Year: 1879

Having reached his room, he quickly pre-
pared for bed but although very tired, the
novelty of his position excited him, and kept
him from sleeping, for some time after
he had retired. Thoughts of his past life,
and anticipations of the future, mingled con-
flsedly in his mind. Some of his recollec-
tions were melancholy ones, for within few
months past he had been separated by death
from his nearest and dearest relation; indeed
the only relation he knew of in the world
the fondest of mothers. He thought of her
grave in lonely valley amid the Alps, and
of the broad ocean that rolled between them;
and the tears rushed to his eyes at the remem-
brance of her countenance, her voice, her
loving words, her unsel6sh and patient de-
votion to him all through his life. He had
missed her sorely, and her death had cast
gloom over him which had seemed too deep
ever to be lifted from his heart. But youth
is buoyant, and soon his grief had given
place to the eager hopes and expectations
awakened by the prospect of change to
new scenes, new occupations. His existence
had been very retired, very he had known
little companionship beyond that of his
mother, and was totally ignorant of the
world. For many years he had experienced
an ardent wish to visit the home of his par
ents and ancestors, the vast Republican land
which had seemed to his imagination so glo-
rious, so free-a fitting field for the battle Of
life to be fought on. For his mothers sake,
knowing that this desire troubled her, he
had restrained it, or at least refrained from
giving it expression very often. Though quite
unable to comprehend the necessity ofleading
life like theirs, his affection for her had
made him content to yield to her will. But
now that she was gone, his natural yearning
for freedom asserted itself, and was quickly
yielded to. He had regarded it as piece Of
uncalled for submission, on her part, to a
groundless caprice, that she had so long re-
mained secluded from the world in accord
ance with his fathers mandate; and the re.
straining power of her influence once removed,
there was nothing to keep him any longer
from following the dictates Of his own will.
True, she had tried earnestly to impress on
him the expediency Of continuing to live as
she had done; but what high,spirited, ambi-
tious youth would have been satisfied to COM
ply with such conditions, without more suf-
6cient reason than the unexplained and ap-
parently inexplicable fancy of person he
had never known, even though that person
should be his father? He could not help be-
leving that this father had either been Of a
very tyrannical disposition, or that his reason
had not been sound, and in either case did
not conceive himself called upon to obey him; ;
especially after the lapse of so many years,
when, as was more than probable, whatever
cause may have existed for his prohibitions
had been long since done away with.


Arguing thus, he had lost no time in pre-
pairing for that voyage to new country, to
which he had looked forward so long and anx.
iously. And with mixed feelings of exulta-
ton, hope for the future, and tender regret
for the past, which could never be recalled,
he found himself ere long at the goal of his
desires.


What he was going to do, or where he was
going to make his home, were questions which,
hitherto, had occurred to him only to be put
aside indefinitely, for future settlement.
He now realized, however, that it would be
necessary for him to arrive at speedy con-
clusion on the subject, and as he turned rest.
lessly on his pillow, he tried to do what was
not much in accordance with his usual habit,
ponder seriously on an important matter,
which demanded decided and prompt action
on his part But in his present condition this
was no easy task. And in the midst of his
cogitations he fell into sound sleep, in which
dreams of bank. directors, playing sonatas be-
fore crowned heads, white-haired old ladies
and inquisitive elderly men, and various other
objects connected, directly or indirectly, with
his existence, past, present and future, were
perplexiugly, but not unpleasantly mingled.


[To BE CONTINUED.