Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1898-06-01

daughters in Lynn; an I've sort o
got to hankerin' for bit of calico
round the house, that maybe you d
like the place."
''Keep house?" asked the girl.
eyes. I don't mean as housekeepel
exactly. I mean get married."
"Oh!" she cried, looking at him in
astonishment. "Who top
"Why, mel" he exclaimed, as if sur
prised at her dullness. "'There's
enough for two, I guess, and it's kind
of quiet for a lone man over there. I'll
let you have your say about the flower
garden.
There was no affection for the girl
prompting his words. He had caught
a glimpse of her face at the window
the day before, and the same impulse
that had led him to befriend the kitten
had brought him to this larger idea Of
protection.
"I never thought about getting
married." she said hesitatingly.
''It's easy done," he said. "We'll
just step up to the minister's.
"But what if We should be sorry of.
terwards9" she said gravely.
ooh, no danger" he said. ''I'll
give you a long tether. I'll do well by
you"
So, half in reality, half in dream,
Annie put on her precious best gown a
few days later and went with David up
the street. When they came back they
stopped at the gate.
"We must go in and get the dishes, u
she said.
''oh, I've got dishes, he said, "real
china-with sprigs on; aunt set great
store by 'em-old blue plates, too
''But I like these" said Annie,
drawing out the ''like" pleadinglv.
ooh, we'll get 'em then," he said
smiling, "You gather 'em up while I
so after Ned and the long wagon"
In few hours Annie found herself
and all her possessions in her new
home, and, looking about her tried to
realize the Arabian-Nights transfor-
nation that had happened-that itwas
she, and no other, who was mistress
and proprietor of the pretty ingram
carpets, the neat, cane-seated chairs,
the few treasures of curly maple and
mahogany, and the pictures of the
aunt and her sisters staring down upon
When David came in with the milk
he saw her standing by the hearth,
while the kitten rubbed about her feet.
Her face was sufused with her new
happiness, and she gave him one swift,
grateful look, while she laughed softly
us if her new delight had made her
bankrupt in speech. A sense of her
sweet -womanliness seized him
with irresistible force. He felt the
sluggish blood quicken at his heart;
and ct that instant unconsciously he
had received his chrism, and had en-
tered that old, old temple whose light
transmutes what have seemed common
things and dross to pearls and gold.
Meanwhile Annie had moved toward
him.
'I will take care of the milk, he
said.
But" she demonstrated. She was
seized with misgivings lest she might
not find work enough to pay her way;
for the Mosaic doctrine of something
for something had become part Of
the grain and fiber of her thought.
He did not answer, but went on
about the task. He had no fine words
at his disposal, no poetic fancies, or
artists skill; but he was laying such
as he had upon the altar Of the temple.
Annie moved away and picked up
the kitten, whose appetite for caresses
could not be appeased. She stroked
it's head with nervous energy. It was
something to feel the little, dull, in
stinctive life within her hand, and feel
it reaching out in its blind way to
touch her own. She seated herself
and played with it with all the grace
and abandon of a child. The child's
spirit was still dominant in her; that
was evident.
It was still more plain in the even
ing when, after David had given her
half dozen packets of flower seeds,
she sat playing with them. She shut
fed them as if they were cards, shook
them to hear the seeds rattle, looking
eagerly at the flower pictures, made
odd little exclamations of surprise and
pleasure. planned how the flowers
should be arranged. and finally open
ing one and taking out seed of
mignonette, held it up between her
fingers and cried, "To think there
should be blossom in that little
brown seed" She fell to prattling of
the uses she should make of the flow
ers, and quieted down at last to fall a.
dreaming over the prospective garden
us if there were nothing in the world
but flower stems and colors.
David watched her and understood
how this infancy Of heart had stood
between her and the realization Of
some of the hard lines of her past.
He was glad that it was so; but he
hoped that, as life was showing more
happily for her now, she might put
away that childish mood for one more
womanly.
At that instant the playfulness dis
appeared. She looked at him with q
serious, wistful face, and said simply,
"You are so kind-I love you"
David tried to speak, but his lips
closed upon the words. In his at
tempt to express his feeling he found
himself as hopelessly and helplessly
dumb as the kitten under Annie's
hand. The outspoken sentiment, the
afectionate pathos in her face was
more than his self-conscious difidence
could bear. He rose, and with some
excuse of neglected duty went outside.
There he sat long time, close to the
altar of the great temple, meditating
other offerings of homsly service.
The little scene of the evening was
characteristic CT much Of their after
life. Annie's impulsiyeness, that had