The Wellington enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 1867-188?, 1885-05-27

lS not 50 eaSy VO INSURE VuleJueSS lncTe-
by. Everybody knew Enoch Marrish;
everybody knew Patience Blackthorn;
and, above all, everybody knew old
Tom. 1t was not romantic match,
considering the bridegroom looks and
age; but against its reasonableness no.
body could say word. "0ld Enoch' $
money-bags is Just the manure for Legs
Croft" was the universal comment;
and they thought that Patience BlaS<-
thorn had done a decidedly clever
thing.
And so, il marrying for money is as
clever as the world pretends not to
think 1t, she had done clever thing. 1t
is true she would rather have starved
had she been all alone, and considered
herself widow for the rest of her days.
As things were, she would not make
any pretenses to herself or dignity what
she was doing with the name OF duty.
However, it was hard to 90 through
the ordeal of the village stares When,
dressed as plainly as she dared, and
taking her fathers arm (he had taken
hers along the meadow-path) she
reached the corpse-gate OF the church
yard, she found quite crowd to scrape
and courtesy in ner honor. 1t was quite
as II none of them had ever refused to
do a days work for them at pinch
not that she remembered anything Of
that kind then, ualess IL were as anoth-
er incentive TOR carrying her task
through. What she could not forget
was that this was the very church where
she was to have become the wife OF Ste
phen Harlow, who had fled from +
wedding like coward, to die in SpF
like decently brave man. Howeyh
she had been schooling herself agairb
memory ever since she had risen ti4
morning There was nothing but II
village stares for which she was unpd
pared; and they were not the hardd
things she had to bear.
Never did bride come to the alp
with fuller resolve to keep all the vol
she was about to make, save only Oh
chief of them. She did honor Ends
Marrish, with all his faults. The vd'
fact that he, being what he was, hi
never scrupled to give his time, n
labor, his money, for friendships sats
showed what friend he knew howd
be- The very fact that, being what h
was, he was about to marry pennilf
girl, showed that gold was not T.
ruling passion, after all. And she wo9;
obey him. not only with, a good WIS
but with an eager desire; his life shoA
bo hers, and to sweeten 1t LTD
for him ought not TO be hard. 4
TO the love-well, she had warned bill
honestly, and he should not miss I'LL
want of more than needs must be-
Then, as the broken old man leaned
more and more heavily upon her
through the fields, now chatting gayly
and now falling into reverie, she grad
ually rose into that exalted mood
wherein sacrifice becomes always joy
and self sinks lower and lower beneath
the rising wings till II becomes unseen.
He had nothing left but her -- she,
nothing left but him. Could she fail
him at his needP Why, if this were a
marriage Of hate instead of marriage
of duty, still it must be made. And
then, after to-day, she would think Of
Stephen-saye as one who had been
dear to her and was dead-never again.
In a very different spirit did the
bridegroom prepare for his wedding
morning He was really in love; though
It Is but fair to suspect that love alone
wonld not have been enough to make
Enoch Marrish marry girl without
penny. Where his further interest
might lie. he alone could tell; but then
he was his own sole coniidant and was
not likely 10 take another at his time Of
day. But, whatever 1t was, first
passion had given IL zest, and victory
over rival more intense flavor still.
He dressed himself In the suit Of clothes
he had had made ut Manchester five
and-twenty years ago to attend the
funeral of an uncle who had made q
will; and, as he had never put them on
since, they were as good as new, and
their being somewhat out Of fashion
was no matter at all. II was true the
moth had attacked them, but the mis-
chief had not gone fatally far. Then,
feeling himself so fine, he could not
help being the least bit nervous, and
added to his water-gruel as much
brandy as might fill an aeorn-cup, to
make It 20 down. He went round the
house 10 see that all was ready for the
new mistress homecoming, armed
with duster and broom.
Some OF his thoughts are best not set
down. But business was never far
away from the deepest Of them. No"
said he to himself, half aloud, according
to the way OF men who live too much
alone, "no; that miserable old idiot
Tom Blackthorn, can't last long now
He'll drink himself to death in no time,
when Patience isn't at his elbow; and
he shan't cost much--an old fool like
that must put up with what can afford.
The only thing TO look after Is that he
don't lose the few wits he's got left be-
fore he makes his will--it'll be rather
awkward II he dies without that, and
the young fool turns up again. Not
that .Leys Croft's worth haying-it'll
cost more to get in order now than
would nav me back In twenty years