The Carbon advocate. [volume] (Lehighton, Pa.) 1872-1924, 1890-08-16
A MISTAKE


Before he went away to make his
fortune Samuel Wadleigh had been very
mach in love with Cora Eastman, It
was a boy and girl attachment. and a
very romantic one. The boy was a tall,
blue eyed fellow with a small waist
and curly golden hair that lay in thick
little rings all over his head He was ut
once very manly and very youthful in
appearance, and it would have been
hard for girl not to fall in love with
him if he had tried to make her. Cora
was little brunette with big black eyes
and a good color, and he thought her
beautiful.
He longed to offer her his hand and
heart and get her to engage herself to
him before he left home; but he reflected
that he had no right to bind her by any
promise until he was sure of that for
tune he was going to seek, and when he
gave her little forget-me-not ring he
only spoke of it as a token of friendship
However, when they parted she knew
as well as he did that he loved her, and
looked forward to the usual finale Of a
wedding.
Time passed on. The young people
wrote at first once a week, then once a
month, then occasionally. absence
says the modern poet-''makes the
heart grow fonder of somebody else"
Young Wadleigh went a good deal
into society abroad, and Cora had plenty
of admirers. He got into n convivial
set, where they drank good deal Of
wine and had liberal views She be-
came very pious, and rather leaned to
prohibition. Their last letters We're
very formal, and when fifteen years had
passed and Samuel Wadleigh found him
self coming home with the fortune he
had made after all, he scarcely remen-
bered Cora Eastman.
Certainly Cora did not know him.
The light haired youth had changed into
a man Of 40. All his curls were gone,
and his head to his ears was as smooth
and shiny as billiard ball. His waist
was gone, too. He had the proportions
of an alderman. However, he was still
what people call fine looking man. AS
for Cora, she had all her black hair and
no wrinkles, and had kept her trim little
figure, but she had changed culiously.
He knew her at once, but she was not
the same. What does Time do to us?
When does he do it? How does he do til
If we women could but find out!
There was nothing to sigh over in
Miss Eastman's case. She was q tight,
trim little woman of five-and- thirty
But where were Cora's smiles? the DIM
pies that seemed about to appear when
she smiled? the soft brightness of the
eyes? the way of looking and moving
All gone-vanishedl
1t did not occur to Mr.. Wadleigh that
he had altered much more-it never does
occur to men. He told Miss Eastman
that he was delighted to see her once
more, and she said polite things to him,
wondering all the time whether this
could be the charming youth who used
to set her heart beating by touch or a
glance-this very nice person, portly,
we'll to do, well hammered but not in
the least interesting, She compared
him unfavorably with Mr.. Sweetsmile,
the charming new clergyman who had
just had call to their church, and who
had taken both her hands in his only
yesterday and said, "What we should
do without you in the Sabbath school,
Miss Eastman, cannot imaginew He
was charming
The course of events threw Samuel
Wadleigh great deal into the society
of his old love; the families were con-
nected and moved in the same circle.
By degrees he met small nieces and
nephews who had been children when
he went away, and were now young
ladies and gentlemen-among them a
certain little Cora, Miss Eastman's
niece, prettier than she had ever been,
and with all her witching ways, her
half-hidden dimples, her smiles and her
sweet side glances. She sat opposite
him at the~dinner table, and he could
fancy all the years rolled away, and he
the boy who gave the girl he loved the
forget-me-not ring. He remembered
her a pudgy little child in white fun
walking with her maid in the park and
kissing her hand to auntie.
"What a charming girl!' he said tc
Miss Eastman. "You over againw And
then Miss Eastman made the younger
Cora come and talk to cher old friend
Mr.. Wadleigh."
Cora had heard of him as the gentle
man who had been her aunts admirei
and lived single for her sake, and she
was very nice to him. She felt that he
had romantic history, and that Aunt
Cora ought to have been more. constant
and so she was, as we have said, very
nice.
And of all this Mr.. Wadleigh never
dreamed, and little thrills went through
him, and he made up his mind that fate
had been very good to him. Here was 4
lovely young creature-eXactly the sort
Of girl he admired smiling on him anC
listening to all his compliments in way
that encouraged him 10 pay more.
"The elder Cora is a very sensible wo
man, +" he said to himself "She has quit,
? forgotten old times; she has none o
5 those foolish little ways that some wo
men would have of reminding me that W.
We're lovers. Really, some of those frs
letters of mine were tantamOunt to pro
posals; but it is all over; am quite free
I'm good match No doubt little Corr
viii see that al once, and after solemnll
p deliberating the pros and cons for thre'
. days and nights he began TO take Corr
out to drive behind pair of very hand
some horses, 10 send her bouquets, am,
TO invite her TO the opera. As she re
sided with her Aunt Cora he natural,
invited the other lady as chaperon. H
did not say that, but plainly she under
stood it, for she left most of the talk T.
the girl and was sometimes grave an'
0 silent. Once on twice she even seeme,
b TO try to excuse herself.
{ $50 very sensible Thought AR Wad
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