The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1911-05-09

when the day at last ends a sunset
glorious with crimson and gold.
am thinking of Garry. Ny heart
whispers. And this is what might have
been. / write to her. h is beautiful,
but l am strong: the world is short
And then l get a letter in reply. Dear
Paul" she writes, T think i may call
o SO now. 1 know not how 70 an
swer you. l believe that YOU love me
better than / deserve dto he loved
l am proud. too, Very proud. TO have
Won Your generous love. But it pains
me to know that I cannot write back
to you what | wish to write-alas
never. You know my father died be-
fore We ever met He had an old
friend h had come from England
and who. early in life. had done him
some great service. When my father
died he drew me TO his side and said:
Carry, / shall leave You, but my old
friend Will be your father And he
put my hand in his and said, i give
YOU my daughter
This old gentleman had a son. older
than myself and We We're much TO-
gether, growing up like brother and
sister. l was proud Of him. for ne
was tall and strong and everybody
called him handsome. l do not need
to tell yOu more, Pau1-When ] was
still a girl We had promised that one
DAY We would De man ana Nile.
Laurence-that is his namc--is much
in England and, i believe, is there now.
l have wished to tell you all this
before, but feared to tell YOU. ] think
l was too selfish to tell you. And
what can / say now? Laurence seems
almost like a brother to me-and as
for you, Paul-but l must not go on.
For if l marry Laurence, as fate seems
to have decided, / will try and love
him better than all the world. Paul,
if YOU should shed tears owe this let
ter | have shed them, TOO. can
write no more now.
After this my reveries dealt entirely
with things longed for and visions seen
only in dreams. ] look at the blazing
hearth. The white heat Of the fire
roars up the chimney and ] think.
"Supposing hat it had ar come out
in this way Then l build up my
romance from among the embers.
Laurence. wandering abroad, meets
new faces, and very sweet faces. He
writes to Caroline as a sister-Wrltes
more than his father could have wish
ed. The old man sees and Garry secs
that the heart of Laurence IS not hers.
They agree to be to each other as q
brother and sister. Then come her
letters to me, no longer sad, but full
of hope. And so at length the Day
when Garry and / are to be married
comes, and / live as IN a dream.
SIT DcSlut lei III the liz Q
before 1 can call her mine. and we
talk Of Eella and of thai sweet sisters
death. And of Laurence ~,aewnthefi
death. And Of Laurence, a new broth
er. coming joyfully home with his
bride. A thousand pleasant plans
come up and are like the
waves we leave behind US; a thousand
other joyous plans are likewise draw
from the fancy.
And Their fancy Carry and myself
again in Devon walking on the terrace
of the old hall and the rocks are wing
ing their way to their nests as the
shadows fall amid the great Oaks IN
the park below.
Then / skip over many happy years
and see myself surrounded by children
and grandchildren with the sweet 1ace
of Garry always by my side. Lie
has nleIloWed into ripeness and ne
hot ambitions of youth have gone by.
Calm and joyful quietude has succeed
ed. That future which still lies be
fore me seems like a reseate twilight.
The children. when they are away at
school or when am away from nome
which / seldom an-write mo
curious little letters telling Of their
wants and their games
And now who was that bride whom
laurence brought pack from across
the seas? Why. who should it be, or
course. but Enrica-my old Roman
love-, Oh. yes, il was certainly Enrica.
And Laurence and Enrica 1--we near
us and we have among our chlldEen
a Laurence and Enrica named for
them. and my name and Carrys are
their children. In the pleasant
summer evenings We ride over TO see
Laurence and E.nrica or they ride over
to see US. accompanied by all thar
numerous brood. And then we have a
great sorroW-a death in the family;
We lose our little Paul, and the cot
tage is very still.
But why do dream longer? The
venin is past. the night is come.
But a crimson belt yet fingers on the
horizon though the stars are out. Be
hind the partition my tenant and nay
wife have closed their labors for the
day, their children asleep oesile
them. The fire is dying upon the
hearth. But L dreamed pleasant
Iroa~C that niDhf-fnr~ I "a