The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1884-01-16

state the fact to comfort other maidens
| of thirty years Standing-T received an
offer of marriage, the first | had ever
had. lie who asked me was a gentle
man of my own age, an old acquaint-
ance, though never q very intimate
friend. examined myself well. with
/ great humility and regret, for he was
an excellent man; but | found | could
not marry him. 1t was very strange
that he should ask me, | thought. NV
mother, proud and pleased--lirst, be-
cause had the honor OF a proposal;
secondly, that it was refused, and she
! kept her child still--weuld have it that
the circumstance was not strange at all.
She said many women were handsomer
and more attractive at thirty than they
had ever been in their lives, My poor,
fond, delnded and deluding mother, in
whose sight even | was fairl That
night was foolish enough to look long
into the glass, at my quiet little face,
and my pale, gray-hlue eyes--not dark
like ZIllah 's--feoiish enough to count
narrowly the white threads that were
coming one by one into my hair. This
trouble mean the offer of marriage
Il did not quite get over for many
weeks, even months.
The following year of my life there
befell me great pang. OF this, a grief
never to be forgotten, loss never to
| be restored-I cannot even now say
more than is implied in three Words
my mother died, After that Zillah and
! 1 lived together alone for twelve
months or more.
There are some scenes in our life
| landscape scenes | meanAthat we re-
member very clearly; one strikes me
| now. A quiet, soft May day; the hedg-
es Just III their first green, the horse
/ chestnuts white with flowers; the long.
silent country lanes swept through by d
travelling carriage, in which two wom-
en-. equally silent, sat-Zillah lie Peer
| and |.
! 1t was the month before her coming
of age, and she was going to meet her
guardian, who had just returned from
India,
Mrs Sutherland had received a letter
! from southampton, and immediately
sent for US into the country to meet her
son, her beloved Andrew.n | merely
repeat the words as | remember Zillah's
doing, while she laughed at the ugly
name. | never thought il ugly.
! When we had really started, however.
Zillah ceased laughing, and became
grave, probably at the recollection of
that humiliating circumstance which
first brought her acquainted with her
! guardian. But despite this ill-omened
beginning, her youth had blossomed in
to great perfection. As she sat there
before me, fair in person, well cultured
in mind, and pure and virgin in heart
! Tor had so kept her out of harm 8 way
that, though nearly twenty-one, knew
! she had never been '.in love- with any
man-as she sat thus, felt proud and
glad in her, feeling sure that Mr.. Suth-
erland would say had well fulfilled the
charge he gave.
We drove to the lodge gates. An
English country-house is always fair to
see; this was very beautiful remem-
bered it seven years ago, only that it
was autumn, and now spring Zillah
remembered it likewise; she drew back.
and ! heard her whisper uneasly.
Now we shall soon see MIR. Suther-
land"
| did not answer her word.
We rolled up the avenue under the
large chestnut-trees. | saw some one
standing at the portico; then | think
the motion OF the carriage must have
made me dizzy, for all grew indistinct,
except "A firm. kind hand holding me as
stepped down, and the words, Take
care, my dear Cassia!a 1t was Mr..
Sutherland
He scarcely observed Zillah, till in the
nan introduced her 10 MN. lie
s seemed surprised, startieu, pleased.
taking OF ner 10 me tilit evening, he
said, he had not thought she would
have grown up thus; aud noticed him
look at her at times with pensive
kindness. Mrs. Sutherland whispered
to me that the lady he had been engaged
to was n half-caste like Zillah, which
accounted for it. His mothers prophe-
! nv had bppu ripbt hp had pama hack no
he went out-ilnmarried.
When Zillah went to bed she was full
of admiration for her guardian. lie
was so tall, so stately. Then his thick,
curling fair hal-Just like q young
mans, with scarcely u shadow of gray.
She would not believe that he was over
! forty-ten years older than myself-un-
| til by some pertinaeity had impressed
this fact upon her. And then she said
it did not signify, as she liked such
dear old souls as him and me much
better than any young people. Her
| fervor of admiration made me smile,
but after this night observed that the
! expression of it gradually ceased.
Though was not so demonstrative
as Zillah, it will not be supposed but
| that was truly glad to see my old
friend, Mr.. Sutherland. lie was very
kind, talked to me long of past things,
and as lie cast glance on my black
dress, saw his lips culver; he took my
| hand and pressed 1t like Il brother. God
bless him for that.
But one thing struck me-a thing |
had not calculated on-the alteration
seven years had made in us both. When
he took me down to dinner, accident
| ally caught sight of our two figures in
the large pier-glass Age tells so differ
emily on man and woman; remember
the time when lie was a grown man. and
"a mere girl; now he looked a stately
gentleman In the prime of life, and | a
middle-aged. old-inaidish woman. Per-
haps something more than years had
done this: vet it was quite natural. only
| had never thought Of it before.
/ So, when the FIRST meeting was over.
| with the excitement. Measurable or
! otherwise. witch as a matter of course
| it brought to us all-when we had sew
eralIy hidden each other qood-nipht.
and Mr.. Sutherland had said smilingly
that lie was glad it was only goodnight.
not good-bye-when The whole house
was Quiet and asleep--to use the psalm