The Argosy — page 170: what you’re looking at

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

158 Our Miday. mother turned, half shocked, half amused, and entering by the open window, she said in a reproachful tone, “ My dear Harry, I cannot have such tunes on Sunday.” “‘ That is hard lines,” said Harry, turning round on the music stool, ‘‘ when I’ve had the trouble of finding out the chords, and put Amen to it, like they do to the hymns in church !” _ From a child he always said he would be a sailor, and nothing else would satisfy him. He passed the examination, and returned home in triumph and in uniform; two years in the training-ship and a year at sea. He was sixteen now, grown and sunburnt, improved in every way. The first Sunday when he joined our choir, absorbed in the music, and singing like a bird, I thought I never had seen a more beautiful young face: and his high, clear voice was glorious in the dear old hymn, -“ Crown Him Lord of all.” How happy mother and son were for those few weeks! Harry was devoted to her ; all his life she had been his friend and companion, and shared every thought. “T hope to get the Humane Society’s medal, mother, some day.” “Yes, my boy, I hope you may,” said Mrs. Grenville. “ And the Victoria Cross, mother ! Oh, I must get that; you would like me to get that?” “Yes, my boy,” she answered, but there was a far-away look in her eyes, as if petitioning the Great Captain to cover his curly head in the day of battle. And he visited all the cottages and told them all he had seen, and everyone admired him, and half the lads wished to go with him w hen he went to sea again in October, 1869. He only returned last summer as a sub-lieutenant. Such a happy meeting! Dear Mrs. Grenville said it almost made amends for his long absence. And then he fell in love with my young cousin, Helen Wood, who was staying with us. There is something so taking in the earnest simplicity of a boy’s love, so different from anything else ; and I never treated it as a serious thing, for I knew Helen, besides being several years older than he was, had been engaged some time, and I knew also her intended was in the navy, which quite accounted for her being always ready to listen to Harry’s yarns. I did not know, however, until Captain Lee arrived, that he had been the commander of Harry’s ship ; and Harry’s amaze- ment that she should be engaged to such an old man (Captain Lee was five-and-thirty) amused us much at the time. Perhaps these little details are too trivial to mention now, when the end has come; and yet why should his merry, loving life be hidden away and forgotten ? I suppose no boy ever passed through “ the waves of this troublesome world,” as his mother used to say, gee a’ purer heart, or a brighter, happier spirit. That line of our grea’ at poe “ God make thee good as thou art beautiful,” was realised(in him. comicbooks.com