Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-01-13

NJ mOtlOnleSS. as she does, easily suggest
M the idea Of grace. She wears a " bite
cambria dress, embellished with little
scarlet dots, very fresh and girlish, and
without ornament Of any sort, only the
taintieSt adjustment of collar and cuffs.
)ne hand is in the pocket OF her dress;
he other. resting on the door, is white
and soft and strangely expressive. Its
lOld on the wood carving of the doorway
5 firm and resOlute. and eY ~ bend Of the
.apering fingers seems, somehow, steady
and strong. A thick suit of warm-cOlOred
hair is cOmbed back from a
broad forehead, and tied tightly with
scarlet ribbOn-and her face! What a
task it is to describe a mobile, sensitive,
human facet Especially one,
ike this, too young to indicate what life
has been, too bright to suggest what life
might be. A face, like a fresh-blOWn
1OWer, very fair just now, but who can
tell if it grows firmly on its stately stem
ready to bend to the sharp blast, or to be
struck down with untimely death by tie
first rough wind? Charlie Barrett is very
fresh and very fair, not with the transient
fairness which is hurt by an hours indis-
position, but with a healthful pink and
white by natures cunning hand laid
on" Her features are rather regular.
Her eyes, which ought to have been blue,
are bright hazel, and her eyebrows, not
her yellow b ar, are almost
black. Her mouth is not small, but is
nevertheless, and her teeth are
lust perfect. But the soul of expression, in
her singular face, seems to live more in her
dark brows, even more than in the bright
eyes underneath. What curious things she
does too with those eyebrows They arch
with mischief, they curve with mockery,
they bend low, alas! with temper. The
r-I 10 81 of wi
generous and impetuOus, but as true as
steel! She is the daughter of a cOurtly
race, and the heiress of a good estate; but
her distinguished father has been 100
busy to know her, and is now too i'll to
think much about anybody but himself;
and she knows that, OF all his household,
only her gentle step-mOther loves and UNI
derstands her, unless we except the ser
wants who, one and all, think her para
gOn Of perfection. Judge Barrett knew
men well. His astute perception has al
ways readily taken IN every point of their
and his conclusions have been
almost infallible, but he has been and is
strangely ignorant of women. His wife
suits him, he believes, exactly. Pretty,
gentle, modest. and not too intelligent, he
believes himself blest in her possession,
Mrs. Beltham he admires as a person of
strong character and fine sense-hence
her prominent place in his family. He be-
lieves she, if any one. could train proper
Iy his only daughter whom he considers
healthful, hOydensh girl with rather too
much brains, and who decidedly needs
looking after. So into her care Charlie
had been given early after his marriage
seven years ago, and she, strange to re-
late, had not yet subdued her as she liked
to her all mastering Will. She reprOves,
she lectures, she upbraids, she even some
times weepS over her young charge, but,
out of all her world of relatives, friends,
dependents, dOmestics, this child, Charlie
Barrett, IS the one rebel. With all the
lady's intelligence, with all her fOrceful
will, with all her numberless stratagems,
with all her cool determination, her gen
eralship has been a failure. The girl is
not yet subjugated. But Mrs. Beltham is
undaunted. She looks confidently for
ward beyond these girlish days when she
will have her ward completely under her
control. and then she will give ''sleep to
her eyes and slumber to her eyelids''-
then she Will enter into the rest provided
Tor the faithful. Strange that she has not
vet detected the flaw in her rule, the de-
feet in her management! The art toes
not beLleUe in her! If, when she had first
taken her an unlOved, motherless child,
she had won her little heart by tenderness
and sympathy, her way would have
proven most easy. But, hearing that the
child was wilful and inpatient of re-
straint, she had sternly set herself to the
task of breaking her will, and she had
found it an exciting and fruitlesS enter
prise. The child rebelled at being given
over body and soul to one who was neither
relative nor friend. and her flashing,
naughty temper has caused her to fret ut
her tolls and rebel at her authority.
Ubof q cro,,tIo apI Iox-ir,e 10,
have accomplished with one caress, this
executive and autOcratic lady had failed to
effect in years of harangue and discipline.
Nor was Mrs. Beltham conscious of the
least UnklLdneSS toward the girl. She be-
lieved she was doing her best, her inteli-
gent best, and laid all the Opprobrium Of
failure to the undisciplined temper and
will of poor Charlie. Still she
is no little proud of her charge-prOul of
her talents, proud of her beauty, and proud
of her good old name. 1t is even safe to
say that she loves her little too, as like
ly to contribute to her own Importance
and happiness one OF these days. This
mild affection is cast in Charities teeth, so
to speak, daily, almost hourly, but it is
Intellectual in subduing her.
having, on the contrary, curious ten
dency to promote her wilful moods, and
irritate her untamed temper. The girl is
too young to despOnd, too absolutely
healthy TO weep, and too full of unsub-
dued mischief to grieye; but she frets and
ana fights her little battles
daily. with a cheerful sort Of energy, and
a kind of defiant Zest. She would cons der
her life very tame without Mrs. Beltham,
yet she is miserably restless under her
Her step-mOther has rather
the hardest time of the three.
Loving both, as she does, it is daily trial
to witness these skirmIshes and justify
both IN her own mind. If the truth must
be told, her heart will lean toward the
girl, will beat in sympathy with her, and
tins she fears is hardly loyal to her gifted
and remarkable mother. She accuses
herself of a weakness for Charlie which,
she fears, causes her 20 be too lenIenC to
her failings, but then she cannot possibly
help if, and-and so she is unhappy
every day with this conflict of feeling, and
can't tell just where the right pathway
lies for her helpless feet.
Mrs. Beltham had heard Charities foot
steps coming, and had even seen her en-
Ter the door, but it was on her programme
to affect ignorance of the girls presence,
and always to wait to be spoken to. All
his Charlie knows full well, and perhaps
hat may account for her waiting ten mis-
:hieyOus seconds before she addresses
anyone. whilst she takes quick note of
everybody and everything.
"Good morning, grandmammar she
'ays, at last.
1t is a full, ringing voice which speaks,
/ true, clear voice, a little too loud, per-
APPS, but pleasant to hear.
"Ah. good morning, Charlotte. Pm GER
ainly glad you have come. Breakfast is
tone cold, and my feet are aching with
ong standing"
The girl turned her bright eyes on the
all, cOlOred waiter with pretty show of
niger.
''John, hand Mrs. Beltham chair.
IN ashamed of your negligence"
The boy grinned little at his mistress
Jack, and understood perfectly.
Charlie walks around and kisses her
'Oung mothers smooth forehead.
"Good morning, dear mamma" she
iays, Pm afraid you've been sitting
lp again. You look just a little pale, don't
-Ou?''
Yes, dear. Don't you see your unc'e
Albert:7
The black eyebrows came close toqe her +.
n an unmistakable frown, AM Charles
read raises itself perceptl6iy. she looks
straight out of the window. and speaks |
hardly with pOliteness:
yes, see my uncle Albert How-do.
lncle Albert?'
''Thank you, | am Very we'll, Charlie. l /
need not ask how you are. You look as
resi- as "A daisy. Come and sit by me,
-, - coil gsThat io NOT tho %