New-York tribune., 1890-01-26

perbaDs. due less to the mngled'murl and luridity
of her future, than TO the OBLIVION Whlch lau
| crept over her past, and made mist OF the lar
| off time before her good days were done ms
had happened the more easily because lhat past,
at its brightest, shone with no very ylvid hght;
She had never had her day her lie had not found
"what some have found so sweet there was no
! exquisite moments for her memory to grasp and
lift like torch when despair prowled ovcr-boldly.
! There had been only those indcfinabe sensations
| of sub-cOnsciOus Well-belng and gr0undlcSS en-
| ultance which belong to mere youth, and which,
| above all other feelings ii is impossible to recall
| by any effort of will, whilst they may come cd
prciously at the summons, perhaps of "A Wlui
of the peat smoke we smelt in our bOyhood; or
when the birds begin TO sing all together very
suddenly after a spring shower; or when, at the
end of gray autumn day, the sun sends his
last look down the russct of the wood "A minute
before his setting. long time had now passed
since she had experienced any such visitation,
and the consequence that she dimly rcmcm.
bercd and seldom thought of the old country
house garden where she and her
S'T''f for The longer 'S &aIf of their lives
| among the laurcls and cabbage-bcds and
bushes, while father and mother held up the
frame of things like two immOvable aliases, and
the prospect of being grown-up seemed much like
the Day of misunderstanding. no doubt, but
81 remotely as scarcely 10 call for serious con
sideratiOn.
On certain afternoon in March Miss Mayne
was feeling more than usually worried and de-
spondent. Several circumstances had combined
to render her She had had bad night.
darkcned by terrifying attack of brcathless-
deprived herself of her knitting. and restricted
her reading TO Bible and Prayer book and vol
ume of sermons, arrangements which had the ei-
feet of indefinitely multiplying the moments OF her
Tagging hours and dividing them by lnnumerabe
yawns and sighs. The weather. too that obtru-
sive mise en- scene OF SO many OF our atiicuons,
was dctestable, as only March weather understands
how 10 be: il was day possessed by the devil
of vicious east wind, which went
to and fro malignly under S 5ns, slate,
spieful cddes and piercing through chlnks ana
cranneS into shooting nerves and aching bones
But the grievance which just then lay upper
most in Miss Maynes mind was not strictly con-
ncctcd with any of these things. II concerned
her best mantle. This garment which had been
fore, was decidedly the gem of her scanty ward
Sasle iSG; Trimming, " and having Icca ST.; 81,
dom worn. For time past she
had suspected the houScmad of casting
acquisiJivc and eXpectant eyes upon lis beauty,
and these Surmises had been strengthened by
some delicate hints which Maria had let lall on
the preceding evening. when taking II out oi MS
drawer upon the prcteNt of giving II an alrlnG
" For" she had said it's INST being destroycd
laying there in its creases all the year round
with the moths getting into il as like aS not. 80
the end of it'll he that nobody have any good
of ii at all. Lawks. now, mum | never hotlccb
before that the sleeves is shaped something IKE
the ones We're in cloth Jacket | got from old
Mrs. Smithcrs. when she took 10 her pcd WIN
the creeping parlisSes: For, SAYS she, Where
the Of keeping II laying mp when II never
get the chance 10 wear IL again !? Ihat was
what she said. mum.
Now. in her heart, Miss Mayne knew very well
that her chances of ever again requiring ont-ot-
door attire were inhnitcsimay small: YET She
could not make up her mind to part WIN icr
mantle To do that seemed 50 like final capltua-
ton TO despair-a signing of the pledge 10 t9tal
abstinence from hope. our daily dram iier
knowledge. likewise that the Sacrlhc" was cN-
pected OF her naturally reused disposition i"
resist the claim. But, on the other hand. Nara
had been rather good d-naturcd. and rendered her
many small services which she, could not eNperrt
the girl to 90 on doing for nothine FOOT % Iij soul
i'm sont of fact, there was nobody I'm the "oTId
whom she could expect 10 do anything Tor h"r
for nothing. and her command Of labor was 'N,
cecdingv limited. So her morning had dragged
monotOnously by in dolorous medtailonS nn'il
about o'clock, when the band Of the local Sal
walton Army trampcd down the street drumming
hideously and hawling n cheerful hymn, Tie re-
frain of which ran
Then on we march. Lost friends. farewell
We will not 20 with YOU TO Hell.
And while She shlvercd beside hef IihEIINn,
ing fire. possessed by dsconsolatc cnnul, edged
with an aimless evaporation against things IN
general, she felt herself especially included III
that complacent dlable
Exactly al that time, as il happened, three
girls were sitting together in a pleasant summer
green garden in another world, ana taking ah""I
a sister Of theirs who was still an lnhhhliant oi
this one Let me observe that II any reader uh-
compromisingly eager for evolutIonafN pr"SfcSs'
feels uneasy at hearing of old conditions ana re-
lationS continuing 10 exist beyond their car'hE
environment, be may be rcaSSured IN Inc ""fus Oh
tLe wit who 10 a friend bcwang his want 81
time replied Il suppose you have all thcIc Is,
For what here only dcrslNc qhbple j.
there a simple truth. though one which orr neces,
sarily confused notions concerning sp''F an"
time render somewhat difficult oi adequate ap-
prrhenSion. Suffice II 10 say that over N"hdcI
we have all there is, and consequently, possess
annie leisure for Tcvcrting. Al minded, 10 ear
lier groupings and associations, ana thuh uhurI
more favorable circumstances working ONT an
their possibilities Of Happiness, uniTus'raled NV
The moczing diSappointmcnts and cmbiticrns
blundcrs due to cXtrnslcallY adverse lhHuch''>'
often. among others. 20 the Tact that mere 'uc
situation is thrust upon us by rare "lth cNiNP,,
ainr incvitablcness, whereas. there "" are WiollN
free 10 choose. Accordingly, IN the present m
stance. these three girls had been, :" !" spraS'
shuu1cd back 10 a station on the line OF life "hch
thcy had left behind by tract of many ana Tor
the most part melancholy wears, ana h2d. 10
speak otherwise entered upon second cuIlIoHi'
much revised and improved, OF Nouthlul 'Nprl-
enccs and that without any occasion for ms
civings about wasting time and r"'arding their
elevation 10 loftcr plane Of existence.
81 wish one Of them was saying, as she sorted
her skens Of delicatc-hued glosssIlk, wish
that we could send some message 10 LOW
We didn't succeed last time YOU know, ana
! think we might try again now She must DC
getting so tired Of waiting. -
we shall have her here very, soon, SAID
another, looking mp from her book. L. hIHs ,iis
morning: and believe Sir Plume, pointing 70 q.
siIky-coatcd black-and-tan collie who lay at her
feet knows il too-for, do You see, he IS evil
IDENTIFY on the watch for somebody
Then. said the third, who was tying up
Great lunches Of lilies Of the valley. perhaps
il would be pity 10 send her anything. Lev II
all come 10 her a surprise ,
Oh Nelly!" said the first speaker, You doh
remember or rather you don't KNOW Dcc"uS,
Won came 50 quickly, what dismal work II Is ana
how long the time seems. and the horrlpc IDEAS
thnt one takes into ones head. shall never
forget how miserable used 10 feel and Lofty
must be lonclier and more forlorn than we ever
were"
What can we do 80 exclaimed Nelly, shaking
her lilies out Of her lap and starting up; what
would DE the best plan? Oh here's mother com
Mother. We were just talking of sending message
10 Lofty
And my dear children said their mother