Year: 1866




fresh trimmed lamp thereon, she went out
and shut the door after her, leaving her
husband alone with bis unpleasant feel
ings lie took long deep breath, as she
did so, paused in his walk. stood still for
some moments, and then drawing paper
from his pocket, sat down by the table,
opened his sheet, and commenced reading.
Singularly enough the words upon which
his eyes rested were, Praise your wife"
This rather tended to increase the dis
turbance of mind from which he was suf-
fering.


81 should like to sind one occasion for |
praising mine" How quickly his thoughts
expressed that ill.natured sentiment
But his eyes were on the paper before
him, and he read on. Praise your wife,
man; for PHYS sake give her little en-
couragement. 1t won't hurt her"


Andrew Lee raised his eyes from the
paper and muttered "Oh yes; that's all
very well. Praise is cheap enough
But praise her for what? For being sui
len and making her home the most disa-
greeable place in the world?" His eyes
fell again on the paper.


"She made your home comfortable,
your hearth bright and shining, your food
agreeable; for PHYS sake tell her you
thank her, if nothing more. She don't
| expect it; it will make her eyes open
| wider than they have been for ten years ;
but it will do her good for all that, and
you too"


1t seemed TO Andrew as if this SEN
tence was written just for him, and just
for the occasion. 1t was the complete an
swer to his question, "praise her for
what?" and he felt also rebuke. lie
read no further, for thoughts came too
busy and in new direction. Memory
was convicting him of injustice to his
wife. She had always made his home a;
comfortable for him as hands could make
it and had he offered the slight return o
praise or commendaton Had he eve
told her of the satisfaction he had known
or had experienced2 He was not able t
recall the time or occasion. As he though
thus, Mrs. Lee came in from the kitchen


and taking her work basket from a close
placed it on table, sitting down withou


speaking began TO sew. Mr.. Lee glance


almost stealthily at the work in her hand;


and saw that it was for him she was a


work.


Praise your wife, The words wer
before the eyes of his mind, and he coul(
not look away from them. But he wa
not ready for this yet. He still felt moody
and unforgiving. The expression of hi'
wife's face he interpreted to mean ll-na
ture, and with ill-nature he had no pa
tience. His eyes fell upon the newspa
per that lay spread out before him, and HI
read the sentence:


a kind cheerful word, spoken in |
gloomy home, is the little rift in the clout
that let's the sunshine through"


Lee struggled with himself Will
longer. His own Miniature had to b


conquered first (; his moody accusing spiri


had to be subdued. But he was comm


right, and at last got right as to will


Next came the question as to how h


should begin. He thought of many thing
to say, yet feared TO say them lest his wifi


should meet his advances with cold re


buff. At last, leaning toward her sn


taking hold of the linen bosom upon whic


she wss at work, he said in voice care


fully modulated with kindness:
o You are doing that work very beau
Ii tifglly Mary"


G Mrs. Lee made no reply. But he
f husband did not fail to observe that sh


lost almost instantly that rigid erectnes
with which she had been sitting, nor ths
= the motion of her needle had ceased.
IS My shirts are better made, and white
at than those of any other man in the shop
s. said Lee, encouraged TO go on.


"Are they!" Mrs. Lees voice wa
- low, and had in it slight huskiness.-
,e She did not turn her face, but her hu.


hand saw she leaned little toward hin
lie He had broken through the ice reserv


and all was easy now. His hands wei
Y. among the clouds and few feeble ray


were already struggling through the ri


it had made.


d, "Yes, Mary" he answered SOFTLY
1t. and I've heard IL said more than ono
or what good wife Andrew Lee must have
a. Mrs. Lee turned her face toward h,
lis husband. There was a light in it and
m light in her eyes. But there was SOM
lie thing in the expression of the countenan'


that little puzzled him.


ds do you think so'" she asked, qui
er soberly.


so "What question p calculated Andre