Year: 1869

They had grown up together, in the full
sense of the term and that was lust the
matter. They had eaten each others mud
pies, taken the Group in each others snow
forts, cried out the sums on each others
states, tipped over each others ink bottles,
sopped up the ink with their mutual hand
kerchiefs, told o. each other in about equal
proportions, and made up in a common ex-
uberance Of sobs and sassafras. They bad
played at lovers behind the wood pile, been
married by the prize speaker, been divorced
by the first base, been reunited by the min
ister's daughter, and gone to housekeeping
in the peat swamp, at regular intervals, as
far back as their memory extended. She
had blue eyes, and never understood vulgar
fractions. He used to miss, SO that she
might get to the head of the class.


One day she braided her hair in two little
braids behind, and tied it with a pink lute-
string ribbon at three cents a yard. When
they walked home together he touched it
gently, to signify his appreciation, and she
bushed like a May flower 1t could not
have been long litter that before she grew
shy at singing school, and was apt to be CO.
Ing home with her brother. In another year
when be went to St. David's college, she
cried herself to sleep, forgot TO crimp her
hair, and said that nothing was the matter.
So, cf course, when he came home on his
first vacation, it all happened as it could not
very well help happening, and as l suppose
it must go on happening to the end of all
young things dreaming or of old ones warn
ing. She sat in the choir in blue dress
with white spots, with pink bonnet and
pink cheeks, and sang in very sweet little
country voice, that quivered and curled
about the pillars of the sunny white meeting
house like an incense in an open field on a
May day, you might have thought-or you
might not He, grown rather tall, rather
quiet, with long hair, and the uumistakable,
st. David's shawl, sat below in his fathers
box pew-and listened.


One Sunday it CHANGED that that the Rev.
Mr.. Love, the recently settled and very
popular shepherd of the meeting house,
felt moved in the spirit to preach to his
flock a sermon upon Christian amity, aud to
suggest as its most fitting musical accom-
panment Hymn 857 of the Sweet Singer of
Israel Gust introduced) All, you excellent
mothers with washing days on your minds,
and ye fathers struggling to keep your faith
under the discovery Of Toms first cigar, do
you never suspect in your stupid good hearts,
the tears of solid comfort rolling into your
spectacles as you sing, and your souls sglow
with all the hidden meanings of fellowship
in the one Master whom they who love not
never knOw-do you never suspect the hirta-
tions conducted over that admirable hymn ?
1t may be very much loo bad, but it is very
much the case. 1t is quite as bad in me to
suggest the sacrilege to your young people.
Bless your indignant souls, they stand in
need of no suggestion. Ask them, l do not
deny that it is atrocious in me to spoil the
hymn for you but that is another matter.
She, then, in her blue and white dress, with
a sunbeam struggling through little ground
glass gallery window upon her pink bonnet,
sang:


" Best be the tie that binds


Our hearts in Christian love-


The fellowship of kindred minds


Is like to that above"


1t struck him that her voice was less like
incense now, and more like melted silver |
which was very good fancy, by~the,way,
and he would make note of it against some
indefinite exigencies as class orator.


"0ur fears, our hopes, our aims are one


Our comforts and our cares"
faltered the little silver voice and 30 tinkled
into this:


When we asnnder part,


1t gives us inward pain


But We shall still be Joined in heart.


And he, turning round With the audience,
back to the Rev. Mr. Love, as was the fash.
on in the Bloomsbury Pirst Church, lifted
bis face to hers, and their foolish young eyes
netrAnet aud dropped, and the work was
ionel- Elizabeth Stuart Phelps.