LITERATURE.

Globe, Volume VI, Issue 633, 29 June 1876, Page 3

LITERATURE.

AN OLD LOVE STORY. IN THREE PARTS. Part 11.

by the clergy. This satisfied Joe, but ng* George. As time went on Willy became more and more of a young gentleman, until Joe Blake and I got into the habit of saying * Sir ’ to him so naturally, that Willy did not seem to notice it a bit. He did not como so often to the mill ; but when he did con j, Joe and I were as pleased as if the price of all the realm had looked in upon us ;o sit upon a sack of grain, and tell us of nis goings-on among great people. We heard many things that astonished ns greatly. Uncle Stephen was never much in the way at these times, but he always seemed pleased to heat that Willy had been to see us. Joy, after she got to know Uncle Stephen, came often by herself to the mill to talk with him ; indeed, she became a constant visitor, and I could sec be bad a high regard for her. We all treated her as a fairy princess, and whoever amongst us held her pony was happy. I astonished Joe Blake one day by kneeling down upon one knee in the mud, and asking her to place her foot upon the other, to help her mount. Willy was with her that day, standing by and sucking the ivory head of a new riding-whip. He said it was quite right, and very well-mannered of me, and laughed at his cousin for declining, and offering me her hand instead. I wna m a fog of delight all the rest of the day, and my cheek, which her long fair hair had Just touched as she mounted the pony, tingled and burned even all through the night, in my dreams. We all thought what a fine pair they would make as they rode off together; and as Joy waved her hand to us at the corner of the lane, Joe Blake came very near breaking his neck from the li'tght floor of the grinding-room. I saw Miss Joy Harding continually after • this, and talked to her chiefly about Dnelo-_ Stephen and Willy. She liked especially to 1 hear about the miiler, and her lovely blue eyes used to soften sympathy as I told her how kood One day she confided to me thßßfiflgßnßßß to make her grandfatberatthe Stephen bosom-friends before ought to be, so good as they and she said she wanted me to I told her I would, and that I would throw myself over the great water-wheel to p l -‘*ir* • her. She laughed, aud I remembered afterwards that she blushed also. Then aha aaid. we could talk about it another day, and cantered away on her pony. But when I \ came to thiuk of it, I could not see any \ way by which I could help her in the matter, \ unless there should be auy carrying to do, or wrestling, for I was by that time a full- A grown man, and thought twenty-stone bags B of grain were feather-weights. But my I brain had not improved with my body, and J I found myself forgetting much of my school learning, remembering best of all the waitings I had achieved from old Snuffy | Tegg’s cane. 1 When I saw Joy again, I begged her to I ask Willy also to assist her in her plan, for I he was clever and related by blood to both J of them. She made no reply at once ; but | after some hesitation, she said she had asked him, and he had only laughed and ■ said things were all very well as they were. I ‘He is so indifferent,’ she said half crying, I ‘ and doesn’t care, except about dogs horses. He says all the poor people in tBBB village are as bad as can be, and very niesH||| aud greedy ; and that when he is squire, will make them look two ways for —What does he mean by “two ways Sunday ?” ’ she asked, looking anxiously up , in my face. * I confessed I didn’t know the meaning of 1 it, but that it was one of the sayings of old Bill Stubbs; and I assured her that Willy did not mean anything wrong. Then she wanted to know who Bill Stubbs was, and how he happened to make use of such a curious saying. j I told her I did not know invented tUe pnraso, natural for him to say qucer-^HBBBHBBB I told her all about Bill, and old fellow he was—his wond^^^^^^^^^H story-telling, aud the good sang; aud how, above all, he purely, that the thrushes in Deeping could not equal him for mellowness. V^^B * Does he go to church 7’ she asked. I was obliged to confess that he did not, on account of an invincible dislike of our|fl good parson, Mr Moosey, who had him by objecting to his whistling by the IB river side of a Sunday evening. I She was distressed at this; but after . B thinking a moment, she said, with one of Jfl her bright, blessed looks, that she. would ■ try to make them friends. *Mr Moosey is a good man,’ she said, ‘ and I am sure will look after Sailor William, and him good aa well as mellow, for says he looks well after his tithes.’ Then I told her of Bill’s Saturday noon visits to the mill, and how hard now for him to get there, as he was old and stiff. She said she would come too ; did, the very next Saturday; Stephen introduced our old friend and said he was one of Admiral men. The old sailor rose from made his best manners to her, hands wiib-hjmi; but I could sejd^^Qß9MnSßHß unprepared for" the., wooden l^^^B^B omitted to mention/”'*”''**"”—*'' I was disappointed in Bill that day, for wits seemed to have le£tf him, poor fellow. expected him to have been full of and music, but he had neither within only an uncomfortable look on his jolly I was quite vexed with him, until Stephen drew him out, as indeed could, when no one else could, aud helped ■ him to feel at home with Miss Joy r who set B herself to win his heart, and won it, as she I did the hearts of all who knew her. He told J some of his yarns, but left out all the bits that used to amuse us so much, ButlToyß was delighted ; and Uncle Stephen aai'k did very well; and the tears came to our eyes when old Bill sang the *i Midshipman’s Grave.” k Joy asked him if his parents were when-he ran away to sea. ' JH you, no miss,’ ho said ; ‘ they to get rid of me.’ Jte never was a bad boy,’ said HHBHLhcu, with a twinkle iu bis gray continued ) |