Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1890-12-21

70 them tHat tney reloiccU hl tno hoio
in its possession and joyously told each
other that they would never be parted
from tho frail treasure they so faithfully
guarded. 80.
Zone day stranger, stronger OF will
and more jealous than any OF those who
had been before him, came TO the garden
10 behold the beauty of the flower whose
fame had reached him thousands OF miles
away"
David Gresham's thoughts were wan
dering. He had almost forgotten the
presence Of his little visitor He was
thinking, inconsequently enough, OF q
trip he had made into the heart OF the
White mountain district many years be-
fore for the avowed purpose of seeing
a young girl whose beauty and accom-
plishments he had heard praised.
"He had only half believed the stories
he had heard Of the flower" continued
tho child. "but when he saw the fair and
stately blossom his heart swelled with
Joy at its wondrous loneliness. and he
longed like all the rest to possess 1t for
himself But the flower turned its deli
cate head away and folded its petals
closely around its perfumed heart and
those who had always tended and
nourished it said to him in gentle
triumph: Sec the plant itself chooses
70 remain with US And when he held
out promise Of richer soil than the little
flower had ever known, and splendid
surroundings of kind it had never so
much as seen in it's dreams, the flower
still turned away its beautiful head and
seemed to reach out caressingly toward
the hands that had always sheltered and
sustained it. Then the man pleaded
that oil his life would be ruined and bis
own garden would be desolste if he were
denied the flower ; and he promised to
shelter it like some priceless jewel II 1t
might be given him to gladden. and en-
rich his lonely life"
Again the child paused, bnt David
Gresham had neither question nor com
ment TO make. Instead. he was think
ing of his own stormy courtship, OF the
shv girls reluctance, OF the despair with
which he had pressed his suit.
"And when the flower heard this, -
the child went on, in voice that was
like the whisper of memory, sit slowly
bent its slender stem. and the close-fold-
ed petals parted, and no saw what no
other had ever seen-the radiant hues
that were in its hidden heart and he
was blinded by tho sight and almost be-
side himself with his new-found bappi-
ness. Perhaps he did not hear the woe
stricken cries of those who had so loved
and tended IT. They would not deny
anything to the flower, but they sought
TO teach it's new owner how to value and
protect 1t:
"'Take heed that no harm comes to
it they cried. 1t is such tender and
sensitive plant. Shield it from the sun,
protect it from the rain, take care that
it is not too much exposed to the suns
fierce rays lest Il witherand fade. Cherish
it faithfully or you will lose ii.
"And he did !" cried Gresham,
eagerly. "Bo did everything that a
man could for it, But again the child
did not seem TO heed his interruption.
"He set it out in rich soil, it is true,
and in magnificent garden where many
other gorgeous blossoms grew. He even
carried out the letter of his promise and
built trellis beside it, so high and close
that it shut off the air, and the little
flower pined in secret for the gentle
breeze of its own mountain home. And
he brought all his friends to look at it
and admire it. and he exulted when he
saw how they envied him and would fam
have possessed It's mate, which he well
knew could not be found in the wide
world"
Gresham no longer thought of his
balance-sheet. How well he remem-
bered the time when he had brought his
young bride to pretty home beside the
Golden Gate ; the gay society he brought
about her. the admiration excited by her
beauty, and the pride he felt in knowing
that in the entire circle in which they
moved there was no other woman that
could compare with her.
"But by and by he tired OF the
flower" said the child. Gresham made
q quick gesture, as if he would have ex-
pressed dissent, but the speaker did not
Heed him and continued
"Its beauty and its sweetness became
an old story. 1t was no longer the first
thing in his life. Sometimes he ne
elected to attend TO its needs sometimes,
in the press of other duties and interests,
he wearied of its care and the delicate
flower understood and dropped day 10y
day. AS time went on his cruelty be-
came more wanton. The tall trellis he
had built blew down and was not re-
placed. Harsh winds beat on the frail
petals and rain-hoods washed away its
rare coloring and the suns hot rays
burned fiercely down upon it and scared
it's leaves. Its roots no longer found
nourishment in the impoverished soil
that held them, and though the frail
plant yearned for sustenance and care,
the hand that should have supplied them
was withheld"
Gresham drooped his head until his
chin rested on his breast, and gazed
moodily on the floor at his feet. Only
that morning she had pleaded with HIM
for a fit celebration Of Christmas-day ;
pleaded for the sake of the children,
who we're growing old enough to under
stand the meaning and the customs OF
the day, and he had told her that he
wanted nothing to do with such non
sense that the fashion 1t giving and re-
ceiving gifts was nothing but q trade,
and forced trade at that lie recalled
how faded and old she looked when he
refused her request the tired droop OF
her head when she turned away, and
that little cough that had been troubling
her for months.
"While the flower dropped and Ian
guished," said the child, "a blight
was at its heart. One day be
awoke to the knowledge that the
fair blossom he had once cherished
with such jealous care was fading out of
life. The tender plant was doomed.
Human love and human care could no
longer avail to save 1t.
"No! by Heaven, no I" cried David
| Gresham, springing to his feet and sweep
ing ledgers and false balance-sheet aside,
| whiia he furDe1 toward the appakar 81