DON’T TELL IT 
a little, I saw that It was empty ! Then suffo¬ 
cated by the smoke and overpowered by excite¬ 
ment, I fell fainting to the floor. 
When consciousness returned, I found myself 
in the house of a neighbor with the children 
all about me, pretty well frightened of course, 
but entirely unhurt. 
How the Are originated was a mystery which 
we could never unravel. Grace sitting with her 
back to the stove and with her attention en¬ 
tirely absorbed by the pictures In the family 
Bible, did riot see it until Rover, the Newfound¬ 
land dog, who had been quietly dozing by her 
side, attracted her notice by his evident uneasi¬ 
ness; after which he snrarnr through u, it ttr(n 
WHAT IS IN A NAME ? 
Yottr neighbor's name. 
Or your friend’s fair fame, 
And what befell it. 
In deed or word. 
You may have heard. 
Yet pray don’t tell it! 
If kept wtthln. 
This rumored sin 
May prove a bubble ; 
It told agnin. 
Like the thriving grain, 
'Twill soon grow double! 
Instead of peace. 
If strife increase. 
Then try and quell it! 
Think what you will. 
Of good or ill, 
But pray don't tell it. 
„ rr ou oarmot forgive him, Lottlce ?" 
i L , A flush of “"KT co,or came into the 
girl s cheek, and a flash of proud light into hi r 
dark eyes. “Forgive him? Why should I? 
when be came and turned my father out of 
doors In his old age, and me out of the homo I 
ovod I Look at. it yonder, and then turn and 
look at this wretched cottage, our home now, 
and then ask me if I can—if f can forgive I" 
They wore standing—the girl and the man— 
upon the mossy bunk of a stream, on the other 
side of which rose up the terraced grounds, and 
crowning them, the noble walls and towers of 
Lyndehurst Park. Behind the two, through 
ho tangle of wood that fringed this bank of 
the stream, was a little, low 
cottage, the girl's home 
had directed her c 
scornful gesture of her p_ t 
The man knew the cottage right well 
weeks ago, now, since he had 
seek lodgings during the 
time; and the old r:.... 
taken him into help fill 
straw-thatched 
now, toward which she 
companion's glance by that 
- pretty head. 
It was 
Come there to 
pleasant summer 
man, Lettlce's father, had 
I „ r . „ . - -'1 a rather empty purse. 
ir you can be content with our humble fare " 
the old man said : and Paul Hurst, had seemed 
more than content. 
To-day, pretty Lattice Lyndo had brought his 
uncheon:out of doors to him, in her little, vine- 
leaf covered basket; and he had made her sit 
and share It with him, as he lounged on the 
mossy bank beside her, letting his flshing-rod 
play idly in the stream. 
With his Tree hand he lifted up the vine- 
loaves, and held to her red lips the reddest of 
rod cherries, before he answered her again. 
I lien, as her flush of anger vani.shcd In a dim¬ 
pled siuilo, he spoke slowly and gravely : 
But this far-away cousin of yours-this Phil¬ 
lip Lynde-frorn all that I can hear, ho has not 
done you any wrong. It was hardly his fault 
i.i, your father's title to Lyndchurst Hall had 
a flaw In It, and that this fellow—Phillip, hlm- 
self-was sprung from the elder branch of the 
family. And when an accident discovered this 
it was not even the young fellow himself who 
ousted you from your old home, but his guar¬ 
dians for him, he being a minor at the time. 
I do not sco what reason you have for hating 
him so,especially as he has hem. abroad all this 
while, and you never met him in your life 
W hat reason can you have for hating him ?’’ 
** A woman's reason, I suppose,” sbo answer¬ 
ed, with a little defiant toss of hor head “I 
hate him because I hate hlrn ! There may be a 
more logical reason than that, I dare say, but 
none more urgent.” 
” But, Miss Lottlce 
She playfully put up both little dimpled hands 
to her ears. 
“Now. now, Mr. Hurst, I will not listen to 
another word, if you mean to Dlead fm- 
COME TO US, SPRING! 
Come to us Spring, beautiful Spring; 
We are weary of ice and snow; 
Fold ns within thy odorous wing; 
Over us perfume of May flowers blow. 
Buthed In the dew drops. 
Bring us their Iragrnnce, 
The rohe of the woodlands. 
The lingering sunlight. 
Bring us the rivulet's musical flow. 
[George Ha wthornt. 
A MEMORABLE RIDE 
BY A FARMER’S WIFE 
“ Hadn’t you better leave the door unfasten¬ 
ed, Eliza?” said my husband, as I turned the 
key in the door and dropped it in my pocket. 
