The Sunday herald. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1866-1887, 1885-08-02
WINNY.


lily welcome to Indian Creek. Take a chail
on the piazza till dinners ready--we din,
early in these new world parts.
Fine farm' Well, yes Indian Creek is o
nice place, II | do own 1t. All, as far as yor
can see grassland, corn fields, woods, and
creeks all belong to 1t. Stock too--they
call IL the best stocked farm in Ontario,
believe, and dare say they're right. All
mine; and yet came to Canada lively,
years ago, without even the traditional half
crown In my trcusers' pocket. You look sur
prised. Would you like 10 hear the story
There's good half.hour TO dinner time yet
and it's a story never tire of telling, some
how.
began life as the son OF village carpen
ter in the south of England. You know that
class pretty we'll, dare say, and what gul
was fixed between me and the vicar of tn,
parish. And yet--and yet--from the tim,
she was seven years old and eleven, and
she fell down in the dusty road outside tn,
carpenter shop, aud cried, and picked hei
up, and smoothed the little crumpled pima
fore, and kissed the dust ont Of her COLDER
curls, | loved but one girl In the world, and
that was the Wears daughter, Winuy Brans
come.
Madness, you'll say. Well, perhaps so
and yet man is but man, and a woman q
woman and love comes. whatever one may
do. There's no class distinction recognized
by childhood, and we were playmates and
friends till she went to boarding school. II
Miss Wiuny had had mother, no doubt
things would have been very different; but we
were alike in never having known woman's
care, and the old vicar was blind TO every.
thing hut his theological treatises.
But When she cams back from her London
boarding school, beautiful young lady, all
smiles and laces and little lovely ways-ther
knew. had tried my best to study and
work, and make myself more like the mer
she would meet but what can a lad in al
English village dor just had enough
education TO make every other lad In the
place hate me and beside the men Of hel
world suppose cut rather an astonishing
figure. Yet the love of her was so beyond
all else in me, that mad, hopeless as felt 1t
had no power over myself; and the frs,
time caught her alone in the woods-she
avoided me, | saw, and had to watch for a
chance--I told her the whole story, and
waited for her answer. She grew scarlet--a
rush of color that dyed her fair sweet face
then deathly white.
Dick" she said, and she was trembling
from head to foot, lyon know il can never,
never be yon know You are wrong even to
dream of such thing. Some girls would
think 1t an INSULT know you better; but
II my father heard Of this he would say you
had abused his kindness TO You he would
m I'D
And she ran from me-.
| let her 20. had seen the blush and
tue tremor, aud guessed that IL had been
MIR. Loftns, the yeung squire, instead oil
Dick Hawtry, the carpenters son, her an.
swer might have been different. A great
r.solve sprang up in my soul, and l. took Q
solemn vow in those June woods. That
very night | sold the old shop, lmy father
was dead and had taken TO the business, J
and with the money bought an outfit and
started straight Tor Canada 1t was pretty
tough work at FIRST, but | worked like
galley .slave-starved, and pinched aud
saved, and never spent q penny on my
self except for the books | sat up half the
night to read and study. Well, in thii
capntry the man who works and doesn't
drink is surg to get on; and had mighty
purpose i, my head. By-aud.by bought some
what gave for it-thsn | began to make
money fast. should call my luck wonder
fpl If | believed in lpck, and didn't prefer
to think was helped by a Bower far ADLER
than my own. At last, ten years to the
very day after set foot on Canadian soil,
| bought Indian Greek Farm, and hogan Ia
build this house. All the neighbois thought
my good fortune had turned my brain, for
fitted it up and furnished it for a lady, down
to little rocking chair by my study-table,
and work basket with a tiny gold thimble
in 1t. And when all that was finished I
took the first ship for Liverpool.
Ten years builds city over here. 1t
doesn't make much change in Dsvonshire
village. The very gates were still half oil
their hinges, as left them, only the people
were a little older and tribe more stupid,
and there was new vicar. Old Mr.. Brans.
come had been dead six months died very
poor, they told me !; there was nothing left
for Miss Winny. Ny heart gave one great
leap when heard that. And Miss Winny |?
Oh, she had gone governessing with some
people who were inst of to Canada, and the
ship sailed to morrow from Liverpool.
The Liverpool express never seemed TO
crawl so slowly before. got there to find
every berth taken on board the Antartic,
and tho captain raging at the non appear
ance OF two of the crew. Without a second 8
pause offered for one of the vacant places.
| was as strong as horse, and active enough,
and though the captain eyed me rather ask
ance--I had been to West End tailor on my
way through London-he was too glad 10
get me TO ask any questions. So sailed on
the ship with my girl, little as she knew it..
l. saw her the first day or two, looking so
pale and thin that she was like the ghost of
lis
than ever before. The children she had
charge of were troublesome little creatures,
who worried and badgered her till lougsd
to cuff them we'll. But there was gentle,
ness and patience abont her quite new to
my idea of Miss Winny, and only loved
her the more for It. After the second day
out the wind frsshened, aud saw no more
of her.
We had an awful passage. II was late in
November-an early winter, and the cold
was intense. IL blew QUE continuous gale,
aud some of our machinery was broksn--the
screw danaged-and we could not keep our
course. AS we drew near the other side of
the Atlantic We got more and more out Of
our bearings, and at last the fngs told us we
WERE somewhere on the banks Of NewfOund-
land, but where no one was quite sure. II
seemed to ma II had all happened before, or l
had read ~, or dreamed IL. AT AL events,
II was hardly surprise to me when, on the
tenth night, just after midnight, the awful
crash aud shock took placs-a sensation
which no one who has not felt II can
imagine in the least-and We knew that the
Antsrtic had struck. t.
' It's fearful thing, II you come to think
Of Il, a'great steamsr filled with living souls
III the full How Of lifs and health, and in one
moment the call coming to each OF them to
die. Before you cOuld have struck match
the whole ship was In a panic--cries, terror,
confusion, agpny-O, II was awful trust
never to ses such scene again. made
thy way through it all az II had neither
eyes or ears, and got to the stateroom | had
long ago found out was the one which be-
longed to my girl. knocked at the door
with heavy hand even at that awful mo-
ment thrill ran through me at the thought
of standing face to face with her again.
"Winny |" cried, "come ont Make
haste There Ia not moment to lose ~
The door opened as spoke, and she stood
ust within, ready dressed, even to her lit
tie black hat. The cabin light had been
left burning. by the doctor's orders, and IL
fell full on me as Istood there in my sailors
jersey and cap. | wondered II she would
know me. | forgot the danger we were in
forgot that death was waiting close at hand
A. Ia al A.,