Maryland independent. [volume] (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1874-current, 1891-07-10
THE WOMAN'S ROSE.
81 OLIVE sCIIEEINEE.

have an old b.own carved box
the lid is broken and tied with string.
In IT ] keep little squares of paper,
with hair inside, and a little picture
which hung over my brothers bed
when we were children aud other
things as small. have in it a rose.
Other women also have such boxes
where they keep such trincs, but no
one has my rose
When my eye is dim, and my heart
grows faint, aud my faith in women
flckers, aud her present is an agony
to me, and her future a despair, the
scent of that dead rose, WiDhcrcd for
twelve years, comes back to me |
know there will be spring; as surely
rs the birds know il when they sec
above the snow two tiny, quiycring
green irayes Spring canu6t f;ti a..
There were other flowers la the box
once Il bunch Of white acacia flowers,
gathered by the strong hand Of q man.
as we passed down village street on
IA sultry afternoon. when it had raincd
and the drops fell on us from the
leaves of the acacia trees. The flowers
were damp they made miidcW marks
on The paper | folded them ia. After
many wears threw them away. There
j. nothing of them left in The box
now, but faint, strong smell Of
dried acacia, that recall, ihat snilry
summer afternoons; but the rose j. il
the box still.
It's many years ago now; was a
girl of fifteen, and went TO visit in
a small, up country town. 1t was
young in those days, and two dtys'
journey from the nearest village; the
population consisted mainly of men
a few were married, and had their
wives and children, but most were
single. There was only one young
girl there when ! came She was
about seventeen, fair,and rather fullv-
feshedi She had large, dreamy blue
eyes, aud wavy light hair; fun. rather
heavy lips, until she smiled: then her
face broke into dimpics, and al her
white teeth shonc. The hotcl-kccrcr
may have lad daughter, and the
farmer in the outskirts had two. but
we never saw them, She rcigned
alone. All the men worshippcd her
She was the only woman they had to
think of. They talked of her on the
''stoop, at the market, at the hotel; they
watched for her at street corners /;
they hated the man She bowed TO or
walked with down the street They
brought flowers TO the front door
they offered her their horses: they
begged her TO marry them when they
dared. Partly, there was something
noble and heroic in this devotion of
men TO the best woman they knew :
partly there was something natural in
it, that these men, shut OF from the
world, should pour at The feet of one
woman the worship that otherwise
would have been given to twenty, and
partly, there was something mean in
their envy of one another If She had
raised her little finger, l suppose, she
might have married amy one out Of
twenty of them.
Then ] came. do not think | wa,
prettier; ! do not think was - pretty
as she was. | was certainly not as
handsome. But | was vital, and | was
new and she was old They all for
sook her and followed me- They
worshipped me- 1t was to my door
that the flowers came; il was had
twenty horses offered me when could
only ride one; il was for me they
waited at street corners; il was what
l said and did that they talked of.
Partly | liked II. had lived alone all
my life; no one ever tcld me that |
was beautiful and woman. be-
lieved them; | did not know it wa,
simply fashion, which ono man had
set, and the rest followed unrcason-
ingly. ] liked them TO ask me TO
marry them and q -ay, No. dcs-