Year: 1862

ton had forgotten both, his fretfulness, and
its cause. He kissed his wife, thanked her
for her trouble, and proposed that she
should send for Lilly to spend the day with
her, and strobe away with his usual elasti-
! city of step.


Chrissy watched him from the door till
he turned into the next street, and then
went back to the fire-side and to her own
reflection


This frettulness and tendency to be
disturbed at little matters was almost her
husbands only fault He was sef-sacrifi-
cling to the last degree ; faithful and indie
| tatigable as an apostle, almost; in his pro-
| tessional labors, liberal to fault, and in
the administration Of parish matters, wise
and conciGating to all He could bear in
juries, real injuries, with the greatest pa
tience, and was never known to harbor re-
| sentiment.


But with all these good qualities, Mr.
Ashton had one t;iult--a fault which
threatened to disturb and finally destroy
the comfort OF married life. If his wife
| had by extravaganza or bad management
wasted his income and involved him in
difficulties, it is probable that he would
never have spoken an unkind word to her /:
! but the fact of a button being missed, or
book being removed from its place, would
produce & lamentation half indignant and
half pathetic, which wrung in Chrissy's
ears and made her heart ache long after
Clement had forgotten the circumstances
altogether. Strange as it may seem, Mr..
Ashton never thought OF this habit, of
which, indeed, she was but imperfectly con-
scious, as to its being a fault.


He thought, indeed, that it was a pity
he should be so sensitive, and sometimes
said that he wished he had not such love
OF order and symmetry, for then he should
not be so often annoyed by the disorderly
habits OF other people. He said to him
self that it was one of his peculiar trials,
that even Chrissy, perfect as she was, did
not come up to his ideas in this respect :;
bat that the temper with which he met
what he was pleased to call his peculiar
trials, ever became trial to other people
he did not imagine. He had indeed re-
marked, IN spite OF himself, that Chrissy S
face was not as cheerful, nor her spirits as
light as when they were first married, and
he regretted that the cares Of hOusekeep-
ing should wear SO heavily upon her but
nothing was further from his thoughts than
that anything in himself could have produ-
ced the change


Mr.. Ashton, exhausted with his days
work, turned towards home with his mind
and heart full of all he had seen and felt.
He said very little during dinner, but when
the table cloth was removed, and he set
down in his dressing gown and slippers be-
fore the fire, he related to his wife all the
events Of the day, describing, with all the
enthusiasm Of his earnest nature, the pa
tience and holy resignation he had witness
ed, and ended by saying:


Certainly religion has power to sustain
and console under all trials and under ev-
cry misfortune-''


Excepting the loss of button," re-
piled Chrissy, seriously That is a misfor-
tune which neither philosophy nor religion
can enable one to sustain.


The Rev. Mr.. Ashton started as though
pistol had discharged at his ear.
"Why, what do you mean, Chrissyp"
"Just what ! say" returned Chrissy,
with the same soberness. yourself, for
instance; you can bear with the greatest
resignation the loss of friends, and misfor-
tune. never saw you ruffied by rudeness
or abuse from others, or show any impa-
tlence under severe pain; but the loss Of q
button from your shirt, or a nail from the
carpet, gives you perfect right to be un-
reasonable, unkind, and, mast say it, un-
christian


| Mr.. Ashton rose and walked up and
down the room in some agitation.


I" did not think, my love-" he said at
last, in trembling tone, "that you would
attach 80 much importance to a single
hasty word. Perhaps Ispoke too quickly /;
but even if it were really so, did we not
solemnly promise to be patient with each
others infrmitiesp l am very glad to
bear with -


| Mr.. Ashton paused; he was an eminently
truthful man, and, upon consideration, he
could not remember that he had anything
to bear from his wife, aside from the shirt
buttons, &C., which he was now becoming
conscious he had not borne very patiently.


If it were only once, my dear husband,
you would hear nothing about it, but you
do not seem in the least aware how the
habit has grown upon you. There has not
been day this week in which you have
not made my heart ache by some such out
burst OF fretfulness as that now COM
plain off,


Mr.. Ashton was astonished; but as he
began to reflect he was still more surprised
to find that his wife's accusation was true


One day it had been about a front door,
mat, the next about mislaid review, and
then lost pair of gloves, which after all
were found in his own pocket. He felt
that it was all true, and as his conscience
brought forward one instance of unkind-
ness after another-real unkindness-he
sat down again and covered his face with
his hands.


| "But this is not the worst ~ oon+;rre1