His One Dark Hour

It was a fair, starlit eveniiig in June, early evening, for tlie purple brooding twiliglit had not yot deepened into night. A few miles out froui tho busy city a train was stcaining along, Btoppiog so oftcn at littlc way stations to deposit rnnmiijron tliat it had no chance to get up inoro tlmn a modi - uni rnto of speed. One car contained now only thrcu occupants, two gentlemen who were conversing together in (paite loud tonos, and another, wlio .-Nat in a corner of the car, with his hat drawn over his forehead. His hair was iron gray, and there was something pecuüarly suggestive about him. Every now and then hc would start up and glance through the windows at the objects still disccrnable in the twiliglit. He did Dot ficcm to be paying much attentiop to the remarks of tbe othcr occupants, until tliis fragment etruck his ear : " Yes, she was married last week - njado a brilliant match thcy say." " How long haa she been a widow ? " "About tive years. Hor husband was ono of the passenger in the ill fatcd ' Surnia.' " " Sad affair, that, wasn't it ? " reniarked the other. " I had a nephew on it. His mother ncver got over the loss, died of a broken heart. " At the word " Sarnia," tlio man startod violently, and there w:i" a itronge, paiiied look upon his face. He was evidontly affected strangely, but his back was towards the otliers, and thuy took no notico of liim. The traiu halted Again, and the conductor called out " Mapleside." Then Uie gentloün arose, and grasping a small valise, walkeii out with unsteady steps, hall' leaning on the bwits for support as he paseed along. He liad & strougly made frame, which was, howevcr consiJprably stooped, and now that he had pushed up hio hat, oue could see that his face had a history written upon it, a painful ono evidently. The other two got off also, and the train puffed on ag;iin. The two in compnny moved off briskly in the direetion of the village, as though they expected a home welcome. The solitary one stood a few moments on the platform looking around, as if he were a stranger there, and then struck into. a quiet street that led over a hill. On one sidc was a grove of tall trees distilling their balsamic odors upon the night, on th other were several handsome suburbs anc residences at intervals, standing in the midat of well kept grounds, and suggestiiifi home comfort and happiness. The gentleman was Ryan Phelps, rcturning to hii home after having been mourned as deac for five years by his friends. Hc had beoi a passenger on board the " Sarnia," and on the terrible night when she went down ho had clung to a piece of the wreek with i wonderful power of' endurance, and hac been washed ashore upon an island. One only, the first mate, had been providentially picked up by a homeward bound hip, anc he had brought the intolligence that not one but himself had survived. But Ryan l'helps had lived on tho island for nearly üve years, keeping life within him by the substance it anorded, and watching day by day, Enoch Arden like, for a friendly sail But though he signalled many, none answer ed the lonely exile, until the sickness born of hope deferred, and loDeliness, and longing8 for the dear ones left at home, seemoc to be snrely sapping the vigorous life thai had buoyed him up when he had enibarkee on the voyage. But at last his waiting was rewarded ; his signal was answered í'rom a friendly homeward bound ship which took him on board, and in a few weeks he once more set hia foot upon his nativo shores He lost no time, but having made himself with the aid of barber and tailor, once more presentable in civilizcd life, hc sought hii home. He had left behind a young anc beautiful wife, the pride of one short happy year, hoping for a speedy roturn as soon as the businens that had called him to Europo was transacted. And now ho was returniug to her with a thousand fears, and dark fore bodings chasing each othcr through lii: mind. Had sbe believcd him dead, hac she formed new ties ? And the fears that liad haunted liim had been in a mearan confirmed by tho scrap of conver.sation he had heard in the car. It might not be her to vihom they refened. There had been more than a score of widows lelt by that dibUBtcr, but they had stoppcd at Maple sidc, and he did not know of any one but himself that had gono from there. Never thelcss he pushed his way onward with a dogged determinaron to know the worst He had not encountcred any one ho knew sinco his return, and had shrunk from mak ing himself known, or asking questions As he walked along, the familiar scènes began to grow upon him. There had been hult! change evidently sincc he bad loft Maplesidc had always been a sort o " Slccpy Hollow," and the onward maren of progress had seemed to uffect it little The principal iuhabitants were rather ex olusive and aristocratie, and liad no desire to have its sacred precincts invaded. I thoy wanted excitcment, they could stean into the city in twenty fivo minutes, ant miugle ia it. Hia cyes wandcred arounc hungrily resting upon cach familiar objee as seen in tho clear light of the star, thos ever constant silent sentinels which he ha watclied night after night, as they carne ou above his lonely island rominding him of tho dcar home which hc might nover see again which hc had littlc hope of soeing. Thcrc was the maplc grove on the hillside ; th( lake lying calm and placid it its setting o alders, rcflecting now the swoet saintly night ; the gcntly flowing river issuing fron it, and meandcring i)caccfully along tho base of the hill, with a lalling marmurinj sound. The uight air w:ih