FWkf, «^ 



100 



MOOHE'S RBRAL MEW-Y0H5DS&. 



THE COTTAGE DOOH. 



bad gained the mastery 



bty bod placed a barrier 



■ ted on eartl 



apparently 



I <■:'.: >■ 



r her. and impereepti- 



■"StonftTeJJ®? 



,' K8H 



Till: W1FI.S KXI'KIIIMKNT. 



"Ma, ■ ii'. don'1 v ■■■■ mi dre : np 



■ . nioihei lin i .lit-<] brushing 



id. ohlld'i nelr, and tying her clean apron. There 



wu u momentary surprise on Mrs. TnORVTON's 



■ (!},. Till I. II.' 



cares bow / look." 



' i you look pretty?' 1 per- 



a] ol the flblld, Tilt- motfatT did not reply, but 



1 ill her slovenly attire, the 



llldfrl I Hi IMI I'lllx :■• dll 1 S I iljjl^l iipioll, lii.ftl 



bearing witness to an intimate acquaintance with 



p I '"1 shoes, and 

 •Oiled stockings iiinl rlie could rut help rcmcm- 

 io had that morning appeared with 

 nnoombod hair, and prepared bar husband's break- 

 fast before In- lei i I foi tht neighboring market - 



town "Sure ghl" mused she, "how I do 



l.-nl. '" \nl ilii'ii H-iiinry pointed hack a few 



« ad mabJonjAtoL 



h.lM 



. ' ' 





i > ■ « 1 1 ■ ■ i with boi roungoompuu 



tidy in her appenrunce, alwuys fresh and blooming ; 

 and tbtl ihfl knew, lull wall, waa a picture of her- 

 i i in. i . Tii. 1 1: st. in lirsl mm her young 

 . was iln' bride be had tuken to bis 

 pleasant home. -how had mature life fulfilled the 

 prophecy ol vimlli ' 



She was still comely in features, graceful io form, 

 li.it few would call hor a handsome or an occom- 

 ii, for, nlas! all other characteristics 

 were "hi badowod by tin-, repulsive troit, Yet 

 ■lie loved to m-e other*! neat, and hor house nod 

 obJMnndtd no! loom to belong to her, so well kept 

 mill lul\ dtd 'ln'v uluuy* look. As a housekeeper 

 alio excelled, and her hutbaud was long in acknowl- 

 edging, i" iniii-uH the unwelcome foot Unit be bad 

 married an Incorrigible sloven. 



When, like too ninny other young wives, she be- 

 gan to grow negligent in regard to her dress, he 

 readily excused her in his own mind, and thought 

 " -he i- not well," or, " she bus ho much In do ," „n.l 

 " abatement iu hi* kind attentions, she 

 naturally concluded he wns perfectly satisfied. As 

 her family cares iuerensed, and she went less into 

 company, ithe became still more careless of her per- 

 sonal appearance, and c eofcN hMaolf with see- 

 ing Uut nothing was lacking whicrT»ulde«ntrib- 

 utO to the comfort of her husband and children, 

 "g that so trivial a matter as herown 

 tppOTOl could possibly affee.1 their happiness. All 

 .1 un thought i>l, 



repealed the .pier*.— "Don't Pa lovi 

 look pretty r" 



n experiment, and 



rttl really mdiffer- 



iving Kbllik a pic- 



If. she went 



to her own loom, m entail) e'xomiming, "ut any 

 rate, I'll never put on this rig, again— not even 

 Vathtng daj." She proceeded to bcr clothes-press 

 Bid ranOTod one dress after another,— some were 

 ban uded, all out of style, and some 

 t tcugth ehe found one which had 

 iid aside, as "too light Io wear 

 ." It waa a nice French print, 

 white, and she remembered had 

 on<* been a rkrorlta with her husband. The old 

 adage, "faablau mm. "round in seven years," 

 ia this mm; f„ r the dress was made 

 in the than prevailing style, 



hurt the thing," »he thought, and she 

 hastened Io perioral her Wiethe, nying to herself, 

 " I must alter my dark gingham to wear morn- 

 ings, aud g< OtaaxBi cornea 

 die ralaoaad her long, dark hair 

 from ila imprisonment in 

 ami carefulh I 



plaited it in the broad braids which Ch»m.m U(10 4 



»0 much to admire iu the day* other girlhood. 



