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��MY FRIENDS AND I : MEMORIES.
��MY FBIENDS AND I: MEMORIES.
��BY L. W. DODGE.
��Like warp and woof our destinies
Are woven fast, Linked in sympathy like the keys
Of an organ vast.
— Whittier.
A June morning unfolded its glories to the susceptible nature of Will Austin at a bright New England village on the banks of the lordly Connecticut. The lonely beauty and the wild, romantic surround- ings of the locality at once won his po- etic heart; and having no spot particu- larly endeared to him by the fond ties which cluster around tbe place we call home, he resolved to tarry here until ful- ly persuaded in mind what course in life to pursue ; or where, and in what man- ner, to begin his life work.
Being of a joyous disposition, and so- cial withal, ray friend had soon made many acquaintances among the first fam- ilies of the village, and found himself a welcome guest^wherever chance or fancy found him, at the homes of the villagers.
Among his new-found friends, one of the first was the merchant of the place, a jovial, whole-souled sort of a man generally, and who prided himself mostly upon being the wealthy man of the town ;. and in fact it was so ; which fact, too, he seemed not too modest to magnify. His home was a picture enjoyment ; beauti- ful in its choice surroundings, showing no lack of taste and j udgment in its ar- rangements, being really what it was often termed, a " paradise of beauty and comfort."
Within the well-ordered store of the merchant Will often found himself in pleasant chat with the good-natured pro- prietor, upon subjects of mutual interest; and as the days passed away and the busy season of trade was ushered in, his aid was invoked, sometimes at the desk, at others behind the counter at the Bervice of customers, and ere long his
��services became apparently indispen- sible; accordingly he was duly installed merchant's assistant, and became, like- wise, a member of the merchant's fam- ily, consisting heretofore of the store- keeper, his amiable wife and lovely daughter Ellen, an only child, just step- ping beyond eighteen, and rich in all the charms of young and innocent woman- hood. Shall I tell you of her as I after- wards knew her?
She was indeed a winsome girl, the im- personation of loveliness, and with a heart as light as her footstep. Her life had never known a cloud, and her dark and radiant eyes shone with the light of pure and hopeful girlhood. Her soul, which gleamed from out those blue depths, was an ocean of purity and love. She had grown to these years with all the beautiful and attractive adornments of a good, true woman's heart ; not frozen to ice by worldliness, or by con- trast with the coldness of so-called fash- ionable society and its false motives. Her personal charms I cannot well de- scribe, but her [face was an attraction, fair and fresh, and joyous as a June morn- ing; her voice was a musical echo; she loved the bright flowers, those wild chil- dren of Eden, growing in sunny nooks ; she loved the mountains and the forest, and the wind among the trees ; the bab- bling of the brooks and wild dashings of the river; she loved the silent stars and the golden glow of sunset; and she adored Will Austin, too, with all the fer- vor of a true woman's love. And do you wonder that he worshipped
her in return? You might search the country through and you would never find one so universally beloved. She was the village pet, and we all know what that means. Gray hairs and children, middle age and youth, all were happy
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