“ f don’t know,” I said doubtfully ; then, after 
a moment’s hesitation, “ uo, I think it had bet¬ 
ter be fastenod. The children might get out 
and run down to the gate at the foot of the 
meadow, and it is but a step from there to the 
creek, you know." 
He made no reply, but stooped down and 
looked at some part of the harness with a 
slightly perplexed air. 
“ What la the matter now ?** I said, with some 
asperity. 
The truth is, my husband belonged to that 
numerous class of individuals whose motto is, 
“ Never do to-day what they can put off till to¬ 
morrow while I, on the contrary, was prompt 
and decided. With me, to will and to do were 
synonymous, and I had little mercy for such a 
LITTLE 
clear sky beyond, rose above the tree tops. I 
tried to speak, but could not utter a word. 
At last I said, steadying my voice, “ I think it 
must be the Morrison’s, Isn’t it to the left of 
our house?” 
“ No! ” ho quickly, as he seized the whip 
and urged old Wliitey to his utmost speed. 
"Don't j’ou remember that when we are at the 
top of the hill the smoke from our chimney 
rises just over the center of that little group or 
cedars ?” 
Alas! I did remember; and as he spoke we 
reached the summit aud saw enough to change 
our fears to certainty. Neither spoke, but each 
turned and looked at the other with Quivering 
lips and dilating eyes. 
“ My heavens 1 and I have locked them in 
I was fairly beside myself with terror. I felt 
as if I must leap from the vehiole and fly to 
their rescue. Old Whltey seemed to understand 
that life or death depended on hia efforts, and 
he exerted himself nobly. 
On we flew down the hill, dashing through 
the little stony brook that crossed the road, 
over the tumbled-down bridge, whose rotten 
boards rattled and started up from their places, 
past the bodgerows, that looked like one con¬ 
tinuous mass of flying green 
LOO. 
dow, fortunately taking the whole sash bodily 
with him and running full speed to the nearest 
house, soon returned with some of its inmates. 
Grace, in the meantime, bravely letting down 
the two older children through the window, 
which was only about four feet from the ground,’ 
took the baby from the cradle and was about 
to follow, when the neighbor arrived. The 
house being old,aud built us such bouses usual¬ 
ly are, of the most combustible materials, not¬ 
withstanding all efforts, soou became a black¬ 
ened, smoking ruin. 
Rover and old Whltey lived to a good old age, 
mid were ever afterward held in affectionate 
remembrance for their services on that ooca- 
sion. 
One evening about a year afterward, as we sat 
m our new house built on the site of the old 
one, but more commodious and comfortable in 
every respect, I remarked, “ That the Are had 
benefited u« in at least one way, for unless the 
old house had been actually consumed, we 
should never have had the new one." 
“ I have foit the benefit of it in another way,” 
said my husband; gravely; "it has taught me 
never to put off doing anything which should 
be done at once until a more convenient season. 
If the harness had given away on that day, 
where I mended it so slightly beforo we started, 
although it would not have interfered with the 
safety of the children, it would have added ten¬ 
fold to our anxiety, because It would have de¬ 
layed our reaching them 
. past little cot¬ 
tages with the children staring from the doors- 
thinking of nothing, caring for nothing but to 
rescue our darlings. I buried my face In my 
hands and rooked to and fro In my seat, almost 
bereft of reason, as I thought of the scene that 
might be awaiting us. Imagination conjured 
up ali the dreadful tales I had heard or read to 
add to my horror. Once only I raised my head 
and saw, or fancied I saw, slender tongues of 
flame cleaving the mass of smoke, which had, 
by this time, increased fearfully in volume and 
_ B I made a vow then 
that if we were permitted to reach home with¬ 
out accident, I would use my utmost endeavors 
to overcome the habit of procrastination ; and 
I think you will allow that I have been pretty 
successful so that, iu more than one respect, 
we have reason to regard that as a * Memorable 
Ride.’ ” 
-anu 
density. 
At last, after what seemed an age, but was in 
reality only a few minutes, we reached the bot¬ 
tom of the lane which led to our cottage. The 
angle was a sharp one, and we turned with such 
speed as to send the hind wheel of the old phaj- 
ton high la the air. 
How 1 got out I never knew. I am sure I did 
did not wait for the horse to be stopped. Rush¬ 
ing tu the door, 1 threw myself against it with 
such force as to break it iu. The room >vus full 
of smoke, but rs the opened door dissipated It 
LOVE. 
’Tia never winter in the heart 
So long as love remains; 
Let snow and sleet around us dart, 
A radiant sammut reigns. 
We brave the cold and have no fear, 
We face the storm with glee. 
For love is life and summer-cheer, 
A Paredlee to me. 
