Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1885-11-12

ways are not our ways Eel ieading you
by paths you know not
Il don't want 10 repent Vanity an
swered. aI cannot do what would. am
bsfisd, but have not repented-no, and
viii not repent"
Another time, as Vanity lay In the dark
ness, the sister heard her say:
TEL me, were you always goodP
always good, my childr
81 mean serious you know. i am sure
you were not always seriousP
"Why are you sureF
"Something in your voicen
"You are right Sister Catherine said
quietly. ~ was not always serious"
ssOf course mott Vanity rejoined. ''Be-
sides, you are too good-loodng"
''Indeedr' Sister Catherine remarked,
amused at this franlmess. "Are good-look-
ing pespls never seriousf'
..None that have seen,n Vanity answered
except you, mean And you only began
when-n
Here she stopped, and said no more.
Two or three hours later, Sister Catherine.
finding her little easier, said to her:
"Would you like me to tell you about "a
man who-once-wanLed to marry mef
There was strange tremor in that usually
calm voice as the sister spoke
'Do let me hear it," Vanity said. II hope
he was nicer
'sYou shall Judge, child. We met when
he was twenty-five and twenty-one, and
we both were poor We fell in love. I
think he really loved me. / know l really
loved him. The story is commonplace
enough-at least to the ear. After we had
waited five years for fortune to enable us
to marry, he secured a good appointment.
My heart was throbbing with bliss when
j received letter from him, written in
style of cold Justice and formal honor, which
stabbed me to the heart.
"We were engaged lovers-that he ad-
mitte5. Morally and legally he was bound
to me, but be had ceased to care for me; the
thought of marriage with me, he must
frankly tell me. was repugnant to him.
What would desire him to do!
"Tha cold business like tone, the surface
common sense of the letter was killing. l
wrote and released him, and when l closed
the letter looked up, and there was my life
around me, desolate wilderness
'Child, do you know what it is to have
the dull aching of brain and heart, hour
after hour, day after day?'
81 know it." Vanity answered from her
darkened bed. "Oh, how bitterly l know
itm
.'My strength failed, my ia ce grew aged
with anguish, my hair turned white. /
watched the signs, and was glad of them.
had been well taught, or / might have killed
myself. Perhaps family pride restrained
me- So went on day after day, hating the
light as it came morning by morning, lying
down with the wish that | might never
waken any more
1--WE were living in the country, and one
Sunday morning went out for an early
walk. Since my sorrow had never gone
to church, and heard the bells ringing in
the village for an early service. The idea
struck me that would go in and see if there
/ could calm my mind. So irresolute was /
that for o time l wandered up and down and
did not enter, but at last l crept in with my
breaking heart.
swell / remember that old Norman
church, with its few worshipers, and tht
white altar at the end. AS entered, thu
clergyman was reading, Come unto Me, al
that labor and are heavy laden, and viii
give you rest The words brought no tear
to my eyes, and they did not touch my
heart, but felt a kind Of curiosity ! sale
to myself, Let my try if this really mean
anything went up to the altar as if
had been called by name, and knelt down il
, a sort Of trance
"Now let me tell you fact As knel
there it seemed to me that an invisible ham
was put into mine. I did truly and actuall
feel as if hand clasped me. Hooked uI
No one was near me- The clergyman wa
some way off. Then seemed to hear
: voice saying, Are there no sorrows besid
: your own! No breaking hearts but yours
: No sickness2 No hunger? Nd nakednessp
3 Then for the first time Irealized that
1 was only one in great fellowship Of grief
, was overwhelmed, but with blessed sor
l row now.
, .'And have been happy ever since in m
! own way. People say all sorts of thing
about religion; only know what religio
! has been to me. A new life-a new Lii
when the old one was withered and blaste
and dead! For all that tell you came froI
b no effort Of my own will-just as han
might come to one who is drowning. A
, that was twenty years ago"
"What became of him?" Vanity asked.
'sHe went his way and prospered. He
y married now, with large and happy fan
o lily. He is judge"
"a iudge!" Vanity said scornfully. The
she added, II dare say he is not the onl
one!n
To which Sistet Catherine made no repl..