Year: 1875

quiet before L undertook the manifold
responsibilities of married man. Busi-
ness became my excuse, and in the after
noon fed toward the East, only couple
of hundred miles, and found myself in a
little New England town lying at the base
of great, peaceful-looking mountain.
The landlord of the cozy little hotel a
small building all white paint and green
blinds, received me graciously; and
liked the old man immensely in spite of
the fact that his hair stood on end when
| asked him for sherry -cobbler. l spent
the night there, and in the morning the
old gentleman offered me his horse and
his fshing-rods to help me pass away the
time, and then suggested that perhaps
would like to visit the mills.


"By the end of the first day had ex-
hausted the horse and the fish, and bored
myself pretty thoroughly, and on the next
morning determined to try the mills.
| Did you ever see cotton mill, Jack, one
of those enormous, red-brick structures
| reeking with steam and heat and damp
ness and horrible noises? l saw the pro-
prietor, and he took me through the build
ing. l looked at the great looms, the
whiZzing spindles, and all the ingenious
machinery which man has devised to
supply the necessity for clothing brought
about by the transgression of Eve; but
what most attracted my attention was the
pale faces OF the operatives standing about
ha ohi1Irap
prematurely old and haggard, breathing
that terrible dust and sweltering in that
awful heat.


q passed through the files Of languid
children and weary women on my way to
the office, where the proprietor offered me
chair. As sat down saw, in one cor
ner of the room, small figure bending
over great pile of heavy, business-like
books She turned her head as her en-
ployer spoke and l saw another pale face
so pale, so gentle, with great violet eyes
that seemed to ask everything they rested
upon, Why am 1 so unhappy The
same eyes, Jack, my boy, that smiled at
you so brightly over your dinner half an
hour ago"


mot factory girl"


"Not exactly; one of those girls you
find so often in New England, thoroughly
educated and lady-like, but impelled by
necessity to work. She was employed as
assistant book-keeper by the great firm Of
Watson & Co., that owned the mills. All
at once, Jack, became interested in cot
ton. | used to haunt that great, shrieking
Bedlam of mill. | investigated all the
processes the plant went through from the
time it enters the mill in great fluffy bales
till it goes out in smooth white muslin.
think the proprietors took me for a dry
goods clerk or a politician. l became so
learned that knew all the grades from
paper-cambric to sheeting, and l dis
coursed upon the tariff and the necessity
of protecting American manufactures
like a member of Congress. l even made
researches into the art of book keeping.
And all, Jack, for the sake of a pale little
factory girl with blue eyes-1, the last Of
the Vanderburghs! How I used to lean over
that great, gawky, ink-stained desk and
watch the small figure in the shabby al
paca frock How / used to intercept the
little girl on her way back and forth to the
great mill, and watch her blush when her
great, blue eyes met mlne!"


Had you made up your mind to marry
her?'


"God forgive me, l had not thought
about it"


"You scoundrel"


ASK Pearlie if l am a scoundrel,
Jack?"


Il have no doubt she worships you
you most unworthy wretch. She looks
like Just such sweet, foolish little dar
ling"


81 am ashamed to confess it, Jack, but
for two hours in my life l was villain
only two, though, and l am thirty five
years old: the proportion isn'tso bad, is it I?
One morning it dawned upon me all at
once the mischief had been doing. And
that very hour told little Pearlie l was
going away, and babe her good-by."


"What did she say"


"Not word; only put her little hand
in mine for moment, and turned back to
her great ledger with brave look, like
the true New England girl she is. Then
Jack, 1 knew myself to be scoundrel
But there was the imperial Judith waiting
at Saratoga, worthy mate for the heir of
all the Vanderburghs.


AT four that afternoon I jumped aboard
tho fro;,, l,nr,5 u-oe+u-ord The Mill,
were two miles below the station, and we
must pass them on our way. My heart
ached terribly when | thought of the
sweet little girl I was leaving behind me,
and 1 chose my seat in the Car 50 that
could see the great building as we passed
it, and perhaps catch glimpse of her.


GAS we neared it there seemed to be a
great hustle and confusion-people run
ming hither and thither, women scream
ing, and the clouds of steam and smoke
that usually floated around the building
seemed increased hundredfold. A curve
in the road brought us full in front of the
mills, and in moment | saw that the
largest of them, the one where my little
Pearlie spent her weary days, was on fire.
Dense clouds of smoke mingled with tiny
tongues of flame were issuing from the
windows, frightened operatives were rush
ing from the burning building, trampling
each other under foot in their mad haste
and the whole scene was one of unutter-
able horror and dismay.


"The train was stopped. In moment
we were all on our way to the burning
mill, among the first. All! Jack, think
what l felt when heard terror-stricken
group of men crying out: Where is
Miss Smith? She is nowhere to be foundr
She was known to have been in the Office
when the alarm of fire was given, and had
not been seen since. One prayer for safety
from lips all too unaccustomed to such
exercise, and 1 was in the midst of the
burning building. Up the stairs l rushed
like madman, burst through the door Of
the office, and there, with her hands clasped
and her head lying on the open page of
her ledger. lay the girl l loved. In mo-
ment had my coat off, wrapped it over
her head, and, clasping her as closely as l
could lest those demoniac dartlng tongues
of flame and falling cinders should touch
her, l carried her down the burning,
cracking staircase safe into the fresh air.
What cheer they gave us, Jack! Then
there was a dull, rumbling sound, a
crash, and myriads of sparks went shoot
ing up like stars into the smoke-clouded