St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1885-11-14
as he had done at frst. This troubled her.

as ne laQ done at nrSG. lulS tiouUicu uor,
and at last moved her to shun the old IL
brary, and even the church. and she even
shed tears sometimes, wondering how she
had offended him. So, in the end. they
saw little of each other, and thought great
deal; but his heart gave wild throb when
one day he heard that Lettice Lee was go
ing home to America.
''Would she go without bidding him
adieu?" he asked himself. ''Would it not
be better that she should?" But she did
not. She could not. He had been too kind
to her, even though he were cold to her
now One morning she came.
She opened the door of his library as he
sat staring at a blank of sermon paper,
thinking of no text, unless it were this:
Love is strong as death. and jealousy is as
crnel as the grave; and coming up to him,
put out her little hand and said softly:
i have come to bid you good-by, sir. I
am going away"
lie took the hand and arose and led her
to seat and then they sat quite silent for
while. 1t was not right for an old heart
to beat so fast, and he knew it, At last ne
spoke:
Il am sorry. l know that you must go,
but | am very sorry"
She gave a little start and looked full in
his eyes. What she saw there two tears
that quiyered on the lashes made ner put
her little pink palms upon his arm
Sorry" she said. "Oh, are you really
sorry sir? II thought you did not like
me any more-that [ bored you with my
chatter; and so kept away"
Two hands upon his arm. two blue eyes
fixed on his own, sweet. quivering red
mouth parted with such childish sweetness
do you wonder that the old man forgot
that he was an old curate?
People are really never old, you know;
only this fleshy dwelling of theirs decays,
not the heart-the soul. He forgot his gray
hairs and his 55 years of life, and in a mo-
ment he stood almost TRANSPORTED before
her, flushed with youths color, bright with
loves passion.
"Oh, my little girl, my little girl" he
cried, Gould you not see? Did you not
know? Sorry! All, when you leave me
you take my life with you. l, who never
loved any one before love you madly. My
little one, my darling!"
And then it passed. the truth came to
him. He turned from her; his face grew
gray. He flung himself into chair and
hid his face.
''Good-bv," he faltered. ''Forget what
the foolish old man has said, and don't think
too i'll of him.
He did not look at her. but he heard
the rustic of her dress upon the floor. He
felt her close to him. He knew that she
knelt down beside him, and again the little
hand touched his arm.
"Good-by." he faltered.
Then he heard her sobbing and bent over
her.
my child, do you weep for the old
MANI" he said You weep and do not
laugh. God bless you"
And choked voice answered:
Il cry because l am so happy. 1 did not
want to 90 away. 1 want to stay-with
you. People that are nice are always nice.
even if they are old. l only wonder you
could like little thing like me-so silly and
so young-but am very glad you do"
And then he opened his arms and she
crept close to his breast. and he held her
there; and whatever people said when the
banns were published in Amberly church,
it were no sacrifice; for within that old
breast and that young one dWelt unaccount-
ably the twin souls whose bodies should
have been of the same age, and no two mar
ried people ever loved more fondly than the
curate and his girl wife.