laden with frcnhlj tli.itilltd tidors, and tlio dieamy lium o (¦eketsand othcr insects sounded oh bis ;ar. Wbat a sweot homo coming it would ia he thought, if only he wassurc of meetng with a welcoine. Uut how could his itart Icap in joyf ul recognition of each dcar 'amiliar eccne, when the horrible fcar was íaunting him that perbaps ho would not ie wulcomc, that another wight be rcignng " lord of his rights," and that the wife who had loved him once, might now regard him as a bar to future happiness. With a strange shrinking of hcart, and wavering, uncortain footsteps, he pressed on, uucer;ain as to wliat course lie sbould pursue, jut with a liuncry longingto look upon her 'ace again. At lat he entered the precinets of his own domain - the home which had en bis father's, and whieh had been to iiiui the scène of one short happy year of weditcd lite, He walked up the dim avenuo of trees that led to the house, and soon bc saw it looming up fair and stately ugainst the dcep back-groundlof the sky. How bis heart leaped and throbbed with intense longing ! If he sbould find her there unchanged ! If she were f'ree to ronew the close union of hearts, ibr whioh hia waiting, starved soul yearaed, unutterably, whnt an ecstatte moyient this coming home might be ! The fountnina were playing with inu.¦-ical muraiurs as of old, and yondcr was the summer house where he had of'ten sat with Florine, and pietured tbc coming years. The nuarer he approacbed, tbo more nerv ous he became. He wished, yot dreaded to know the worst, whatcver it might be. " Can il be possible 'l " he thought, " that I, the ïuaster here, aru moving along stualthily as a tbief might who fears detection ? " The front piazza was embowered in sbrubbery, through which tbe white pillars showed hure aud there in the dim light. The scent of sweet briar miogled with the perfuma of innumerable roses, mado the dewy air heavy with fragrance. It was a moment of suoh supreme hopo and fear, that to the end of lif'e Ilyan could ncver inhalo tho odor of HUiumor's .wcetest flowors without a pang. There wore no lights in front below Btairs, but the windows wero open, and above, he could sec that the room that used to be their ehambor was brichtly lighted. He shunned the front entrance, he had not eouratre to onter boldly, and stole round to tbc back of tho house. He preferred the torture of suspense for a time, to the certainty that might bc a death blow to his bappiness. He heard the sound of voices somewhere above hira, andcrouehed low bebjnd a clump of bushes which wore a mass of bloom and fragrance. There was the rustle of woman's garments, andthen a couple atepped through ono of the low windows to the balcony which ran around the second story. It was a lady and gentleman, who commenced a slow promenade along tbe balcony. Froui bis hiding place he peered upward, his heart beating with great heavy throbs. He could make out the lady's tigure distinctly ; it was - yes, it was his wife. That was her ta.ll slender, grnceful figure dimly outlined in that semi-gloom. She was leaning on her companion's arm, and bis face was bent very ncar to her's. But if ho could be mistaken in tbc iorm he could not doubt that it was her voice whose olear cadenee feil upon his car as they eame toward him. The perspiration started to his forebead and stood there in great drops as he bcard tho words of tenderness betwecn theni. Anotber was reigniug in his place ; of that ho had no doubt. There could be no hearty welcome to him come back from the dead. They stopped just above him and leaned over the railing, and these words came floating down to his ears from her lipa ; " Dear Lawrence, I did not dream two years ago that any one could so utterly fill my heart as you do." lic aiiswpred her with low words of tcnderness and ktssed her lips, " I thought when I lost that dear one," she continued, "that I could ncvor again find peace, but God has been good to me in giving you. Tbe wound has been healed by your love, my husband ; 'tho doad past has buried its dead,' and I am at rest." ' He adj usted her shawl carefully around her. "I must not let my wife get cold," he said ; "she might take wings and flv away. 1 almost think now she has a pafr of wings folded away eomewhere." She laughcd tho sweet musical laugh ne remembered. They were evidently in the fullncss of the honeymoon, and it was as sweet to her as that other had been to him, the lonely man thought with an infinite grief too deep for bitterness. She had lived down her love for him ; to make himself known now would shatter u'er happiness and fail to seoure his own. He must get away au quietly as he had corue. He might claim bis fair ancestral home, but what did that matter to him without her love ? " l'erhaps she would prefer me yet, her early love," he thought, with a dawninjj of hope. But he was one of your fine-grained, sensitivo natures, and he roflected he was not the man who had left her, youthful, buoyant with vitality, but a man grown old before his time. The five lonely years had done the work of fifteen. He was prematurely gray with grief. The man bcside her was tall, crect and vigorous- a fitting mate for her, still in the freshne8s of ber womanhood. No, he would not break in upon her happiness now, although he could claim her and the 1aw would bear him out iu it ; he would cali up to his aid tho self-repression which had been tbc habit of his life so long, and live alone to the end: " If she know who is crouohiog so near her with an aching heart she would pity," he tbought, "for she had a tender beart ; but I do not want pity- I want