Year: 1879

cOulu nOI nelp luuulSinS III ooinS "~


over its grave.


The next mail from New York arrived
three days after had the poor satisfaction
of seeing the results of my good action in
letter in the handwriting of my rival, ad
dressed to Annie, making its unwished'tor ap
pearance, as I knew it would, and shortl,
after, DR.. Merrill took it away with him
he called for his mail.


Loungers came in and out of the office ant
went away, finding me little disposed for con
versation. Nothing yet was known In tn
village of my acquisition, so was spared tn
pain of listening to congratulatlon that wa
in no mood to hear. When / went hom'
that evening l was surprised to find my moth
er absent, and still more surprised when, OF
opening a note she had left for me, l Learned
that she was with Annie at DR.. MerrilPs, AM
that was to follow her there. Hopeless a
l felt, the prospect of seeing Annie agai1
promised me only painful pleasure, but still
the thought Of being near her had swee
and sad fascination that could not resist
When l reached the doctors, l found himsel
and my mother seated in his Office, so intent
on the moves of knights gambit, that
mere nod on my entrance showed their con
sciousness of my arrival. Annie was moi
there. I found her in the parlor standing up
on the hearth-rug, the glow Of the freight
shining on her golden hair, and look o.
eager, happy expectation in her glance thai
was new to her sweet face.


81 am glad to see you," she said, giving
me her hand. 81 have been impatient fol
your coming-and I will tell you why. There
is question want you to answer. 1t per
plexes me, and somehow / think / can look
to you for its solution. You remember let
ter I received in the early part of the week !?


She hesitated and cast down her eyes.


IL have too good reason ever to forget it,
I answered, bitterly.


saw her face flush. She went on.


II answered that letter next day. 1t was
of vital Importance to me that it should &C
then, as there would be other mail for sever
al days. I was troubled when wrote it, and
stamped it at my uncle's desk while the mes
senger was waiting to take it to the Office.
found, too late, that 1 had misstamped it.
have been utterly wretched for the past few
DAYS on account of that mistake. l knew toe
we'll what the fate of my letter would be
Judge, then, how relieved felt when my un
Gle brought me this" taking from the man
tlepiece the letter that had come that morn
ing. "If it escaped your keen observation
how did my letter pass the eyes of the New
York officials undetected ? That is my ques
ton"


Her eyes searched my face I took hel
hands in my own.


annie" said I, II believe I could make
no one understand what it cost my jealous
heart to rectify that mistake, but | did it.
knew it must be an answer to that letter you
spoke of few nights ago. 1t ought to prove
to you how unselfishly 1 love you, my dar
ling, when l re.stamped it and sent it on its
way to him. l never thought you would find
it out. did it to spare you moments un'
easiness. If the man you love cares for you
as much as l do, he will make your life a


"How can repay your generosity ?" she
said, in voice tremulous with feeling. !"Y on
could not have acted better if you had had q
peep at the contents of that letter. But your
reward may be claimed when you read this y


She handed me the letter and glided out
of the room | took it over to the shaded
lamp, and read the following:


DEAR ANNIE: When beside your fathers bed
we entered into an engagement Of marriage
felt, as he did, that the interests of the firm Of
which he and were partners would be best sus.
tanned by our union.


~ wrote to you notifying you of my readiness
to fulfil my part of the agreement and requesting
you to be ready to return with me on Sunday as
my wife. You say to me that must not come
There is but one explanation in this refusal, and
that is that you have seen some one who pleases
you better than your humble servant. 1t is bu
natural, child; cannot blame you. The young
should mate with the young, and am too much
your senior to expect to awake in your youthful
heart feelings that have long been ifeless in my
own.


II release you from promise that I am now
aware was made by you under the pressure o.
the sad circumstances. But this fact can never
affect the fatherly regard have ever entertained
for the only child of my dear old friend"


| read no further. Here was my reward
And how nearly had lost by the desire O.
gratifying an ungenerous impulse. Annie
has since assured me that had Joseph Norri!
arrived on the day designated, SO great was
her awe of her fathers old partner, that she
never would have had the courage to contend
against her destiny. Indeed, the circum
stance of having made the error she did ir
misstamping the letter seemed to her troubled
mind significant of deep meaning, and that
even beyond the grave, her father sought te
control her actions


Annie did not return to the parlor.
found her seated in the doctors office, appa
rently interested in the game which, just al
the moment Of my entrance, he brought to 8
victorious conclusion.


"Check-"


"Mate," I cried, finishing the word for him
and catching Annie in my arms, needless Of
the astonishment of the elderly pair, l deman
ded my reward.


Well, Joseph Norris, gray.haired, common
place, and undemonstrative, came to Green
we'll to other nuptials than his own. HI
gave away my dear one with the best grace
and after the marriage congratulated me Oh
my admission into the firm. My Ignorance
of his meaning was so apparent, that with s
grim smile he enlightened me. With my bride
| acquired the half interest in an East lndis
firm in New York and Calcutta. If Annie
had chosen to appear as an orphan, depen
dent on the bounty of her uncle, she had the
after. satisfaction of knowing that the love sht
won was offered to herself alone, and not tt
the golden store that attracts so many suitors


"My dearest" l sometimes say to her
"who would think that in a great measure
we owe our happiness to a little postage
stamp?"


The HUMAN MANUFACToRY A man may
eat and drink heartily all day, and sit anc
lounge about, doing nothing, in one sense O.
the word but his body must keep hard q
work all the time, or he will die. Suppose
the stomach refused to work within ten min
utes after hearty dinner, the man would di'