The unwonted task brought back many rand. 



i those long -vanished years, and tt*r» 



her eyas as she thought of the many 



changes Time bail wrought in thus, 



•be murmured, "What hath sadness like 

 the change thai in ourselves we find?" ] D Qui 

 r she realised how an apparently tririal fault 





!,.'.■„ . 



long ago baas 



True, be never chided 

 iced her altered appear- 

 ■he well knew he no loi 

 going into society, nor did be seem to care about 

 receiving his friends at his own boose, 

 was a social man, and bad once felt proud (o intro- 

 duce his yonng wife to his large circle of acquain- 



HOW, they seldom went <>nt together excepting 

 (o church, and even dressing for that was generally 

 loo moch of an effort for Mrs. Tl 

 would stay at home " to keep hoose," after prepar- 

 ing her little ones to accompany tbeir father. — and 

 ■ nOD ceased expecting to meet her at 

 public worship or in their social gothi 

 so, one by otM 



hot very few of the number continued to exchange 

 d wondered ut 



this, bad felt mortified and pained heretofore; now 

 ii it was her own fault, the veil was 

 removed from her eyes, aud the mistake of her lift 

 was revealed in its true enormity. Sincerely did 

 she repent of her past error, calmly and seriously 

 raaolro on future and immediate amendment. 



i.. i i in.! iv en- nnt idle, and at length 

 iln- meUmoi pi The bright pink 



drapery Imng.gruecl'ull j about hei form, imparting 

 on unusual brilliancy to her complexion,— her best 

 wrought ooJIar rraa (oetesod with a costly brooch, 

 her btuband'a wedding gift, which had not seen 

 thC light far many u day. (Iluncing once more at 

 her mirror, to be certain her toilette needed no 

 more finishing louche*, she took her sewing, and 



I nit, '.rine had wearied of her picture-book, 

 and was now playing with the kitten. As Mrs. 

 Tuojixton entered she clapped her hands in childish 

 delight, exclaiming, "Oh, Ma, how pretty— pretty!" 

 and running to her kissed her again and again, then 

 drew her little ehuir elo-e Lo her ride, and eagerly 

 watched her us she plied her needle, repairing the 

 gingham dress. 



■lust be lore it was completed, Nii.i.in's brothers 

 Came from sehool, and pausing at Ihe half-«pened 

 door, Wilmk whispered lo Charlie, "I guess 

 we've got company, for mother's all dressed op." 

 It woi With mingled emotions of pleasure and pain 

 thiit Mi. ToomrrOM observed her children were 

 unusually docile and obedient, hastening to per- 

 form their accustomed duties without being even 

 reminded ol them, Children are natural and un- 

 affected lovers of the beautiful, and their intuitive 

 perception* will not often suffer from comparison 

 with (he opinion* of mature worldly wisdom. It was 

 With a new feeling of admiration tlml these children 

 now looked upon then mother, mid deemed to con- 

 sider it a privilege to do something for her. It 

 was, "let ine get the kindlings," — "! will make 

 the lire,"— ond " may I (ill the leu-kettle?"— instead 

 of, as was sometimes the case, "need I do itv"— 

 " I don't want to,"—'* why cau't Willie ?" 



Nellie was too small to render much assistance, 

 but she often turned from her frolic with her kitten, 

 in;., mine childish n 

 ■ ■ .-I I", nod love. 

 At lost the clock ■truck the hour when Mr. 

 TnortNTOK was expected, and his wile proceeded 

 lo lay tho table with unusual care, and to place 

 thereon several choice viands of which she knew 

 he was particularly fond. 



