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    830 A STUANGE CHANCE.

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    V _ Chapter I. On A Cloudless Morning 1 ...

    ance was rudely broken into by a thousand restless and tumultuous waves , and the reflections _caug'ht by these were fitful and disturbed

    in the extreme . She did not attempt to undress , she sat down look upon upon the herself bed , and with nervousl a hopeless y pressing and overwhelming " her hands together 1 pity . She , felt was to

    so helpless in this ; it was so wholly her fate ! Her love for George Gilbert had commenced with the first dim recollection of childhood .

    Upon this first strata of childish affection came the playful intercourse of youthfollowed by the esteem and appreciation of her

    , maturer years . She had known , too , much tender care for him ; at different periods the fatal disease which lingered in him had

    threatened speedily to consummate its work , and the latent maternity in a woman ' s nature makes all such care a very strong and subtle

    claim upon h . _er sympathy . Her reason and observation had also come in to the verdict of her affections ; she had compared him

    with many others , and always found him their superior . The kind and truthful actions of his life served alsoday by day , to strengthen

    , what was already strong enough to endure for ever . So that it seemed the ultimate aim of everything in her life was to create within her

    " a whole and perfect chrysolite " of love . She had suffered most bitterly through himas she saw him struggling "with a passion as

    , hopeless and steadfast as her own , and this suffering seemed like a last purification of fire which refined her love into something

    sublime . There were , besides , a thousand dear though almost imperceptible ties , spun out of the familiar knowledge of his individuality

    of manner , mode of thought and daily life , uniting her to him , so there was no help for it ; to exist was to love him . She sprang

    from the bed , and paced rapidly to and fro , the fever and anguish of her heart at last finding relief in a burst of violent

    weeping-And during this wild turmoil of passion it seemed as if some secret prison-house of evil spirits had been thrown open within her , for

    in her imagined efforts to escape the hopeless thraldom of her life , her _thoug-hts violated and sinned against its dearest sanctities . To

    these dark moments in which we seem given over to the Evil One , our better moments follow like retributory angels to overwhelm us

    with tenderness and regret ; and we find we have gained nothing save an augmented and deeper tenderness for those whose sacred

    ideals have been outraged . During all Elizabeth ' s excitement the little child remained

    tranquilly sleeping , with his hand grasping the box upon his pillow ; and next morning no outward trace remained of the tempest of the

    night save in Elizabeth ' s pale cheek and heavy eyes . The pleasant sunshine which greeted her as she stepped into the parlor seemed to

    deny its having existed even to herself j but the blank exhaustion which succeeds all such emotion was internally too strong a

    testimony "; and weary and helpless she was thankful to cast herself down for rest upon the routine of the day , and the most

    commonplace necessary employments . Two weeks after this , George and

    830 A Stuange Chance.

    830 A _STUANGE CHANCE .

• Citation
  • English Woman’s Journal (1858-1864), Jan. 1, 1861, page 330, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ewj/issues/ewj_01011861/page/42/