The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1885-01-29
ALEX VERNON.

elov deepening "a her fair cheek. and .
sudden sreiiemen. ltsping into her dark.
grey eyes.
Nonsense, dear, answered her mother
after momes,'s pause. "it vas your i'm
agination. Ny little girl 10 iAnciful TO-
Inight." and she bent 10 stroke back The
ihiekly clustering cnrls from the low white
brow, ss she pressed fond. fsrvsri kiss
upon IL
II WAS 4 pretty picture on which the
,.preA - hieksssd "a. AAncsA that cold
s.OLrisgna ~svkt-she ~srn. luxurious
room, With the tall. elsean, woman in its
midst, and the little dsintily dressed
child by ler side.
! Without. tho wind swept by, burling
fsre0 mssses of snow on its wing end
1ashing thpsgh tie bAss 'ieaiIsss brasshss
N As tssse
The child shuddersd as she heard i,s
moan.
II an quite sure heard II. mamna.
Suppose anyone were out on such night.
II would DO dreadful. Lss me open the
ldeera uomsnt ''
"a Wiih0ut waiting ibr the refusal
trembling on the uethsrs lips, she dartsd
forward aud threw open the great outside
door
4 In another instant . yell sent sharp
peal through the house. for on the very
threshold lay a PROSTATE body, already
thalf buried IN the snow, ~
i Fire minutes lsssr. nd the lsd had
bees carried 10 the sofa, and restorativss
given him.
"will be live, mammal Do you think
| he will lives"
| But in answer TO her question the lids
slowly lifted themselves. and the great
black eyes rested wonderfully on the
childs face, bending SO anxiously over
him.
Had the death he thought so near over
taken him. and was this heaven lie had
reached?
He feared TO wake from his dream, aud
find himself again hopeless, and starving
and cold
With long drawn sigh he closed his
eyes, only to find the fascination Of the
present overcome him, and impel him to
gaze again upon his marvellous surround
ings.
But the wonder only deepened when
the reality was brought home to him
when he discovered that it was life, not
death, and earth, not heaven, and that he
was not TO be driven out again into the
cold and bitter night.
Through its long, silent hours he lay
mstionless in his warm resting place,
picturing IN the darkness, the child's face
until it became stereotyped on heart and
brain.
The next day he told bis story. He
was poor lad, orphaned and without
friends.
They discharged me from my last place
because carried book with me. aud the
boss said 1t would teach me to dream in
stead Of work. wac only trying to learn
something Vi my idle minutes, though !
didn't fnd mnch time. and i didn't take
my employers However, he was hard
stern man, aud bade me 60. l started
West. The little money had gave out.
The storm overlook me. ] struggled on
the bost could, until ! grew faint and
sick. Somewhere in the distance | saw o
light. struggled toward it. You know
tho rest. Nov | am strong aud we'll
sein, the storm Is over. and can only
thank you in few poor words for your
generous kindness, and go on way
"PAps will be homo this afternoon, !
answered the child "He is the owner Of
oil the mills about here. II you would
like, will ask him TO give you place;
sna there is . school At night for the
hands, 50 you can study, too"
i III I would like?'
1 II was all he said, but little Helen Haw-
thorne needed no more words. She knew
THAT the great lump in his throat had
ehoked his utterance, and that he had
turned away ashamed, to hide the tears
Ths next week saw her promise fulfilled.
- Alsx Vernon stood once more a man
among nea. He found place in the
night school, too Nor did his young
patroness forget him. In some way she
discovered the books he wanted. aud lent
them 70 HIM. until helgrew TO associate
her with every good thing Of his new life.
One morning she sent for him.
II am going TO Europe with mamma"
she said, ito DO gone . great many years.
| When como back hope TO find you a
man--perhaps papa's overseer wanted
to toll you that II you wanted books from
the library, ! would leave this key with you
and then you could come and get them
when you liked
| Tue sunlight was streaming full on her
face and the gold Of her hair. as she spoke,
Il but w. boy, listening. a dark mist seemed
10 roll between them. She was going
away for years -shc who had saved him
from death.
J The next minute she felt just little
hurt. as, With single word Of thanks, he
seok the key and hurried from her pres
ence.
She coald not know that he went out TO
it6swS himssif, face downward. % tho
lgsUuna, md sb out Ikea very ehiii bis
fhssri's bitterness.
Seven long years had passed swiftly by.
and Alex vsrroD had reached his twenty
l6{th yiatsr. Helen Hsuthorns's laA,
I scrik AAl bees prophsy. for shs vas