Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1898-09-21

SSgss u checked, bright
-ASS@r eyed girl who al.
INJ ways counted on
~ " him as her champion
in all the difficulties that arose to
.uff1e the happiness of those child
hood days. As he grew older, he
used to picture to himself pleasant
home, and Mary's face and smile made
sunshine in it. The other lads seemed
to recognize that in some way, he had
an especial claim on Mary, and they
never thought of interfering between
them. Even the grown-up people,
seeing how much they were together,
and how little they seemed to care for
other society, used to say: "It was
going to be match" and it is not at
all to be wondered at that Floyd felt
confident of the future, so far as Mary
was concerned. So confident was he,
indeed, thattwhen he had grown to be
the man he had thought so much of
being, he did not feel it necessary to
say anything to Mary about his plans,
because he was not yet ready to carry
them, out. He felt sure she under
stood all about them. He wanted to
get some kind of start in the world
before he took upon himself the re-
sponsibility of home-making.
4 chance came fol. him to make this
start in life in the West. he hesitated
about taking advantage of it, at first,
on Mary's account, but all his friends
! told him he would be- -doing-a very
foolish thing in letting such on oppor
tunity slip through his fingers, And
Mary, when he came to talk with her.
about it, thought very much as all the
rest OF them did. So it camo about
that he went awayfrom, Brantford to
make his Start in the world, and he,
went away, foolishly enough, without
any definite understanding with Mary
about the future. He understood how
he felt about it, and what his inten-
tions were, and he took it for granted
that she did also. And in doing this
he made the same mistake that great
many other young men make. Moth
ing should be taken for granted in
love or war.
Ofcourse, they correspondedwith each
other, but their letters were not ct all
love.like. Floyd Gray, was one of
those men who find it exceedingly
difficult to express themselves salts
factorily on paper. Ho might think,
beforehand, of q good many things he
would like to say, and that he meant
to say, when he wrote his letter; but
when tLc non was in, his hand, and
She paper before him, waiting for the
record of his thoughts, his ideas
deemed to desert him, and what he
nucceeded in writing was wholly lack
ing in sentiments colorless trans
oript of few formal phrases that
might mean anything or nothing.
Therefore, it was quite natural that
the love he felt for Mary, in his heart,
never. found its way into the letters
he wrote her.
He had been in the West three
years when letter came to him from
his mother that stunned him with the
news, that Mary Dexter was soon to
be married to young doctor who had
recently settled in Brantford.
Married Mary? It could not be!
She knew-she must know-that he
loved her-that he intended to marry
her, and that he felt sure she under
stood what his. intentions were, and
had signifed his willingness to wait
for him3to t'get his START in life be-.
fore they entered into the partnership
of matrimony. -
But when he came to think it over,
as he did, when the ability to think
soberly came back to him after the
stunning. effect Of the bitter news had
worn away somewhat. he saw what
great mistake he had made. How
was she to know anything about his
intentions without being told of them?
No matter what she might think about
them, so longas he said nothing she
could, not be expected to have any
definite knowledge Of his plans he
realized, when it was too late, the
folly OF "taking things for granted"
Mary married. She had done well,
his mother wrote, in one of the letters
he got from. her shortly after the mar
riage. By-and-bye, she wrote, that,
after all, Mary had not done so well,
for the young doctor had begun to
lead q dissipated life. He had re-
lapsed into habits formed before his
marriage, of which no one in Brantford
had any knowledge.
Poor Mary! His heart went out to
her in pity, for, though he had lost
her, he loved her still,
"A year later an irresistible longing
came over him to visit his old home:
And he went back to it, bronzed al
most to swarthiness by Western winds
and sun, and with face SO hidden by
the beard hewors that his eyes were
about all his old friends could see to
recognize him by.
It happened that Mary was one OF
the first persons he met on his arrival
iu Brantford. He knew her the mo-
ment he saw her, and yet-she was SO
changed that he could hardly believe
it was the Mary he had loved so long.
Her face was pale and grave. Her
eyes had look Of settled trouble i'll
tLan, Tho oirl wac pnna and in her