THE LETTER.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XII, Issue 12, 13 January 1877, Page 1

THE LETTER.

"Any letters ?" ask&d the Widow Wadsworth, turning from the counter to the corner by the window 'over which swung a placard bearing' the legend "Post Office" upon it j and glancing through her spectacles at the small row of jars which were made to do i dtity'as.i-tter-liolders. .'-Any 'letters for otir hOiise, Mr. Bristol ?" Mr. Bristol, the senior of that name, ' wbo was top rheumatic to . .weigh groceries, was aa deaf -as a i post, and had pierbaps tbie least riatural'talent. for" the reading Of ' dubious scrip that could be found iii "■ the pereoii Y6f any Hying man ; .and besides" , tliis ? ' could -never -find his .spec-tacle-—rotised. lumself from a hap in which he had been' indulging,, looked bewildered, and seemed for '&}. moment dubious as to what he should do next But seeing that,, Mrs. WadswortK's eyes were fixed upon the jars, decided , that she wanted a letter, and ieacbing-up, slowly took a few of- tbem down, and with miich deliberation, spread tbem before her like a pack of cards. 7,^ " I've ; put: my. specks some I rs,".he. said, " but where I dunno; Look 'em over and soft out what's you'rn, Mrs. Wadsworth.". This was old. Mr. .Bristol's usual style of performing , the , business of a country postmaster. And as it was an honest place, little, barm came of it. ; Often people earned their neighbours' letters jto them, when they happened to pass their gates, and the only registered letter that ever yet has been" sent to Kornbill waa considered an insult to the community at large. ~ - , " L'bey, might ha' kno wed no one would ha' meddled wth it," said the postmaster. And the farmers talked tbe matter over as they- jogged horae side by side in their wagons, and tbe summer visitor who did the strange thing was made to feel the indignation of her hostess.. But that was long after the evening on '-which Mrs. Wadsworth asked if there were any letters for "her house." Peering over the little row spread before her, she saw that there was one— a small envelope — addressed in a delicate lady's hand ,to "James Wadsworth/? .... ... " That's Jim," said the old lady. " Wlio can have writ to him ?" There were no more. She put her single epistle into her pocket, pushed the rest towards Mr. Bristol and nodded at him. Mr. Bristol nodded in reply, re-jarred the letters, perched himself upon his stool, and went to sleep again. --..-. ,'_.-■ Then the younger Bristol , helped .the old lady into her.chaise, handed, in her basket of groceries, and she drove away, vith the letter in her pocket, and a queer feeling,. half fear and half anger, athei. heart, as. she .said oyer and oyer again, talking, aloud, |to herself,, as the old white horse plodded along the lonely road — , "Who has writ to Jim, ;l wonder,?" , ..... Maggie ithe .maid- came out t.o,,carry In, the basket, when Mrs. Wadsworth stopped -. at her pwn< gate, and she herself walked into the, kitchen. There, was,, a. great fires there, and on it the, kettle was boiling,: steam rushing from its spout in one, long streaiu.,;; Before this fire Mrs. Wadgjworth, stood and. warmed, her bands, „;_ . • ; ; "I 'wonder who. has writ to Jim," she said. "If I thought it was tbat.giib I'd throw it into the fire." ...... _. Then, a story she bad beard of someone who had feloniously opened an envelope by holding it oyer/ the steam of a teakettle occurred to her mind. " I wonder whether it would open that way," she said- .It couldn't be any great harm, just to satisfy. myself, that it istft from her.f. Jim is, but a boy, and I'm bis mother. I think, according to law, I'd have a right. I ought to, anyhow." Then the band which held the, letter outstretched itself. Tbe stream of steam, beat against the flap of the enyelope.. In ia moment or so, it bung loose, limp, and wet in her hands. ..I'll go. and put my bonnet away," she said, in an unnatural sort, of tone, and hurried upstairs. -■' " Vm bis mother," she said," as she sat down in her chair, and drew the letter from the, envelope. " It's right I; should know." „,,, ; .;,'*. . .-"■■■(■ Then she cast , her eyes oyer the writing. There wW< not much of it ,' Just this— . " Dear James, — I know, after. my con*-< duct, it is my place ito write first. I was naughty. -Please forgive me. Isn't that humble enough. And- if you do, come- and take me-to the pic-mc-formorrow. " Your own, Nelly." " It is from that girl,'' said Mrs. worth. l":li's froin;her.7 r And4bmgs have gone Ho f ar, arid he hasn't told his mother a word. Oh, bow hard it is to bear. That girl I don't want Jim to,^marry ; but of all girls, that one." „. . 'y. .V-_ , . V AndTshei rocked her self'to ;and froi!/ ; f :' : "There's been a % Z^B\^--^}^~oZ' : last, " and she's written this up_ If he never got it, he'd'neyer Ysge^t^y I know Jus pride. She comes of ; a pbbrjj lot. I hate.her ; idie's'abad. \wfe|for-Jim|y;!. ; 1 IF think it's'my'dutynbt to-'mve ii to-hiß-^s, •; I'll thinKiTbfe^ ' Then BheTopehed T ffieT'drawe^ iburej^ii^. whicli; 'she it_M^ yaii^bie^^Tc: - jmM-gjytl'aji'd ihrust' -he letter jri -a.njt-3Sojsfe^fei»

