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

est chances upon her as / Stead1ed ner
walk upon deck far oftener than at
first. She would linger OF an evening
pleading with her mother first n
staEding beside me-her whole hand
70 so very far from my hand upon
the rail, looking down to where the
black ship flung off whole garlands Of
emeraldS;- or n would look up
thinking, perhaps, h a l was look
ing the same way into the skies IN
netsEhors at home. And bits OF I'D
tales would come up as il they rode
upon the ocean quietude; and fraS-
ments OF half-forgotten poems treHfu-
lousy uttered, either by reason Of the
rolling OF the ship or some accidental
touch Of the white hand.
At length the day came when we
two stood on deck and watched for
land and saw the shores Of England
rise put from the deep. AfterWard
came quiet seas, through which we
boom along, and at length our eyes
rest upon the sweet cottages which
lie along the Essex shore. Then the
crowded Thames n then presently,
from under a cloud Of murky smoke
heaVes up the vast dome OF ST. Paufs,
the olumn. of the Londo Fire and
the white t~urrets Of London Tower.
AS for me | lost much of the sight by
reason Of having 50 often to gaze upon
the fair face beside me. sparkling with
animation at the scene.
That night I slept far away from
'the old school," far away from the
home at H1llfarm. Long and late I
tossed upon my bed with sweet WIS.,
ions ia my-mind Of London Bridge and
Temple Bar and Jane Shore and
F'alstaff and Prince Hal. And
when at length I fell asleep my
dreams were very pleasant: they car
ried me away across the ocean, away
from the ship, away from London,
even from that fair fellow voy-
ager to the old oaks and the brooks
and to thy side, sweet Isabel!
Months passed and I was in the
county of Devon. Its valleys
are like emeralds; it's threads of wa
ters glisten in the summer sun like
skeins Of silk. A bland old farmer Of
the true British type is my host.
Sometimes I wander far eel the hills
to a neighbOring park surrounding a
stately a n spend hours beneath
the sturdy ks In one Of these ran
dom strols-While I was idly hink-
ing of the broad stretch Of water that
lay between me and the old forest at
home | heard the tramp of horses
coming up h avenue The sound was
unusual, for the family" I had been
told, was still in town and no right
OF way lay through b. park. There
they were, however. I was sure It
must be the family" from the care
less way in which they came saunter-
ing up.
First there was a noble hound which
came bounding toward me-gazed a
moment and turned to watch the ap-
proach Of the little cavalcade. Next
an elderly gentleman mounted upon a
spirited hunter and attended by a lit
tie boy Of some dozen years who man
aged his pony with a grace that is
part of an E,~nglishman's education.
I'M IN fnllnrvAl two 80, to1~ ~~
travelling ~phaetOn, in which sat a cou-
pie Of elderly ladies. But what most
drew my attention was a girlish figure
that rode beyond the carriage upon a
sleek-limbed gray. There was some
thing in the easy grace Of her atti-
tude and the rich glow that lit up her
face-heightened as it was by the lit
tie black riding cap, relieved by q
single plume-that kept my eye. It
was my fair companion Of the ocean.
She had told me that she was to visit
friends in Devon.
I recall perfectly her frank name
as she ungloved her hand and bid me
welcome. I walked beside the caval-
cade to the steps Of the Hall and Old
Devon suddenly renewed it's charm for
me-. | became a guest of The family
and there were mad gaIlops down the
and new strolls-not alone
at eventide. The long summer wi
lights of England used to find a very
happy fellow lingering on the garden
terrace, looking now and then at the
rookery where the belated birds were
quarreling for a resting place and now
down the long yistas gray with the
distance and closed with the spire Of
Madbury Church
But the time came when I had to
SAY farewell. It was not easy. Her
name-as If I could forget it.-was
Caroline. Her mother called her Car
ry. As I rod down the avenue after
saying my farewells, I wondered how
it would seem to cali her Garry. I
tried tit sounded well. I tried It
over and over until I came to near
the lodge. There I threw a half
crown to the woman who opened the
gate for me. She courtesied low and
said: God bless you. sir."> I liked
her for it would have given 4
guinea for it. Carry, dear Carry I
thought.