"I haven"t said no, Eli," replied May, as she attempted to put up her hair, and blushing from ear to ear.
"Is it yes, May?" said Eli, with eyes brightening. "I want to know."
May glanced up pensively, with a hairpin between her lips cutting a smile in two.
"Yes," she answered, as the pin fell to the floor, and her hair straggled down again.
"I am happy, May," he replied; "now will you excuse me for my impetuosity?"
May was gathering up her hair again when Eli said this. She turned to him with a smothered laugh, and remarked: "You are all right, Eli; I am happy."
Whereat, both being perfectly agreed as to their feelings and opinions, Eli looked about for his hat, preparatory to taking his departure.
"Well, Lord bless us! Look here, May!" he exclaimed, standing over the youngster, sitting in his hat.
Then, bursting into a loud guffaw, he stooped down, grasped the hat by the side rims, and lifted it up, baby and all, and ventured forth to the throne room. As he lifted the burden up before him, the baby laid hold of his string necktie with one hand and his collar with the other, as a support to his precarious position. In which position Eli, hat, and baby proceeded, Eli singing a foolish ditty, till they arrived at Peter"s seat, by the side of whom sat Mrs. Dieman.
Eli stood before them a moment that they might see the load and the oddity of the situation of baby. They laughed; Eli laughed; baby laughed. He swung the hat this way and that, up and down, and bounced him a little. Eli blowed a tune of coo-coo at him, then whistled, and sang s.n.a.t.c.hes of songs, of all of which baby seemed highly appreciative, judging from his looks. Then--the bottom fell out of the hat, and through it, feet foremost, shot the baby like a stone, and fell in a squalling bundle on the floor at Eli"s feet.
At the outcry that followed, all the other children came rushing in and circled around the party; and laughed and clapped their hands in great glee at the mishap to the baby and the hat. Eli picked up the crying child, and stroked his hair, and cooed to him. The child placed his little arms around Eli"s neck, and sobbed till his grief was gone. And this was the little child that touched his father"s hard face with his little hands, saying da-da; but perhaps he will never remember that day.
Procuring a new hat from Peter, one that fit him illy, Eli tore himself away from this man"s dominions, encircled by Billy Barton"s family, to return some other day for a beautifully appointed wedding with his beautiful May.
The world may laugh and sneer at such as Eli Jerey; but, after all, in such as he may be found the man who will make marriage a heaven to a poor man"s daughter, raised as she was in poverty, and lifted by chance to a higher plane of living.
CHAPTER XXVIII.
IT IS DECIDED TO SEND EDITH TO THE MOUNTAINS.
It was a morning in May. Happy birds sang in the tree tops, and flowers speckled the green gra.s.s of the park with their variegated bloom. The sun, the first for days, threw his l.u.s.trous light over the smoke begrimed hills; the air, which a brisk wind from the north cleared, was bracing in its freshness, and all creation was breaking into renewed vitality at the touch of advancing spring.
Edith, on the arm of Star, walked down a bypath bordered by nodding Easter lilies, late in blooming, and watched the bounding b.u.t.terflies and plunging bees and hopping birds, and heard the call of nature in all its thrilling voices.
Life is beautiful and life is sweet, but what is life when the soul is craving for that which cannot be had? The wind may sing to you in its softest notes, the birds may send forth their enchanting rhapsodies, the flowers may emit their most becalming fragrance, but what are they to a spirit unanswered in its callings? The sun may shine ever so brilliantly, the moon may beam in mellowing brightness, the stars may twinkle in their deepest mysteries, but what are they when love is crying out, with no responsive cry? Deep, deep, unanswerable is the mystery. Edith asked the flowers, the birds, the bees; she felt the soothing wind, heard the sweetening notes, and caught the lulling scents, but they all gave back the answer--mystery! mystery!
They walked the paths together, Edith and Star, arm in arm; they sat in the cooling nooks, and whisperingly conversed; they let the wind play with their locks, like playful fairies; they saw, they heard, they sang, they laughed. But still, to Edith, there was that mystery ever hanging over her--a blot to everything that should entrance her--a dim, dark, cold, benumbing longing that paints frightful pictures from a palpitating heart that gets no response to its secret throbs. Weary, worn out, lagging, spiritless, because of her long illness and worry over late happenings among her father"s unfaithful employes, Edith got no comfort now out of her home, or its surroundings. Pale still, and nervous, her spirits ever flagged, even under the promptings of her dear friend Star, who had been resorting to all her charms and graces to give pleasure to the sick young lady that she might be diverted from her moody spells. Edith was bright at times, and laughed and chatted like a child under Star"s cheerful influence; but more often she was melancholy, and seemed never to be reaching that time when the shadow of her malady would fall off. Music had no charms for her, nor books, nor young company. Life was lifeless to her. The mansion was a dreary castle. Her days were spent in wishing for night, and nights in wishing for morning. All her mother"s endearments, all her father"s love, all of Star"s sweet companionship, were alike to her--unconsoling. The mother was in despair, the father grief stricken, but Star, of all of them, had hope.
"Edith," said Star, this day, while standing by the pond watching the leaping fountain and playful golden fish, and noting how quiet Edith was. "I wrote to Mr. Winthrope yesterday."
"Oh, Star," said Edith, with a deprecating frown, "I hope you have not gone and forgotten yourself to such an extent that you have written first?"
"Forgot myself, Edith? Why, bless your heart, no; he wrote me first,"
replied Star, with a merry laugh.
"Wrote first?" asked Edith, in surprise.
"Yes; he just did write first; and I told him that he was real mean in not writing sooner," said Star.
"What did he say?" asked Edith, gazing vacantly into the water.
"About all he said was asking about your health. It is mean in him, I repeat, that he said no more. He said, though, that when your father was in New York, he told him you were fast improving."
"What was your answer, Star?"
"Oh, goodness! I wrote six pages, about everything, almost, and informed him that--"
"Now, Star; you didn"t write anything that would be indiscreet, did you?"
"Why, deary, no, of course not; I only told him that you--"
"Star, don"t tell me that you have violated my confidence?"
"I will not say what I wrote, Edith, if your are not more attentive. I said that--"
"Star! Star!" said Edith, with tears glistening in her eyes; "do not tell me that you have broken your pledge; if you do, I shall never--no--go on; what did you tell him?"
"That you--that you are getting better very slowly, and that your father will take you to the mountains for the summer. I told him everything else, Edith, but that which you forbade me telling."
"You are very prudent, Star. Will he write again, do you suppose?"
"I wound up my letter with a P. S.: "Don"t forget to write!""
"You bad girl! I suppose he will be coming to see you sometime?"
"Wish he would," said Star, hopefully, with a teasing expression in her face.
"Really, Star?"
"Yes; I do--I"d turn him over to you," she responded, with a laugh.
"You are a tease, now! If he comes, it must be of his own free will."
"You are not looking well, Edith; we had better go in the house," said Star, seeing the pallor of weakness coming over her face.
"a.s.sist me in," responded Edith, willingly submitting to Star"s admonition. As they were nearing the steps leading up to the great piazza, Edith remarked that she would go to the mountains next day, if able, with her father, and, of course, Star was to be her companion.
"I was never out of the city," replied Star, "and I am wondering what mountains look like. Can you tell me?"
"Oh, they are only big hills."
"Do people live there?"
"Yes. Many people live in them. He came from up there somewhere."
"From the mountains?"