The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1893-10-20

81 am the only member of my own lam
lily living" he replied.
After pause he continued:
AZ had the misfortune to marry a woman
Of whom knew nothing and who turned
out to be drunkard. Perhaps | did not
deserve anything better, for l was then q
great drinker myself. But when | saw
how the little one was neglected and i'll
treated it brought me to my senses, and
became changed man. Then my wife
died. We were in low lodging house at
the time, and w;ss penniless. The only
way out of my difficulty was to do as did
or to let the child go into the workhouse
and could not Go that."
But what made You leave tile child on
my doorstep" Mary asked
81 had heard people speak well of you.
sit comes to this, then, that you did not
mind where you left the child so long as
Won got rid of her. and now, after | have
had all the trouble of rearing her and have
learned to love her as though she were my
own daughter. you want to take her away:
You wish to be doubly cruel-to me asweli
as to her"
eOh, Mary.' cried the man, deeply agi-
tated
Mary was now moved in her turn.
w AdDi Yah ~ OSi 1iAS JNee WV ~ A~os
James Rae?"
eyes, Mary, am" he replied. "And it
was because in my trouble knew of no one
who would be so good to my child as you
that I determined to trust her to your
care"
After some further conversation 1t was
arranged that Rae should see his daughter
whenever he liked and that he should have
the child in his sole care from time to time,
SO that she might learn to know and love
him as her father.
But the first time Elsie paid a visit to her
father she came home ailing, and on the
following day was in high fever. 1t soon
declared itself to be scarlatina, and for
many days poor Elsie lowered between life
and death.
The agonized father neither ate nor slept
and when it seemed that his beloved child
was on the point Of being snatched from
him by death he sank down by the bedside
and prayed that her life might be spared.
Minutes that seemed like days passed by
hours that seemed like eternity. Then
to the anxious watchers came returning
signs of consciousness. The doctor babe
them hope, and with great bound their
hearts were freed from an agonizing load.
For some days Elsie was very weak and
could not be removed from her bedroom.
There now her father and now Mary sat by
her side Then she was well enough to be
dressed and taken into another room, and
here it was that seated one afternoon at
tea, Rae said he must return home in tho
morning.
The word home" caught Elsie's ear, and
she said:
.Why do you have different home to
mammals, fathers Other little boys and
girls fathers and mothers live in the same
home Why don't you and mammal"
Neither could answer The tears welled
up into their eyes and emotion checked ut
terance They had been brought very near
together by common sorrow, and the love
of the old days strengthened and purified
by suffering-had reasserted itself.
No word was spoken between them, how
ever-no answer was given to Elsie's ques-
ton. But fortnight later. when Rae sent
word that he should be coming to see his
beloved Elsie ON the Sunday morning, and
that he intended to leave the train at lit
tie wayside station a couple of miles from
the town, Mary seemed to guess his wish,
and went through the fields to meet him.
Over the meadows came the distant
sound of train, and Mary knew that in a
few minutes James Rae would be with
them. Elsie was the first to catch sight of
his tall figure. She ran toward him with
cry of deligha, and Mary rose and followed
her.
A quiet smile lighted up Rae's face as he
said:
81 thought should find you here, Mary"
IT thought you would expect u.s." she re-
turned.
''Let us sit down for minute or two as
in the old days-till Elsie has completed
her bouquet, he said.
When little Elsiereturned with her hands
as full as they would hold, she found both
father and mother with wet, though beam
ing eyes. They had taken up the thread
of love where it had been broken off at that
spot years before, and had resolved, in ac-
cordance with Elsie's wish, to have hence
forth but one home.
1t is only a few weeks ago since they
were married at the parish church, when
all the town turned out to see the happy
ending of the "Old Maids Romance.
Million