Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1894-06-15

she was 'QSeQ 10 reading Iele9IdulS, anu
if so would she tell them what this one
meant? At this Charlie frightened lit
tie, but when the woman repeated what he
had read, and said it only meant that they
were not to come, he turned such miser-
able, heart-broken face upon her that for
days she could not forget it.
Later Rachel missed him and venturing
to the rear of the car found him seated
upon the platform looking out across the
fields. When he saw her a needy smile
came to his lips and he pulled her down
beside him.
Not a word came from either and still
the train rushed on, taking them now, it
seemed to a lonely nowhere.
Il guess we'd better not 90 right back,
Rachie, t would look kinder queer to the
folks; we might go to the fair; they say
there's a lowe buildin' there, and perhaps
you'd like to see that" Charlie said to her
some hours later.
And to the great Worlds Exposition
they went, and fingered each assuring the
other t was almost as good as if they'd
gone home.
Side by side, day after day. they walked
through the White City, trying to be salts
fed. BABES in the wood one young
woman called them at the Iowa building as
she looked into their timid faces, as she
afterward confessed to Charlie.
"How much longer have we got to stay,
Charlie?' "Well, you see, Rachie, we
we couldn't We got back home before Sat
urday if we'd gone clear-there.'
''Do you think they'd mistrust anything
if we got back, say, Friday?"
Perhaps they wouldn't, Rachie, but
Mis- Green's dreadful sharp and mebby
we'd better wait.
They decided to spend their last evening
in the grounds to witness the illuminatiOns.
One by one the great buildings started in
| to briliancy: the water, at their feet, took
on reflected lights of red and gold, sweet
strains of music from Wooded island
| pulsed through the soft air, Diana with her
| golden bow swung gracefully with each
breath of wind, the great white search
| light shifted until, as if satisfied it rested
upon the snow-white sea-horses, the moon
| looked over machinery hall down upon the
! lonely little couple and found them gazing
upward toward the great, illuminated
crown resting upon the dome of the ad-
ministration building. God is good,
Rachie; I'm glad we come; it's all right,
dear" Later a guard was surprised to
find, in one of the arches CT the peristyle,
a man and woman on their knees with wet,
upturned faces.
A week later found them home 1t was
gossiped about by Mrs. Green that Char
lie Andrews was more glum' II ever since he
got back; you cant get a word out of him
bout their visit home, but | asst him right
out last night fore EN- all if his father
want dreadful glad to see 'em, and you'd
| III lll Nf
old Shops when we shot him last spring,
cause he'd got so old and kinder sick-like
he Jest couldn't tread that churn any long
er. And you'd think t hear Rachel talk
bout that lowe buildin' t every ear of
corn t was ever raised d been carried
there to decorate it with. l asst her some
thin bout her step mother, and she turned
the subject 5 quick S a wink, and said,
oh, Mis- Green, | wish you could We
seen that lagoon, and oh . you'd oughter
seen them ducks She wont talk bout
nothin' else when she talks I all; an
she's gettin' so she aint a mite neighborly
neither, an the other night at the So
ciable she set there lookin' so woe-begone
all the evenin' ii declare t made me ner-
vous to look at her; an she's taken to fix
in dreadfully, too; | never knew her to
wear high collar, never till since she got
home. Both on um are bout spilled for
ever 'mountin' to anything agin in the
lodge-settin' there lookin for all the
world S if they left every thing but their
bodies behind 'em. l mean to say to Ra-
chel, right out, fore long, I |, for one,
don't want to hear no more bout that la
COON nor them ducks, an I'm going tc tell
her, too, bout them beads t she fetched
home to Gertie aint no mere sandal wood
Il pine knot"
But Mrs. Green had no opportunity to
carry her threat into execution for some
months. Rachel kept closely at home,
seeing no one but one of 1.-THE Goodwin
twins who came in each day to help
''string apples and into whose willing
ears she poured the wonders of the Fair.
Now the other Goodwin twin was a
dressmaker, and it shortly came about that
Mrs. Green felt called upon to tell Mrs.
Goodwin what she thought about Rachel
Andrews film Mandy's ears full of the
COINS on t she seen in that midway.
" 'Taint good for her, Mis- Goodwin, now
depend on it, t aint good for her. I've
stood it jests longs I'm goin' to, n I'm
goin' right up to her tomorrow in the
quarterly meetin n tell her what think, -
When Charlie found her, on the evening
of the quarterly meeting, with a white,
quivering face, he only looked at her in
dumb misery and waited; hours later it all
came out. "Well, Rachie, perhaps we
have talked too much about it, but we
thought they'd like to hear" and he drew
her face down upon his rough coat.
Don't mind, dear"
Throughout the long months that follow
ed Rachel scarcely left the house, and
Charlie only to attend to his farm work.
On conference meeting nights Charlie
would spell out few verses from the Bi-
BILE and then, tear blinded close the book
and together they would watch the lights
in the vestry of the little chapel on
the hill till the last one was eXtinguished.
And so the winter passed: with the spring
came letter from their father telling them
that his wife was dead, and that he was a
helpless invalid and could never walk
again. "My farm is mortgaged, " he wrote,
''and if you want to sell your place there
in the East and pay off the mortgage on
mine, you can come and make your home
with me"
Gwen 90, Rache-mother' grave wont
be changed any way, and perhaps father
will be glad to see us.
The farm was sold-for half its value, to
the Oldest Green boy-and at last they
/ went hack IN their father At the sOciablP