Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1885-01-21

voice steady but it shook in spite of
NE.
He was quieter now. lie answered.
stToking my hair
LAS beautiful as my sister Lucy, and
as good. There-I needn't praise her
more than that. But l want YOU to do
something for me. She is young-very
young and l want you To know her,
TO be her best friend, for my sake, and
10 give her some of that dear old-fash-
Ioned steadineSs that l love 50 well.
Wall you do this for me, Lucyp''
| will not pretend that was glad;
Will not even say that | answered will
ingly. But owed him more than that !:
SO murmured at last
II will try. Who is she ?'
he seemed relieved by my promise.
Didn't tell you p'' he said gaily.
"Queenie Goodwin You don't know
her she came back from Germany only
a month ago. / knew her before she
went. She was a chit then. You will
be great friends, know. No one could
help loving Queenie."
Here is aunt Mary" 1 broke in
! gladly, as Mrs. Payne came in sight.
Aud we hurried forward to meet her.
! We three walked back together. By
this time the stars were out overhead
and the ground was dark with shadow.
L was so busy trying to fancy what
Queenie Goodwin was like that did not
listen to them talking, till Richard said:
What does little wisdom say? Let
us hear her."
L confessed my inattention: 50 Rich
ard explained.
on must know" he said, i'll his
quiet kind way, that my father was
once in great trouble. 1t was a matter
of ruin. A friend saved him by the
sacrifice of himself. This mans name
all honor to twas Templeton. His
son is now in trouble; am afraid there
is some disgrace attaching 10 the affair.
But my good mother wants to offer him
an asylum with us until the trouble in
Madrid-where he held some business
appOintment-haS blown over. Now
yCS know. Lucy, you are one of US;
you have voice in the matter. 1t is
very grave thing TO bring into house
hold man who has disgraced himself.
Shall he come ~
thought | thought. But, when they
would not have that. confessed that
TO my mind Richard ought to help him.
Just what | think ~ said he.
Mother, tell him to come as soon as he
likes, and stay as long as he likes"
So that was settled. 1t seemed TO
me that night quite an unimportant
matter. did not know all.
BefOre he went 10 bed, Richard whis-
pered -
''On Sunday We dine at the Mill
House, and L shall claim your promise.
1 can lIken her to nothing but a
pansy-one of those dark purple pansles
with that soft velvet bloom, that rich
varying color which NO other flower
possesses. She was not dark, according
to my notion Of the word, nor yet fair.
Slight, but beautifully made, she had
all the dropping grace, as she had the
deep coloring of that flower, which is
her emblem 10 me. Her eyes had the
soft TINT of its richest petals her hair
and l2shes even seemed to remind one |
of some shade OF the same flower, so
soft and dark were they, and yet uot
black, 50 bright and Silken in another |
light. but not brown. She wore her !
hair waving low over her forehead, the |
coil dropping against the warm white OF |
her neck.
Woman as | am, il was some mo- /
ments before l could withdraw my eyes /.
from the bewitching sweetness of her |
face to notice her dress. 1t was of the |
same deep color; and it fell round her |
in the same full graceful folds. Before |
we had spoken a word / had yielded. |
She had won me To her side without |
struggle. The rest was settled before
dinner
We stood together in her bedroom
ready to go down. She came up TO me, 4
and put both her hands in mine.
.sWill you let me kiss you ?" she said
winningly. II have often heard of you,
and thought should not like you. But
YOU are different, oh, SO different FROM
what | Imagin ined youp'
[ laughed as kissed her. guessed
that Richard had frightened her with
accounts of what he called my wisdom.
She was looking at me In a serious
thoughtful way, with a pretty little
pucker on her forehead. When she
saw l noticed it, she said
"Do you know, l am wondering
am thinking how strange it is that
Richard should be in love with me-"
why z" asked, astonished.
You are so pretty and so good, " she
said, with naive tiattery.
It was hard, harder even than | had
thought; but | answered quietly
81 am only his sister, who loves him
very dearly"
'iAnd you will he mine too, Lucy,
will YOU ?'' she whispered. "You will
soon find out how much | need one."
said sYes' freely. No one could
have refused her. Besides, had ! not
promised him?
After dinner Queenle beckoned HE
from the room, and We went out INTO
the garden, which ran down by the mill
stream.
.'Now tell me-. said Queenie, "what
do you like best to do ?'
''How do you mean 7 asked.
"Well. when you have two or three
hours before you to spend as you like,
what do you do with them Z"
| was amused at the idea of my hav-
ing two or three hours to spare at a
time. and told her so /; and then de-
scribed my days duties, and how we
spent our evenings together, Mrs Payne
and myself sewing while Richard read
to US, or told US his days experiences,
till bed time, and then l generally sang
one of my few old songs to make them
dream musically," as Richard said.
She looked at me- wonderingly, and a
doubling expression stole over her coun-
tenance.
"IIow industrious you are l'' she
sighed. "And how idle am! Do you
know | sometimes spend whole day
learning a new piece of music, OF read
mo a poem or story? Nay, worse I;
now and then have strange ut, and
| wander away somewhere by myself
for hours together, doing nothing at all
but thinking"
| thought of Richard; Ipictured this