner, while in years
she conld scarcely, as yet, have exceeded
her twentieth.
Again that night he sat as he did the
evening before and wrestled with him.
self, At one moment her evident
pleasure in his company lifted him to
the highest pinnacle OF happiness, and
then he would be plunged in the deepest
abyss of misery as a dingy blacksmith
shop, with its glowing forge and heavy
drudgery rose up before him and seemed
to stand between himself and the smil-
ing object Of his newly awakened
alteration.
The place where he had met his fate
was Il rather secluded seaside resort in
Eastern New England, and as he
joined in the company Of Miss Orring-
ton day after day, he determined to
win her, IL possible, let the consequences
be what they would.
lie had developed Of late wondcr T.
full liking for feminine society, and sur.
priScd himself at the ease with which
| he gllded into the ways Of the hitherto
| charmed circle; for though he was an
| entire novice III such matters, he was
fairly well read and above the average
of intelligence.
SO one evening late III July, as the
sea lay like huge mirror in the soft
radiance Of the silver Moonlight, he
dropped the oars which he had been
plying with unusual vlgOr, and allowed
the boat to drift over the CLASSY srr-
face, unrullled by the slightest symptom
of Il breeze.
His companion was looking drcamily
toward the sholo, from which strains of
music and sounds of laughter noatcd
like echoes from fairyland.
'lsnt this delicious" said Miss
Orrington, turning her radiant face
toward him. 1T seems us though
could live out my life in such a state
OF beautitudc as this"
a strong hand seemed to grasp the
throat of the young man.
ut is heaven on earth, =" he answered
i'll low, almost hOarse tone.
| The strange sound Of his voice start.
led her.
care you sickr" she said, reaching
her hand toward him from the seat in
the stern of the little boat. "Y Your
voice seems to sound so strangely.
mo, am very we'll, indeed" he
returned, with an effort, "but / was
thinking how soon these pleasant days
must end"
The oppressed feeling came suddenly
upon her, and her rosy checks palcd in
the moonlight.
81 had never thought of that, she
faltered, "It seems as though we had
known each other lifctime.'
And the look in her face made him
forget everything; and, at the risk OF
capsizing the frail craft, he threw him
self on his knees before her, ana claspcd
| hOr hand ,ul,tol, bo ,,,;1l, I