Gratia's Trials — page 13: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

but she wore a late autumn rose at her throat, and a bow of -~bright ribbon was tied at the left side of her head. She was not pretty, any more than the half-opened bud is pretty, but there was that in her face and figure which gave promise of extraor- dinary beauty in the future. This was Gratia Kempfield. As she stood there, looking dreamily out, where the orange sky was slowly deepening into into wine-red, a little hand pulled gently at her skirt, and a tiny voice piped out ; ‘‘Gratia! Sister!” ‘‘Ts it you, Raymond?” and the elder sister put her arm caressingly round the five-year-old boy, who had crept out into the twilight as noiselessly as the kitten that frisked by his side. ‘‘T thought you were by the kitchen fire.” ‘‘So I was, but sse came out, with a basin, to make some gruel, and she kissed meand patted my head. I don’t like her, Gratia! When is she going away ?” ‘‘IT don't know,” said Gratia, speaking with something of an effort. ) ‘‘T want my mamma again !” pleaded little Raymond, witha sob in his throat’. ‘‘I don’t like Cousin Almira. When will mamma be well again, Gratia?” | The young girl stooped and lifted the child in her arms, while she imprinted a kiss on his sunburnt forehead. ‘*Dear Raymond, when God pleases. Be a good boy, and don't tease.” Gratia put her little brother down on the short, crisp grass once more, and, turning silently, went into the house. ‘The wide kitchen was all still, save for the noisy chirping of crickets under the hearth-stones ; the fire, of great moss-fringed logs, blazed drowsily on the iron fire-dogs, and the bed of live coals below glowed and deepened like a mass of melted topaz and rubies ; but Gratia saw a man’s figure sitting by the table, in a chair tipped back against the wall—a man whose face would have been pleasant enough, save for a certain weakness GRATIA’'S TRIALS. comicbooks.co >