Meanwhile let us form the acquaintance of the 

 absent husband aud father, whom we find in the 

 neighboring town, just completing his day'straflic. 

 lio is a flnc-lookmg, middle-aged man, with au 

 uumistukuble twinkle of kindly feeling in his eye, 

 and the lines of gi.od-humoi plainly traced about 

 bis mouth — we k now at a glance that he is cheer- 

 ful and indulgent in his family, and are at once 

 prepossessed in his favor. 



Ashe is leaving the store, where he has made 

 bis lust purchase for the day, he is accosted in a 

 familiar manner by a tall gentleman just entering 

 the door. He recognizes an old friend, and OJt- 

 claims— "GnoiiiiK Mi*tus, is it you?" The greet- 

 ing is mutually cordial ; they were friends in boy- 

 hood aud early youth, but sin 

 been practicing law in a dis 

 seldom met, and this is no pla 

 many questions and answer: 

 line .pun of horses and ligli 

 standing near by, and it needs hut little persuasion 

 to iuduce Mr. Monro* to accompany his friend 



■ loeli he has never yet visited. The 

 conversation is lively and spirited — they recall 

 the feats of their school-days, and the experiences 

 of after life, and compare their present positioi 

 be world, with the golden future of which they 

 sed to dream. Mr. Mobton is a bachelor, and 

 ery fastidious in his tastes — as that class of i 

 iduals are prone to be. The recollection of 

 fact flashes on llr. Tuounton's mind as they d 

 along towards their destination. At once his 

 u the dialogue abates, he becomes thonghUol and 

 lilenl, aud does not urge his team onwurd, but 

 illiugtu ufloid Mr. Morton an opportunity 



', Mr. Morton has 

 ill city, they hi 

 to exchange their 

 Mr. Tbor; 



of Ihe occasion, appears to far better 

 advantage than usual. Tea is soon upon the table, 

 and the gentlemen do ample justice to the tempt- 

 ing repast spread before them. A happy meal it 

 is toCuau.eaTuoa.VTos, who gazes with admiring 

 fondness opon his still beautiful wife. Supper 

 over, Mr. Morton coaxes httle Stluk to sit in his 

 lap, hut she aoon slides dowo, and climbing her 

 , whispers, confidentially. "Don't 

 mama look pretty »" II. 

 ■ .-.ing." 



The evening passes pleasantly and - 

 and many a half- forgotten mile of tin : 

 moge ia recalled by some way-mark which still 

 gleama bright io the distance. They both feel 

 younger and better for their interview, and deter- 

 mine never to become so like strangers ugam. Mr. 

 Mohtos's soliloquy ns be rettrea to tb 

 nieiii appropriated to his use. is—*' Well, this is .- 

 happy family! What a tut! 

 such a handsome wife, and children — and sbe 

 good a housekeeper, too! May he I'll settle down 

 some day, myself "—which pleasing idea that night 

 mingled will: 



The next morning Mr. Thornton watched his 

 wife's movements with some anxiety— he could 

 bear to have her destroy the favorable tmpi 

 uhieli lie iv us certain she hud made on his friend' 



offering any suggestion, or alluding iu any waj 

 the delicate subject s long uumentioned betw 

 them. But Mrs. TnonKTOv needed no friendly 



with t 





advantage she had gained, a 

 clincd lo relinquish it. The 



priatc and becoming mornii: 



keeper, utiil the breakfast tut. 



no occasion for altering his opinion in 



ihe skill in- affability of his amiable 



Early in the forenoon Mr. Morton took U 



hospitable friends, being called away by pre: 



formed an opp: 

 attire for a hou: 



energy, and anew st 

 deeply felt becausec 

 afterwards Mr. Tno 



ight like 



Thornton returned to the; 

 ions, but it was with renewed 

 v sense ol quiet happiness 

 incxpresscd. A da; 



n, saying he thought she 



shopping, and she, 



apparent surprise, but with heartfelt ph 

 acceded to the proposal. The following Sabbath 

 the village gossips bad ample food for tbeir hungry 

 eyes, (to bo digested at the next Sewing Society, | 

 in the appearance of Mrs. 

 Clad iu plum but rich costu 

 fit, whicb they could not deny " made her k 

 years younger." 



