Milford chronicle. [volume] (Milford, Del.) 1878-1974, 1889-07-26
ANN0RA.

ANNUGA.
It is an odd story and terrible one. bul
absolutely true. I knew Annora Masters;
have stood by her grave often and thought
how little we know Of life or Of each other.
have studied character good deal an
q novelist, so it has become like second ma,
ture 10 me to analyze motives and actions. L
has been 50 through long life. The habit
has only strengthened with added years; but
In Annora I studied nothing; could study
nothing.
A country town is very good place for
gaining and adding to knowledge Of that
sort. The inhabitants, 10 an extent hardly re-
allied by people who do not know them, live
in common; I mean, they have all known
each other and each others faults and feel
ings since they were children together; and
the feelings formed then, and the keen inter
est in each others affairs last on through
middle age and the downhin part Of life.
Every one knew Lucy Cherry. Every one
in the town liked her Most Of the young
fellows-l was young then and one Of them
did more than like her
When she came into church on Sunday
mornings a look Of agonized expectation
would come over about thirty faces in the
congregation They all gazed eagerly at
Lucy, in the hope Of one glance from her as
she went up the very short part Of the aisle
leading 10 the square pew where the Cherrys
sat Square pews were not gone then A
great mistake It was, surely, that they ever
did 60. Sleep during the sermon is what
most Of US secretly wish for. Under the new
arrangement, though, who is bold enough TO
take itl
Lucy would sometimes look up-not often
during those moments Of her quick walk
behind her brother. On whichever side Of
the aisle her glance fell, radiant faces were
visible; on the other side proportionate de
spair showed itself. Had they not been in
place where private sentiments are rarely
manifested the relations between those gen
tlemen would instantly have become ex-
tremely strained"
1t was not 20 be wondered at Lucy was
very pretty. Brown hair-just the sort
which most becomes woman soft and
wavy; blue, dark blue eyes, and "a tall figure,
straight and upright as an arrow It is
neither hero nor there to say that never saw
a woman like her, and had ever married
but how could when she never even gave
thought to met Still the fact intensified my
feelings afterward when-but evidently
even the practice have had is not able to
AAAllAAIA AAp ~ oAl bIAllE tiAAn buOAl
unless take care. Well, am growing old,
and it was terrible. l do not half like the
task have set myself
One Sunday came when both sides of the
aisle showed only disconsolate countenances.
Lucy looked neither on one side nor the
other. She looked on the ground to hide q
very pretty blush, and then lxedly on her
brothers broad shoulders, as he, good soul,
walked In front, thinking Of nothing less than
his sister.
She was engaged TO be margied--we had AN
heard it in the week-to doctor, who had
recently bought practice In the town. he
had many friends and few enemies, and was
decidedly popular Clever, he was most Ger
ltainly, stridngly handsome, aud so pleasant |
to talk with that every one who met him did |
stop and talk to him.
This is a mans praise Of a man, so It Is not |
likely to be overdOne, and it Is hardly likely |
that should have any reason for OyeTprais- |
ing the man who won the only girl ever |
cared for.
No; did not wonder at Lucy. No onedid |
And they looked so well together-she so |
sweet and womanly, he so thoroughly manly |
Pnd yet so gentle, to give the much abused
compound word its real force
Lucy, perhaps In mercy to us-perhaps to
NNAANsAAN
gagement, and their wedding was fixed for
New Years day.
The weather that winter was unusually
cold and dreary, and on the last day Of the
old year there was terrible snowstorm,
which lasted all day, and only ended just in
time to let the clouds roll away from a fiery
red sunset. New people came to town in the
middle OF the snowstoFm. people who had
recently taken ono Of the few large red brick
houses the town possessed-a really large
house, standing in its own large, old fash
ioned garden. But every one who knew her
land that was all the town-was 50 taken up
with thinking of Lucy's wedding that no one
bestowed a thought at the time at what
would at any other have been great excite
lment-the arrival Of the new tenants An
nora Masters and her husband use the
words advisedly, for those two names could
go in no other order
Not until next morning when J. with sew
eral Of my friends, who hardly felt it their
happiest day Of life, stood in church, watch
ing Lucy's sweet face and her husbands
handsome, manly figure, did ever think of
the new people.
And then / thought of them because,
among the crowd in the body Of the church,
i saw woman whose face haunts me-will
haunt me till nothing earthly can trouble me
longer. Tall, dark; dressed entirely in black,
with black hair and eyes which even through
her veil burned with flashing sort Of light.
II 1t had not been impossible to look at
Annora Masters for more than an instant,
should have been able to know certainly Il
there was really dull, red light in them, as
fancied, like glowing fires in her white
face.
She stood among quantity Of tOwnspeople;
but, after had looked at her, il seemed that
no one else but Lucy and the tall, dark wom-
an was In tho church She was watching I
Lucy with those eyes, and ] thought, ! fan
ried, that everything bridal about Lucy
seemed for that moment an ashen gray.
Then Lucy passed out Of the door into the :
NOW, which fell fast on her veil came '
put, too, and followed at distance, and as a
Annora Masters went up the High street and
n at the garden door of the long untenanted Q
house, knew that must have seen the new '
enant. {
The townspeople called on Annora Masters.
Every one said the same thing, or, rather, no
me gave any opinion Of her, and only when I
pressed, said;
'Sho Is strange, don't you thinkr' a
Annora returned none Of the calls but
lncys; and was only seen at church, where
he appeared with regularity which was :.
'art Of her strangeness, It struck me-so y
Utterly out Of place did sho look there. l =
annot soy why; no one could; but the wo- a
nan was awful, in an utterly inde6nable i'