The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1894-05-11
II MISS HIM."


vespers, and will give you sketch for a
story"
"She was tho prettiest little girl in the
country" began the priest as we sat that
night in his coy library looking into the
dark area without, whose scattered trees
waved in the breeze in the soft light from
within. ''This place was then village.
can see her now as 1 saw her then trip
ping through the fields, n sunbonnet in
her hand, her golden hair streaming in
the breeze. Her step was full of life q
Aush upon her girlish face, q sparkle of
health and joy in her deep blue eye, like
sunbeam in the unclouded azure of the
heavens, and laugh ringing from her
throat as notes never rippled from the beak
Of bird. Bird never sang to its mate as
she to hers, and her Song was a lullaby Of
love that set him asleep to all the world
but her. He w6s flaxen haired, sad eyed,
yet sunny faced boy, much given to poetry.
They We're schoolmates of the same age and
learned their lessons best from books of
love- What joy was in their souls as they
played in the fields or sat under a tree by
the brook and watched the sun go down,
their hearts their world, their love its
queen!
'He was an altar boy in this church. She
sang in the choir Could she sing wellp
The church was packed when she sang
Her voice hushed the most tuneful night
ingale's How sweet it was to him in
whose heart itA thrilling accents rippled
with the melody and heaven of Lowell 1t
was her voice that brought her to what
she is.
Her voice crept out into the world like
O song at night waited by the breeze over
the listening waves. She was invited into
opera. The circle widened-the ripple be-
came q roar Capitals were entranced, and
the world was in whirl of welcome to
tho wild warbler of tho fields and the
woods. Her first parting with the boy
was distressing. The little rustic looked
upon her triumph with terror She loved
him with all the tenderness of her girlish
nature and often returned, as If he were
her home, to comfort him in his LONELINESS.
But her visits became less frequent in
time and at length ceased. The world had
turned her head. She was in n giddy whirl
of delight in q tumultuous sea of success
and was all but sucked down by the mad
waves. In her wild glee she forgot him.
"The blow to the poor boy fell like that
of an AK to tree 1t broke his spirit. He
moped, grew wild at times and was watch
ed for fear of his life. He never spoke, ex-
cepting to murmur her name in q sad, re-
proachful tone that brought the tears
Marian! He was ever alone, as If seeking
omething-seeking her who was hidden
in his dead heart. Then came reaction.
He flew to religion. He was ever in church
praying. But he was never the same. His
smile was as q sunbeam on piece of ice,
fitting from frozen heart. Fire had
swept him as a flame field and left him
burned and bare, and winter cast its SHOWS
upon him.
"To her the path of life was one of roses.
But, oh, the thorns that lurked beneath
the flowers, like nettles to the after touchl
She crossed the ocean, sang before the
crowned heads of the world, courted by all
for her genius and beauty, and whirled
like thistledown in mad wind of APP
plause that blew her out at sea. She was
dizzied, filed to the full with glee, yet in
her heart there was a void-a loneliness
that never left her.
"And one night in crowded theater,
while singing q song of wildwood scenes,
her old love whispered to her, childhood
came back to her heart with thoughts of
home and him, and while flowers were
showering upon her and the air was in
tumult as the audience was carried away
by the melody that rolled from her lips
she fell in faint, exclaiming as she gazed
into the heaving sea before her, which
seemed solitude of faces, i miss him.
GAS she lay in delirium in her cham
Der her constant cry was of him. To one
of her impetuous nature to think was to
act. When she recovered, the first vessel
that sailed carried her with it, She had
;urned her back upon the world forever
and flew to the home of her childhood's
| love. wnen sne retlcned here, the pIivv
was what it now is--one of the miracles of
America night grown city. Everything
was changed but the church. She knew
scarcely any one. She was known only by
reputation and the light it cast upon her
past, where she had played when child
| and known every one. William could no.
where be found. He seemed forgotten
Some had never heard of him.
"One Sunday she was invited to sing in
the church at the ordination of young
student to the priesthood. The church was
| crowded. All the little girls for miles
| around in the country came to hear her
sing. Never had she sung before as she
sang now in the church which had listen
ed to the melody of her lisping accents as
they had thrilled forth the music of the
flowers and the fields in her childhood.
Never had she achieved such triumph as
now. AS the last words of the ordination
were pronounced and her notes filed tho
air as with the music of heaven to bid him
farewell to the world, the young priest
turned his head toward the choir as If he
recognized the voice. AS she beheld his
face--a face SO like, yet so unlike from sor-
row, the one she had pillowed upon her
breast in childhood and held sobbing to
her soul ut their last parting-a scream
burst from her heart, and bounding down
the gallery stairway she rushed up the
crowded aisle, her voice piercing the air
with the cry of 'William' and fell sense
less at his feet before tho altar. He was
gone from her forever"
The priest paused to wipe away what I
thought tear.
"And the result, fatherY'
"Oh, a broken heart and--another sis
ter of charity"
was about TO question him further,
but dclicacy forbade me. AS gazed at
him his silvery hair grew fiaxen, the wrin-
kles came out of his countcnance and o
sunny look into his sad eyed face, and
somehow Father Bray and William dou-
b1od nm and I knaxv NOT which tho good