This was the beginuiugof the reform, and 

 Ibedawningofn brighter day for the husband and 

 wife of our story. True, habitsof such long stand- 

 ing ore not conquered in a week, or a month ; aud 

 very often was Mrs. Thorn-ton tempted to yield to 

 their long-tolerated sway, but she fought valiant! v 

 against tlieir influence, and in time sbe vanquished 

 them. Auairol tti-te.md el egnoee. before unknown, 



tho links of affection 

 ly grew brighter ni 

 holy light of n Chris 



„l. Ml, ,. 





away, and our 



household, and 



-IE, dow a lovely maiden, 



lace as pet in her father's 



new dignity in another's 



e, that her mother imparted to her the story ot 



two early errors* and earnestly warned her to 



ire of that insidious foe to domestic happi- 



, — diavyard of liUU things,— and kissing her 



daughter with maternal pride and fondness, she 



thanked her for those simple, child like words, 



which i banged the whole current of her destiny,— 



" hitn'l !\i /or,, loser, tjt>U U>ok prtity t" 



lUtt anb guvnor 



fresh verdure ol 

 ranges look blue 

 mot help wonder 



the hills and volleys clud 

 June, while the lofty mo 

 and dim io the distance, 

 mgif they will find bis wi 



in voluntarily shrinks from introducing so slattern- 

 ly a personage lo his refined and cultivated friend. 

 Hut it is dow too late lo retract his polite invita- 

 tion—they are nearing the old " homestead "—one 

 field more and his fertile farm, with its well-kepi 

 fences, appears in view. Yonder is his neat white 

 house, surrounded with elms and maples. They 

 drive through tho large gate-way, the man Jobs 

 comes from the barn to put out tbc horses, and Mr. 

 TBOjuerON burri - up the walk to the piano, leav- 

 ing hia friend to follow at his leisure— he mutt sec 

 and if possible hurry her out of sight 

 before their visitor enters He rushes into the 

 words cannot express his amase- 

 -ils the vary image of his lovely bride, 

 -'. mantles her cheek as he 

 stoops to kiss her with the words of joyful surprise, 

 — - IVay,' BlUWt" He has time for no more, 

 Geoac* Moavox has followed him, and be exclaims, 

 —'■11a' Cbubojot, as lover-like as ever— hasn't the 

 honeymoon set yel ? " and then he is duly present- 

 ed to Mra. Tuobxtox, who, under lb 



A TOUGH STORY CORRECTED, 



A coruespondent signing himself "A 

 bead, " writes to correct several 

 "Tough Story" of the farmer and the geese— i 

 catching a Qock ofwihj geese by freezing their feet 

 fast, Ac. He having been personally acquainted 

 with " Former H," and having beard the story from 

 his own lips, maybe relied upon as giving the cor- 



A pond existed 

 instead of a held. The weather being very cold] 

 the pond was, of course, frozen stiff and solid. 

 The geese came, and, as tbey always prefer to 

 bivouac on un exposed situation where no enemy 

 can approach unseen, thev settled on this pond.— 

 Parmer H. saw them "o doing of it." He there- 

 fore went to the llood-gete of the mUl-dam.whiol 

 emptied into the pond, and allowed about an 

 inch and three-quarters of water to run evenly ovct 

 the frozen surface. 



Fanner H was a practical n 

 In expectation of hia morninj 

 the night iii fixing up 



paring for practice and recreation on the ensuing 

 morn. Morning came, and Farmer U. began the 

 sport Judge of his surprise, when, after the first 



I JSWltng-p 



How Tnitr qot mro, TaouaLa.— An Eastern edi 



r says that a man in New York got himself fat 



trouble by marrying two wives A Western edit- 



a by assuring hia cotemporary that a goo. 



maoy men in lhat section have done the same thin, 



one \ Nnrtbern edi 

 quite a number of his acquaintances found trouble 

 by barely promising to marry, without goJBxg any 

 i A Southern editor says that he was 

 wd enough by simply being found in com- 





r 'ftfl TO go into a printing 

 rer a compositor's shoulder and read 



w *papers, and look over his shoulder 

 pt Height of Justice: — To 



