The Dickinson press., 1895-10-05
IF -
~ Frank H. Irons.

ny Frank H. Irons.
In that enchanted chamber where
the true man shapes and fashions his
hopes. desires and loves.
Let them he fantastic; let them be
unreal, they are. nevertheless, the
pictures which only man has; and
which, having. he is Il creature above
the brutes.
This ia the chamber wherein man re-
tires to build his gorgeous castle. to
weave his stories Of wonderful desti-
ny. Within, there may lie a throne
power. eWalth is there. honor. dis
tinction, fame,-that which the human
heart and mind doth hold most dear.
And therein. il he he a man. there
hang the pictures of his mother and
his sweetheart.
II went her way carelessly. with
little thought of the young a in
whose mind she had raised so much
commotion. She had not looked too
closely at him. He was a "well spok-
en- young man, TO doubt; though
in fact, he had not spoken well. nor
hardly at all She did not think
much OF him. She wOul not think
much of any young man, until he
came to seek her. 1t was time enough
then to scrutinize him. 1t is different
to you il you are to be looked for.
the chase. You would be foolish to
noyn,,oro rx,oS.rL o,,1 ..,rit3c;co ,,p,&il Hyovp
know whether there will be need for
the trouble.
With young men. now it is differ
ent. They must look ut each girl to
find the n they want. The young
woman has no business to want. save
as they are presented to her for her
acceptance or rejection.
If he did not reason this out, you
may do SO; and it will account for
many differences between the actions
Of the young men and Of the young
women.
The next day they met again. Then
came frequent meetings and walks to-
gether. A feeling of confidence grew
from little acts that showed that con-
fidence was deserved. You ccas eto
guard certain approaches that you
have tried very often. always finding
them safe. The suspicion of even the
hyena. untamable and savage, can lie
partially allayed; then how easily is
confidence built in the heart Of q
young maiden who has only instinct
i've and underlined fears!
At first there is a difficulty from the
very indeiiniteness of the fear; but
that difficulty disappears instantly,
when the mind declares plainly the
object presented.
1t isn't that familiarity breeds con-
tempt; but that acquaintance compels
the mind to believe that it UNDER
stands, that it knows all there is to
know about the object.
So there came confidence to the
young man and the maiden, saunter-
ing down the shady walks. And after
confidence, condolences; and. finally.
the growth of that supreme confidence
which we say is love. AS q saving
clause, however. let it be noted here,
that love is in the beginning, as well
as at the end.
Until the end of time tehre shall
be no truer picture Of paradise than
two lovers walking together down the
village strbet. A serpent may lurl1
to tempt, a serpent which has coiled
itself around the soul-but if the love
is true and tender, there is no SER
pent coiled, and so the picture holds.
The young men looked ut Ellinger
In envy. The foolish young girls. not
having been sought. giggled a fox-like
grimace. The two lovers knew not Of
envy, or of sly smile, or of anything
except that they were walking in the
light. If it was dark yesterday, what
does it matter? 1t it shall gather
blackness again tomorrow, what mat
ter?
Now. here. it is bright and beauti-
full. The sky is tender, the very
winds are balmy and soft of touch.
To-day holds that delight and joy
which follow in the train and wait on
love.
IFS parents did not look with spe-
cial favor on this intimacy. Ellinger'
was u poor young man, with his pro-
fessiOn not yet gained.
Ifs father was Il little indignant
that he should lure his daughters af-
fections away.
What right has the young fellow,
about whom we do not know too
much, to come stealing into our very
sanctuaries" he said.
This was partly just; not entirely so,
for the young man had been frank
enough to put them in the way Of
knowing all about him. He had no
great prospects beyond the ones
which he should open for himself. His
present resources were very slender,
indeed.
Mr.. Spencer vas called "well-to.do."
He was no purse-proud; he did not
despise Ellinger because he was poor;
but he did, most seriously, object to
his thrusting himself forward as the
sutton for the hand of Miss II. Not
that he thought it had come to that;
but 1t was coming, and it was the
time, now, to stop it; ito nip 1t in the
bud" as he expressed it.
So, being q direct man, he had a &C.
rious conversation with young Ellin-
ger. which did not improve matters.
Then a talk with Iphegenia, which
made them still worse. He lost his
temper, forbade the young man his
house, offended the young lady. and
made things very uncomfortable for
Notwithstanding himself.
II would not meet her lover clandes-
timely, so they did not meet at all. He
wrote to her, and she took the note,
unopened, to her mother. That dear
lady burned it in the fire without read.
Ing 1t, so that some f%oolishness. and
tenderness, and poetry were lost tc
even that small bit of the world which
otherwise would have been cnlight
ened by it.
If wept some; tried to be cheerful
but did not succeed. She then con
Guided to sacrifice herself to her faith
r. worldly Judgment, and succeede,
ut that. though she grew thinner nm,
lost her vivacity-which made Spence
angry at the poor young fellow VIII
was the Of all this trouble.
The young man did not enjoy til
%eituation; but he was not Il fool; an
the practical side of life, he knew
mast have attention. 1t would Il
much better, he thought, If the me
and women Of the world could live O
u higher plane than the one wherei
--I