St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1897-03-12

history instructive.
"Oh, well !" said his father hastily,
Il needn't have mentioned her. She
was an Annis, though some folks de-
clared she had good blood on one
side of the house. The old lady al
wavs declared she was the ruin OF
her son-though | guess the rum
came the other way. However, she
never was pretty behaved girl,
though she was mighty handsome
when she was young. TO tell the
truth" and Mr. Witan lowered his
voice, "she was the image OF Madam
Forrestheld, temper and all, and
folks used to talk about it. | do
know. Anyway, she come to a bad
end, and died in the county farm. |
declare | ielt bad when such was as
her were mixed right in where my
gran'sir' was, and he as nice an old
gent as ever lived; most ninety years
old, and had been an ensign in the
Revolutionary war
Edmund made no comment on this.
Tell me something about the For
rest6eld girls, he said.
There aint nothing to tell about
them. The old lady's heart was set
on her boys. There was Lucreshy,
she was nice girl enough. She mar
ried her cousin, second cousin | be-
Iieveit was, Leftenant Crownlnshield.
| think they're both dead now. And
Rachel, she never married. She's all
the one left"
Miss Rachel does not seem like the
rest of the family said Edmund.
"She amt" observed his father,
briefly.
Agatha acts good deal like her,
continued Edmund.
Agatha p said his father, in
quiringly. "Oh, Agatha Crownin-
shield" After a pause he continued,
Strange, what things have hap
pened in that old house! | guess
folks outside little know. | suppose
they arc pretty poor now"
They don't know much that's 60
ing on in the rest of the world" said
Edmund. you ought to hear the
old lady talk. l happened to men
ton New York, and she said, There
are very few people left in New York J
You would have thought Manhattan
Island was an abandoned farm. She
said she had never been there since
the old Beekman house was taken
down where she once led a ball with
Lafayette"
Edmund" said his father with {
yawn, I'm pretty tired, and it's get
ting late. guess I'll go to bed" Al
the door he turned around, and sale
in the same gentle voice, Edmund, i
you want to marry Agatha Crown
inshield, III take you in partner will
me-" Then he went softly out.
Miss Rachel sat up rather late tina
night. By strange coincidence, sh'
had been thinking over the tamil,
history, about her brothers and tn
lives they had led, according to he
knowledge, which was much les
than most of her neighbors possessed
Her thoughts were calm, for he
brothers were all older than she, ant
had all died long, long ago. Sud
denly there flashed across her mind
little scene, something entirely dis
connected, something she had no
thought of for years.
1t was a lovely day in October
and she had been to visit a family i
the north village. Coming back sh
stopped to drink at the waysid
spring, a beautiful place in the hear
of clump of yellow birches and ru;
set chestnuts. Suddenly she fel
some one gazing at her. 1t was
= woman, strange woman. Rach,
was young girl, and her experienc
, had been of the narrowest order. Sh
was the embodiment of all that wa
y meek and proper; but she felt il
stinctively that here was some or
neither meek nor proper The woma
had a wild, defiant and exceedingl
sad look. She had evidently bee
drinking; her dress was torn, an
one wrist was bleeding. Rachel Wa
4 frightened, but her heart prompte
her to act. She took handkerchi
:, from her pocket, bound up the w,
J.. mans wrist, and gave her a drin
- OF water, and then turned and fed {
ii she had mad a glimpse of the meth,
world.
She never told her mother, WI
mipht have imnrisoned her for li[r f