and "that girl%rew mora distasteful to her every; moment. v Going to the pic-nic, Jim ?" she a.kcd, as they sat over their tea. And Jim answered thathehadn't thought of it. "I'd go, if I was yotf, and take your cousin Miranda," said the old l&fy. "--She expects it, I think." _ And Jim, inwardly moved by the remembrance- of Nelly-fiarlowpaiid ~a~wish to make her jealous, agreed to the proposition. He took Miranda to the pic-nic next day. And Nelly was there, and saw them together; and remembering her iiote, written in a moment . of softness, when the wish to recall certain angry words she liad said to Jim was strong upon lier, she grew sick with shame. . „ .- She had held out her hand in. Reconciliation; and he had not taken.it. -Could any. thing, make a woman more indignant? After that-she had : never ev^i looked at him. , Old. Mrs. Wadsworth, bavong kept JinOa letter- a i few days, felt tbat too much explanation wowM be .necessary were she to grve.it .to hire after so long a delay. •■ Besides, it woa-d'b'e w.ll for ber eon tkat he should not -see it. : Henvouldj* of coarse, .marry his*, 'cousin Miraiida— only a second "•"-cousm-^-a./girl she liked, and who would iiever B©t .lerself .up Ahove her r»t_.lier-in- ' law, 'a .girl who did not, .like poor Nelly, look aggravating^' s-Jiyli.h. • • ...Bui ••Jim -did not marry: Miranda. No - one will ever know; now whether Miranda would 'liave accepted him or noi.: After awhile she married a Mr. Wiseman, who was -better .off than Jun, arid ©kl enough to > foe -liis father. -And Nelly, too, married. -Whale her heart . burned with resentment against ber. old /lover, she -ohose a new one, -a dark, im>ody, silent sort, of man, who carried-her.ftway to London, whence there came nimours now and then that she was not .Jtt-PPyfr-thflt hpr husband led aiVfild l^e.. Once some one declared . t_tat he was'' a 'yejy niadman in his, jealousy, - Jand locked Iter in her room at tinies. But tnojone knew whether it,' -was true or not. Ber parents never would say ■ anything •sabout.hen As tor James Wad-worth, he. bad gone %> church '-to jsee >; her married, and had igone home with a headache/ The next •aajr.he Was. delirious. A brain fever had -«et' 'in,' aiid ''the doctors -hook their heads •over bim/" What he said in his delirium •only his mother understood, but if she •-could .have' undone the- deed that -she had -done, 'she would have , thanked Heaven. Tor weeks he lay at death's dbor, and then a pale shadow crept about the house, the wreck of bright, handsome James Wadsworth.. His beauty was gone; and ho One 'felt quite sure about his mirid. He answered sensibly enough when he was spoken to, but voluntarily he never spoke. After awhile he felt strong enough to do farm work, and did what his mother sugg.sted, and she grew used to his altered ways. • -.:•■• • . 'And so matters rested when, ten years from her wedding day, Nelly came back to her father's home in a widow's cap And -the people of Eofnhill learnt that her.htisband was dead, and began to wonder whether he had left her money/ Jim ploughing in an adjoining field, saw her as Bhe sat upon the old homestead porch arid stood for a. moment 'staring at her! Then : he left his plough in the furrow, his horses standing where they were, and went home. His mother saw him coming. He tramped over the beds of vegetables and trod down the young corn. He sought no path. As the bee flies, he sought the doorway at which his mother stood starin»at him, and walked into the kitchen past her without a look. " "Jim; my boy," said the old woman, "what is it?" ' He made her no answer, but went to his room and straight to bed. For hours he^never spoke to her. Then he began to babble. He uttered Nelly's name He reproached her with inconstancy. He called her tender names in one breath, and cursed her ih the next. Then he gave one wild, cry and sprang tip in his bed aud dropped back again, with his eyes staring towards Heaven. He was dead. Tlie mother knew that before they told her so lhe next day, a coffin stood in the lowceiled parlour, and in it lay a pale statue with, closed eyes, all that was left of James, Wadsworth. - ••,••■■ • One-by One the friends and neighbours came softly in to look at him, and went away more softly, ofteh in tears. At last caijie oneTwoman— a fair woman, in a widows-c ap and Veil^-Who stood longer tiian -tfie^ rest iooking'-'at th. still, white face, and at her owri "request was left alone with it, while curious people in the other room wondered whether it was true that; -Nelly and Jim were once engaged and had quarrelled-for this was NeUy, in heryvidows weeds, 7ho had come to look at Jim for the last time. Aridjs she stood there, with thoughts ±or which there are no words trooping through her mind, an: inner door opened and an old women crept in. It was Mrs. Wadsworth, broken down at last, and with the strange, restless light of an unsettled intellect in her light blue eyes. She held an old letter in her hand, and it rustled as she slowly crossed the room and stood beside the coffin. "Jim," she said, "here's your letter. I ye been thinking it over, and since you take it so hard, you'd better have it." I only kept it for your own good, Jim. She W. w? t ±0r £> v - but you take it so n** ? ak \ U . P ' Jnn 5 here ' 8 your letter." But the white, frozen hands lay still upon th^ chest, and other small, living woman s hands grasped it instead. Nelly knew her letter, and knew all the story flow. "Here is your letter, Jim," she whispered. "Oh, Jim, Jim!" and she laid it softly under the white flowers upon the bosom, and, stooping, kissed the waxen hands and brow. «Oh, Jim, Jim 1" she said again, and let her black veil down over her face, and went her way. -And the gossips who stared after her, as she passed down the village street, wondered again if ever she had been engaged to Jim Wadsworth. But none of them ever knew. The grave keeps it secret. So .also does a woman's heart.