Little Falls transcript. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1876-1894, 1883-11-23

stars III blue midnight that smile Of
exquisite Innocence and purity! ] used
to tremble before her sometimes as be-
fore some young SO Mt stepped from a
shrine one that dared to desecrate
by loving. All, how I loved her! The
sight OF certain flowers brings her back
to me now! when the apples are in
blossom, that pink and white snow, that
lnefable delicaey of perfume, calls her
before me like revelation! there are
times when this eternal smoothness Of
things in my life pals on ine--times
when cannot bear the sound of even
ing bells coming across water. It SO re-
news TO: me that evening-that evening
when [ lost her--When I lost her if I
found Rosalie" .1 s>,s.a .s..<
you lost her, them" said to break
the silence that followed. u.
II will tell you. The two are insepa-
able. If. ! walked or rowed or sailed
with one the other was not far away.
Resale was a little gay, tormenting
sprte; Alicia a pensive saint. It was
Alicia's home; her father was man of
wealth, and Resale was visiting her.
Rosalie had no home, no fortune; she
had just finished school and was to be a
| governess, dreading it as q butterfly
might dread being broken to harness,
| dreading it all the more for this
glimpse Of luxurious life in
her friends home since school. I N.Y.
self had fortune in my own right, and
bad been guilty OF the follies of most of
the jeunesse dore of that period, which,
| some enough to the authorities of my
| college to need discipline, and 1 was
passing year Of most unhappy rustica-
| ton in the place adjoining Alicia's
home. Never shall I forget the first
| moment in which I saw Alicia running
down one of the orchard aisIes with
her white garments futtering about her,
and her fair head bent over the branch
| of apple blossoms in her hand. II
lightning had fallen, the revolution that
| seized me could not haYe come more
| quleEly. seemed to be changed in 4
twinkling, to have been born into anoth-
! er planet, I felt as if sunshine had
| pierced and penetrated once impenetra-
ole gloom. When I fell asleep in the
grass Of that orchard, and woke with
that heavenly creature bending over
me, rose only to walk on air. The lit
tie brown face Of Rosalie, with its carna-
! tons, with Its CLINT and glance of it's
| great brown eyes, with it's flood OF brown
curls that had touch OF gold ON them,
with the glittering teeth Of its beautiful
laugh, was just over her shoulder, but
merely know saw it by remembering
it afterward. She was only a shad-
ow to me those days; and as for
| me, was only Alicia's shadow myself.
| she lived and moved in some exalted
atmosphere, to my perception. She
does now. Her father wore the front
Of Jove; could not say that be did not
carry the thunders.. I felt myself a
mote in the broad beam of their SUM-
shine, as though we're somethingIhard-
| ly visible in their large range of vision,
rs if it requiredan effort to make myself
perceived by them. hesitated to make
an efort--I worshipped from afar.
When she spoke to me my heart beat
so had hardly voice to answer. When
she touched my hand it thrilled me
| through and through. And / asked no
more, / thought of no more for awhile
than just to continue so forever; to see
her from my window walking under the
long alsles of the low-branched orchard
like some medieval picture; to walk be-
side her sometimes; now and then to
with her; now and then to he her
partner in the dance. Then Resale
should be about with me, riding here,
strolling there, walking to church, read
ing with the old pastor, in whose charge
! there was fiction that was, ard SO, in
a way, studying with me-that was all
q matter of commonplace; she was sweet,
she WAS fresh, she was charming. But
! what was all that when an angel was in
! the room?
Zone night was ON the gallery. lust
| outside their drawing-roon, looking in
at the long window, and Alicia was sing
ing. All, how delicious Was that, voice!
| The cherubim and seraphim who con-
tinually do sing if I ever hear them, will
not sing so sweetly. I wonder to whom
that voice is singing now! Beside her,
| that night, was this scamp who had
come to the place more than once, az
proud, commanding follow in his I'M
dress uniform, man whom her father
| plainly intended she should marry.
| can see the scene now-the rich and
| dimly lighted room full Of purple shad-
ows, the air laden with the scent Of
flowers; Alicia in her white drapery,
more mystical, more beautiful more
holy, as she sang, than if revealed in
the glow Of her beauty; outside the vio-
let depts Of the sky, and the moon Just
falling, like some great golden flower,
low in the west, and as Alicia's voice be-
/ C<IlA0 oAICuLs q CIOl1 Vi DEl1-EOUSS Ctm"
| ing far and fine and free across the wa
ter, like echoes Of her song in heaven.
My heart svellea with ful1uess of rap
ture; life seemed TOO rich, too sweet, too
sacred; and then | saw that man stoop
and kiss her brow. The action turned
me to stone for a moment, till he came
saunterlng to the window, ana knew
no more what | was doing than that
bronze Perseus in the corner would if
| be moved. ! lifted the hand that had
| seemed stone, and as he passed me I
! struck him on the mouth, the mouth
| that had done the proclamation"
And Mr.. Ferndale was quiet little
| while.
"And that was the end of all things"
| he resumed. 1.-THE fellow laughed at
me for mad boy. Her father launched
one OF the thunderbolts, and forbade me
the house. What stricken day and
night Of Wretchedness! what a week of
hopelessness, Of annihilation! But per-
| haps Alicia felt otherwise. Why should
not discover? Why should I suppose
she had any other sympathy with that
creature than the sympathy Of the star
! and the worm? And if my glad perad-
verture were true why then we could
fly from these places that should know
us no more; the world was before us,
heavens gates were open to u.s.. And I
wrote, my hand trembling at its sacriieg-
ious daring, just dozen lines, without
address,, without signature. She would
know what it meant And it was sent
by the parsons boy. And waited for her
lying Oh, the grass beneath the orchard
trees, in the deep gloom just giIded by,
the influence ofthe unseen moon: There
came the rustling OF garments, the trip
ping Of foot; my heart beat, my eyes
grew dim. Was it she coming up behind
me, as I lay lifted on my elbow, kneel-
ing and putting her arms aboutne rain
ing swift kisses on my face? wild, sweet
kisses IN that shadow; wild, passionate
whispers in that silencel And then q
great pang smote me. and ] rose up and