The record-union., 1895-12-21

something about him thatS-thatS
distiflgy," concluded Nellie, with a
"Reminiscences of her novel-reading vo-
cabulary usually reserved for girl
friends in the village.
"Mebbe so, my dear" responded the
mother as she went about her occupa
ton.
Although Waving had, as they said,
no need to work for a living, he did not
settle down to a life of idleness. When
he had furnished the house and planted
his garden, he got employed as wood
man on the Squire's estate, and worked
as hard as the best of them. He was re-
ceived by the society of the village with
a subdued friendliness which intimated
that so long as he continued to behave
himself circumspectly ne should be well
come in the little community. AT the
same time the feeling was fairly gen.
eral that having crossed the sea and
lived in foreign parts, he must have ac-
quired certain hidden store of wicked
neSs-wickedneSS which might at any
moment exhibit itself and give the sig
nal for his downfall in the eyes of the
village world. But as time went on,
and no scandal attached itself to him
in any way; as he worked as hard as
his fellows, paid his bills regularly,
drank no more beer than Suft1ced him
for his evening meal, and generally con-
Quoted himself in most conventional
style, he was gradually accepted by his
peers as person of whom no one could
say hard word, and therefore worthy
Of all estimation so far as present devel-
opments might admit. 1t was even
suggested that he was entitled to choose
a wife from the village; and indeed be-
fore the summer was ended it was OBJ
ViOuS to the meaneSt rustic capacity
that he had already made made his Sc
lection, and that pretty Nellie Bradley
would be the proud sharer of his weekly
income.
For Waving spent many an hour at
the Firtree Cottage in pretty Nellie's
company. 1t was judged that his visits
were paid to her mother, for the sake
of old times; his later ones to the
daughter, for the sake of her bright,
fair face and gay, winning ways. She
was like Sarann before Sarann had
grown thin and pale and careworn; per-
haps, after a little he forgot the like
ness, because so little of 1t was now re-
naming, and thought only how pretty
was the daughter, and how bright and
how winning. Presently he suggested
an occasional walk after Sunday even
ing service-the preliminary attention
of a WeSsex courtship-and Nellie, who
was fascinated by her new admirers
toil-lined face, was proud to accompany
him, and to submit to the teasing of
the other village girls on the subject of
her new young man"
She was quite prepared to accept
Waving as a very eligible husband
when he should propose to fill the stu
alton. Apart from her suddenly awak-
ened admiration for him, though hard
ly less of factor in her regard, was
as,~ Of h
mense wealth, which would give his
wife a position superior to all others in
the village after the innkeeper's lady.
Such position was not to be lightly
disregarded, and certainly Nellie never
dreamed of disregarding it.
Perhaps at first a qualm or two Wis
tied her heart when she thought of Err
nest Stones fOrlorn state, but she was
easily able to excuse her desertion of
him. In the first place, she could con-
sole herself with the knowledge that he
had never definitely offered to keep
company with her, though he had
walked home with for many months.
Moreover. he had bought no more fur
niture since he missed the chance of
the luckless chest of drawers, and his
Sunday attire of late conclusively
proved the direction his savings were
now habitually taking. OF course she
liked him, but she could not think of
marrying a man who was content to
live on Indefinitely in his mothers cot
tage without making more effort than
he did for separate establishment and
a Well-ordered home. So Nellie walked
out on Sunday evenings with Seth
Waring, and Sarann went home after
church. and sat over her dying embers
and longed for a weekday task of
mending or darning, that she might
devote her thoughts to it without dis
traction.
Nellie liked to talk to her mother
about her new admirer, and never wear
led in her questions concerning his
younger days. Mrs. Bradley listened
and responded, and sympathized, and
prayed for her child'S happiness. Her
religion was not, perhaps, a very real
thing to her, but she believed in the
power of great unknown Being to
confer benefits, and she asked them
assiduously for her pretty Nellie. If
Nellie liked Seth, and if-if Seth liked
Nellie, what was there to hinder their
marriage? He was a kind man. if
somewhat arbitrary; perhaps a softer
and more yielding wife might have
suited him better than her daughter,
but he would make allowance for
Nellie's imperious disposition, and give
IN sometimes to her wishes, even if
they clashed with his own. Mrs Brad
ley knew very we'll that Nellie must
have her own way if the house was to
be peaceful one, and doubtless Seth
would find this out too But still-b1lt
stlll-if Ernest had been more persistent
IN his Wooing, no other man would have
had chance in comparison with him.
so the time went on and winter came
"a winter hard and cruel, and dark
with cold and snow And little Seth
PRO 6faxv cfolyap,o6 I,
when the measles had left him strange
chill and shivering remained with him
and he began slowly to waste away be-
fore his anxious mothers eyes To get
him food and comforts she worked al
most every day at the inn, washing
baking-anything that would bring her
in a shilling or two for little Seth She
stitched her fingers to the bone by the
light of the flickering talloW candle
each night, while she made garments
with the flannel she bought for him.
she spent her Scanty dinner hour
snatched from the comfortable table at
the inn, in cooking meals which might
tempt him to eat, and in kneeling by
his cot while he swallowed minute por-
tions with difficulty and pain. She
went out in the cold, cheerless morn
ings, long before sunrise, to pick sticks
in the park to warm her boys shivering
limbs as he lay by the kitchen fire with
the death flush on his cheek, which all
save herself could interpret Alright. And
she starved and went cold, and wore
herself out in her loving labor, as only
a mother can.
During the many weeks of little
Seth's illness Waving came often to
the Fir-tree Cottage-even more often
than had been his won't, though he
staid but a few moments when he
came. He never took Nellie for walk
now, but he would come every night and
ask her of the child's health, while the
mother sat by with her swift needle
hardly listening to the low murmur of
talk between the two. Waving would
bring some trifling present for the child