Bennington semi-weekly banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 1894-1902, 1895-12-20
FORGETMENOT.

IOhU E1 nlENOls
There she sat, the poor demented girl,
on one Of the stone benches that adorned
the bare courtyard of the great asylum for
the insane.
Young she was and beautiful-beautifu
in spite of the pallor of her cheek and
brow Her hair was golden and hung in
tangled masses about her shoulders. Her
eyes, blue as the sky above her, were be-
dimmed with tears that dropped one by
one on bunch of forgetmenots which she
was holding in her hands and on which
her gaze was fastened.
A mingled feeling of pity and curiosity
took possession Of mo. "Who is sheY"
"Why does she griovo?" "Why is she
here?"
ASK her yourself" said the keeper
who had thus far accompanied Inc, and 1
approached her.
At the sound of my footsteps she started
and shrunk to one side, as one who expects
punishment, but when she VGutured to
look Mt me all fear and grief seemed to
pass from her face, and with look Of
hope and happiness sho said, with smile:
Il know You have como for me. You
havo come to rescue me from II pain that
is slowly, slowly killing me. Oh, you are
so good, so kind! And, you see, 1 must
leave here today-now, for l must be there
tonight"
"Whcrc?" 1 asked in voice trembling
with compassion.
"Whcrct' she repeated, with wonder
ing look from those heavenly blue eyes.
"Where but with him."
"With him?''
"Daniel-Robert Daniel. Oh, but you
know"
"Nay, but I do not know. Tell me who
is Daniel. Your husband, your lover per-
hapsS"
"Oh, no." There was a look of sweet
innocence on her face. "Not my lover,
surely, for he belongs to Joanna"
"JoannaY' l repeated, astonished.
eyes" she gently replied, mot mine"
"And he expects you to come to himr
Eyes, for six long months has he been
waiting for me day by day"
"And where does he wait for you?"
"At the Pere La Chaise, that's where he
is. And do you not know that he is dead?
And his grave; have you not seen it? Oh,
it is so white and beautiful, and so rest
full His name on the marble shaft, and
on it stands the marble urn from which
the little birds drink when the water has
gathered in it after rain. They flutter
round and round it and sing and sing, and
that is bcautiful-oh, 50 beautiful All,
but you have not been there and you can
not understand. l sec you, too, believe
that all is over when one dies. But it is
not So After death you live and think
and hear and feel. You smile and shake
your head. You do not know. You have
/ never put your ear close to grave and lis
tened. l did not know until that night
came-that night! They had put flowers
on his grave so many, so many and they
! were white as snow and shining, shining.
/ They drew me nearer and nearer, and l
put my hands into them, and my head
rested for moment against tho cool mar
! BILE shaft, whcn-do not laugh at mel
heard n murmur, soft singing, voice
! that reached me ut last and softly spoke to
me. Joanna, is it your All fear passed
from me. l read his name on the stone
shaft: Daniel Robert, aged 20, and I'M
! derstOod at once. He who spoke then was
calling for her he loved, and is there not a
saying that loves fire burns fiercest at the
age of 20? She whom he called Joanna
| had sworn to visit him after death, and
she had broken her promise. But he wait
ed and waited and whenever he heard steps
! above him he longingly called, Joanna, is
! it your Oh, the pity Of it. No one ever
! heard; no one ever answered. But /, l
could not leave him there alone. l an
swered him, and l lied to him, for l said,
! 1T is l, Joanna Was I wrong in doing
that? Yet he did not know, he believed it
| to be his Joanna who had como to him at
last. And he spoke to me in a language l
had never heard before. He told me of the
happiness of love; of those bygone mo-
ments of bliss, Of the cup Of delight that
only lovers are allowed to taste of, and l
answered him as Joanna would have an
swered, for how could tell him the truth
and break his heart, when he was SO alone
down, down in the cold earth.
"And so L came again, day by day, and
sat above him and listened to his words of
love and happiness. But one day we were
| parted. The stiffness around me was
broken by the footsteps Of many people,
and felt that they had come to take me
away. 1 put my arms about the pillar
with his name and cried aloud in the an
guish Of my heart, but they were stronger
than l, and they tore me away from his
grave and brought me here. And they are
so cruel for they will not let me go to
him, and 1 know that he is waiting for
me and counting the hours the days, I'M
til return"
With low cry of despair she had flung
herself at my feet, pleading, ooh, take
me to him, take me to him, or he will
have to die out there alone without mel"
"My child" 1 said as gently as could,
"I cannot take you with me. cannot
help you"
The terrible helplessness and misery ex-
pressed in her face actually startled me-.
Still felt forced to repeat, "My poor
child, cannot help you"
"Then all is over and 1 shall see him
nevermore." And in paroxysm of grief
she fell sobbing on the stone bench, still
tightly holding the little bunch of forget
menots in her right hand. Suddenly her
sobbing ceased, and rising she addressed
mo, speaking hurriedly:
"Ah, very we'll. 1 cannot go, but you
will go in my place. Take these forget
menots and go to the Pere La Chaise. You