Year: 1876

!; we'll las. night?'


81 cannot say that I did," replied Esther.
"But feel quite we'll this morning. Come,
let us get through breakfast and everything
else as quickly as possible. | doFt feel like
being idle moment to-day


Inspite of her assurance that she felt quite
well, there was flush upon her face, and a
restlessness in her movements, that betrayed
degree of nervousness which she would not
acknowledge to herself. Picciola's watchiul-
ness, however, detected it, and she tried by ev-
cry affectionate art in her power to direct her
mistress thoughts into a cheerful channel
for though she acted in the capacity of SER
want, yet from her gentleness, her warm heart
and sympathetic nature, her refinement Of
feeling, and above all, her ardent attachment
to Esther, she stood more in the position of a
companion and friend than of menial and
the latter often found her society most accep-
table. especially when left as she was so often
compelled to be, otherwise alone.


The morning passed by in its accustomed
routine of occupation, and noon came; but
Eslher's heart sank with feeling Of disap-
pointment when she found that Raymond did
not arrive.


81 will keep lunch until one o'clock" she
said. "lfhe does not come by then shall not
expect him before sundown."


"Ies, he will come at sundown," said Pic
ciola in confident tone, "unless he is obliged
to stay away another night


"That am sure he will not do,' rejoined
her mistress.


The afternoon wore on, and when the sun
grew low, Esther took her hat and walked out
toward the end of the valley, in order to meet
her husband on his approach. She now felt
! quite assured that he would soon arrive, and
her heart rejoiced in the prospect of speedy
reunion, even after so brief a separation as
theirs had been. After strolling ON for some
distance, she grew weary and sat down on
rock, by the wayside, to wait.


Longer and longer grew the shadows on
the grass, fainter and fainter became their out
lines, until at last they faded entirely, as the
crimson and golden sunset hues merged into
pearly gray, and the soft twilight mist crept
up the valley, shrouding rock and tree and
shrub in transparent veil The song of the
birds was hushed, and only the plashing Of
streamlet near, and the occasional distant cry
of coyote, or small California WOLF prowling
in the woods, was heard, to break the silence
which regned almost oppressively over the
scene. Esther hopes, so ardent little while
before, gradually died away out of her heart,
which sank, lower and lower, under the weight
of renewed and bitter disappointment and
anxiety. For sometime she couldnot prevail
upon herself to leave her post Of observation ;
but at length she heard her name called, and
looking up, saw Pcciola rapidly approaching


"Dcar Sonora" cried the girl, in all earnest
tone, "do not stay out any longer; but come
back to the house. 1t is getting late and cold
out here You will grow ill., and what sort Of
a welcome will that be for the Senior, when he
returns?"


81 fear something has happened to him."
said Esther, in a fatering voice. "Unless he
had met with an accident, he never would
have stayed away so long"


"But he may yet come a little later" re-
piled picriula hopefully; cor else something
unexpected may have happened to keep him
some business that he did know of before.
At tany rate it will be better waiting for him
in the house than out here"


Esther rose, and with a last lingering, but
vain, look down the valley, slow y retraced
her way home. She kept her face averted
from Piccola, that the latter might not see
the tears, which she could not repress, steal
ing slowly down her cheeks But the young
girl detected her az she furtively raised her
hand to wipe them away, though with native
delicacy she forbore to make any comment on
what her mistress so evidently desired to con-
ceal. They walked home in silence, and
when there, Esther sought her own room and
locked the door, that she might q We vent, un-
. perceived, to the agitation over which she no
longer had any control. Horrible fears haunt
ed her mind; fears that Raymond might
have encountered violence or some fatal acci
dent on the lonely road and her dream re-
turned with harrassing distinctness to her
memory, adding, though she was naturally
! far from superstitious, to the disquietude she
felt. She was SO wrought up now that even
trles had weight with her; and the evening
wind, which had sprung up with some force,
| signing with melancholy sound through the
| boughs of a tree near her window, made her
shudder and tremble as though it had been
the voice Of warning spirit.


! Paul did not come. All that long night she
sat up, scarcely expecting him. yet unable to
seek repose The morning found her looking
pale and haggard, yet it brought her some re.
newed hope, and she said again to herself,
"IIe must surely come to-day" But the day
passed like the former one, in fruitless expec-
! tation; and when light returned, and still no
sign of the absent one appeared her fears
amounted almost to agony The hopelcssness
Of obtaining any information in regard to
her husband made the suspense harder to
bear. She had no means Of sending in quest
! of him; no nei ghborS of whom she could
make inquiry. She felt sure that no busl-
ness, however important and unlocked for,
would have induced him to stay so long away
without sending her some word Of informa.
ton, some explanation Of his absence. lie
had given her too many proofs of his consid-
Grafton for her to suspect him Of wilfully
causing her such pain. What, thcn was she
to suppose, but that some evil had overtaken
him?


Picciola, though she still tried to cheer her
mistress with words of hope, secretly joined in
her fears. She had heard too many tales Of
horror and bloodshcd; some false, some eXag.
geratcd, but many true, to be able to discard
the suspicion that Raymond had fallen a vic
tim to fate similar to that Of which some Of
these told Yet she dared not breathe word
of this suspicion, hut concealed thunder pre-
tense of chcertulness, which Esther was al
most too wretched to observe.


Five days had now elapsed, and the last
spark Of hope was extinguished in the breast
Of the unhappy wife. On the sixth, she rose
up with new resolution in her heart.


"Picciola," she said to her devoted atten-