Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1898-07-25

babe him chose between herself ana
his family; between loyalty and dis
loyalty to his country. At all events,
they separated and the Meechers
moved away before Dombey-then
young theological student of 21-came
to fill, for a few months, the pulpit Ct
the church in which the Wiltons WOr-
SHIPPED.
Debbie in no wise resembled weep
ing willow when Dombey first saw ner,
which was on Sabbath morning. she
was organist, and her whole soul
! seemed to be in the music. Her yell
low curls hung to her waist; hef
cheeks were like June roses, and her
big blue eyes had trick of yelling
themselves behind long, dark lashes
that was both captivating and tantal-
izing. He did not know who she was
or aught of her history then, but he
did know before he left the church
that he was desperately enamored.
Sitting here this morning and listen
ing to his wife's voice as she instruct
ed their 15-year-old daughter in mu-
| SIC he recalled that other morning
wildly; even seemed to see the 1utter-
| ing of the blue ribbons that streamed
back on the breeze from among the
curls, and catch the perfume of
bunch of violets that she wore at her
/ throat.
Deborah was such beautiful girl,
he unused; wish the girls had looked
like her, But they did not. They
were all Dombey,-thin, sallow, dark
and wiry. The sons, Hubert and Har-
ry, we're "all MOTHER great, fair,
stalwart fellows of "a and 80, and both
in the ministry.
Then he recalled the anxious weeks
F, that followed. How he dare only wOr-
ship his divinity afar; how jealousy
he watched her from Sabbath to Sab
bath to see if she even glanced toward
the tenOr's seat made vacant by the
departure of her lover and kept va
can't because everybody was off to the
war. If her color waned the least bit
his heart tnrobbed jealousy; if she
seemed absent-minded or preoccupied
his eyes blazed fiercely. Of all jealous,
unreasonable, love-lorn men he was
the climax.
1t was not, however, until he had re-
! turned to fill the pulpit for the third
vacation that he succeeded in winning
! the fair Deborah's promise to be his
j wife. Once only he had ventured to
refer to her unfortunate love affair.
GA mere accident of war and not
! worth mentioning" she had replied, a
trif1e sharply, and he had not men
/ toned it again. Mrs Dombey had the
rare gift of telling people to mind
their own business and tell it gracious
ly, too.
/ In all these years he had had no
occasion to find fault with his wife;
indeed, as we have said before. his
repose was in her, but all the while
, it had been as thorn in his side, this
memory of somebody that he had
never seen; in fact had forgotten his
name.
The Rev. Dombey was still thinking
when his wife came in to say that
! some church official was at the gate
and wanted to see him a minute.
/ 1t was late that evening when the
door bell rang. Rev. Dombey was
! visiting a sick parishioner; the girls
were at a party and Mrs. Dombey had
! just settled herself to arrange a basket
of work for the Ladies' Aid society
which met the next day at the parson-
age. The caller was a disreputable,
authenticated fellow, who stammer-
ingly asked for "the parsOn.
ho+ h0 q
present, but if he wished to see him
he could sit down and wait. 81 guess
I WILL" he said, "for I want him to
pray for me. I'm a poor sinner and
the doctor says I'm nearly cleaned out;
got soon to hand in my checks. amt
sayen my way of liven has been the
best, but liven n dyen are two differ
ent things" He had now come into
the room and as the full light fell on
his face, Deborah Dombey gave lit
tie start. Another woman might have
screamed or tainted, but not she.
He went on garrulously, as he sat
uneasily on the edge of his chair. II
was not always like this. May be you
don't believe it, but come of a good
old Kentucky family; was brought up
in good society; used to sing in
church. You wouldn't believe it
now, would you?"
..I have not the least doubt of it,"
she replied calmly, though her fingers
trembled as they fumbled among the
bits of scarlet cloth in the basket
eyes, md 1 was engaged, too, to the
prettiest girl in old Kentuck. She
was beauty and as good as she was
handsome. She threw me over when
the war broke out. Ye see it was like
this: her folks was abolitionists, mine
seecesh; but the whole business, coun-
try, niggers and all might have gone
to the dew, beg pardon, to the dogs,
before I'd have given her up if it
hadn't been for my folks. They just
kept the pot boiling and got me en-
listed as soon as they could. Then
they moved away. was badly wound
ed at Gettysburg My father took me