a love as full and strong as my own." His paiuful reflections were broken upon suddenly by a short, quick bark, and a great dog came bounding over the lawn. " Coby I What ia tbe matter, Coby ?" came from the lips of the lady. " lie has got scent of some one or sometbing," said the gentleman; perhaps there is a tramp in tho grounds." The dog went along with his nose to tbc ground, and in a moment more bad found the place where Ilyan was concealed. The conjectures of the two above wero interruptcd by glad yelps and strango, quick barks of deligbt from the dog, who had found his old and mucb-lovcd master, and now leaped upon him and licked bis face in an ecstacy of delight. It must all come out now, he realized. He threw his arms around the faithful creature aud great sobs sbook his frame. If she was only as free to welcome him as that dumb animal I The company on the balcony were puzzlod when they found that tho dog was making strong expressions of approval over wbatever ho had found. The next moment another lady stepped through ono of tbc windows upon the balcony. " What is the matter with Coby ?" she asked, in a voicc addened, soft and sweot, wbieh, as it feil upon tbc eara of Ityan, made bis pulse bound with a strange, now, tlirilling hope. . "Wby, Florine, I thought you rclire.l somo time ago," said the otber, " Coby bas found somebody or something that seems to picase him, and Lawrcnoe baa gono for a light to see what it is." " I feol strange to-night," said tho other. " I cannot keep my thoughta oif of Ilyan. You know I can nevcr make myself beheve ho is dead ; but if he is, I think be hovei s ncar me in spirit to-night." Hyan board tho words witb batodbrnath. lic had in:il' agriovous mistere. Ho lelt a suddon joyoun roaction from tbc misery whicb had been bowing him to the earth. He did not wait a moment longcr, but atood forth from his coDccalraent, the dog 8till fawning upon bim. "lam here," he said, "not in spirit only, but in body shape. I have come back to you, niy wifu." For one moment her heart stood still, but she lid not .shriek nor f'aint at the sound ot' the dear, well-retneinbored voiee. He had lived so continually in hor thoughts thnt shc had not seemed to be soparated trom him. "Kyan!" was her single exclamation, iu a tone of raptuous delight, aud stopping through the window sho flew down stairs, through the front door, and along tbc dewy dawn to meet him. With outstretched arme he elasped her to his heart. " You were never dead to me. I always thought you would come back," she said, in a voice trembling with joy. " But why did yon not como to me atonee? Why did you wait for Coby to n'nd you ?" Bor'ore he could unswor Jjawrenco camo aloug, followed by Joba with a bntern ; aUo Florine's sister, whom he had mistaken for her. And there were eager, confused exelamations, and John, a faithful old servant, shod toara of joy, while Coby .seemed in danger of dislocating his limbü in hia mad effurts to expresa his pleasure. Then all went inside, and while the house was being üluminated from basement to attic, and the other inniates were beinc apprifod of the joyful event, Florine led her husband up stairs to her ehsmber. Thore, in one corner, with one hand thrown out over the white coverlot, lay a bcautiful boy in that dcep sleep of health and innocodoo. " Our child, dear husband," she wbispered, and the stroug man knolt by the bed, and sent up to heaven a neartfelt thanksgiving for the cup of happiness which was now full to overflowing. " Wake up, dear, papa's come homo. You know 1 told you no would come soiim day," tlie mother said. The child oponed his eyes slowly, and fixed thom upon the face bent over him. "Are you my papa ?" he asked; and for an answer the fathcr caught his child olosc to his heart and kissed him hungrily. Down stair.-i hupper was Ixing preparcd, and Mary, the cook, another old servant, went round with a light step and lighter heart, wipiug away the tears of joy on her apron from time to time. And bye and bye they all gathered together in the parlor, aud Ryan told his story of the past years, and alao the misery he had suffered that oight in thinking that another had taken his place. " It was nq wonder you mistook Josophine for me in the darkness," said Florine, as sho sat with hor hands clasped in those of her husband. " Our voices and figuros are exactly alike. No ono pretenda to know us apart until they look into our faces, which you see are quite unlike. She bas been a widow in reality, while I never oonsidered niyself as such. I used to dream of seeing you ncarly every night, I could not think you dead." " It never occurred to me that you had a sister. 1 was not in a state of mind to rcason. What a terrible step I was on the border of taking !" he said with ashudder. " I was going to steal away again and leavc you, as I supposed, with your ncw found happiness. You are the one, dear old Codj-i" patting the cold nosc of the dog as he lay on his knee, " that deservcs all tho credit of righting the matter. Josephinc aud hor husband, neithor of of whom Ryan had ever seen, were on a visit to Florine. Henee the mistake tbat might have ended so sadly. Afterward llyan liappencd to find out who the lady was he had heard of in the car. "I was so full of gloomy forbodings," he said, in speaking of it, " that every trifle was a confirmation of my fears. And in the sunny atniospherc of Florine's love, and that of his boy, llyan is growing young again. The past is fading gradually, so that it seems now like some ahadowy dream. " Sorrow may endure for a night, but joy oomes in the uiorning. "