Argosy, Vol. 1 (1882) — page 275: what you’re looking at

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

266 anew whenever I look at her. It 1s al- ways as if I saw her for the first time. She was made for love. She cannot be happy without love. It seems hard that she should have ta I1ve this poor make believe sort of a life until the end of her days. And she 1s lonely, moth- er, lonely even with you and Polly and me.” I knew what was in her thought, but I also knew that she would never al- low herself to give more definite ex- pression to her dream of a second marriage for Elsa, conflicting as it did with ideas which we both held as sa- cred. Amy was different from Elsa. Ofa less striking, less spirited type, she naturally sought the shadow into which the charms of her more brilliant sister cast ,her, developing, among her books and music and flowers, a character strong and sweet—a nature so full of repose that she was to me as ‘a pleasant coolness in the heat.” They were equally dear to me, my daughters—all that 1 possessed was Amy’s; but the fatted calf, the gold chain, the heart broken embraces were for Elsa. Amy came in one day from the beach with a man at her side, one whose form seemed familiar to me. She brought him to me and said, with a placid ring in her voice, ** Mother, you remember Mr. Armuth—Philip? I found him on the beach. He must have been cast up by the sea.” Philip Armuth! Yes, I remembered him well, but it was some vears since I had last seen him. Percy Armitage and he had been close friends since their college days, and he, like Percy, had been a frequent caller at the house. After Percy and Elsa had married, I think we rather expected the same thing of Philip and Amy, but he went abroad shortly after, and we lost sight of him and a possible love affair at the same time. I was glad to see him again. My mind turned immediately to Elsa. She THE ARGOSY. had always liked him in the past— perhaps she would allow him to amuse and interest her again—and I wel- comed him as a possible diversion to my heart sick child. Elsa seemed pleased when she heard that Philip Armuth was at home again, and put on her prettiest gown to meet him that evening. She was laughing when she came into the room and had Polly by the hand. “ Philip, do you remember my baby?” she said, lightly, after greet- ing him cordially. ‘ She is a big girl now. Go tell Mr. Armuth how old you are.” The little damsel went willingly enough and told him gravely that she was four years old. “And what is your name?” he asked. “ Polly Armitage,” she said, and ran back to her nurse, who had followed her into the room. “ No, baby, your name is Polly Sar- gent. Katrina,” turning to the nurse, ‘“T want you to teach this child that her name is Polly Sargent, every day, over and over, until she knows it,” Elsa said, with cold precision. ‘“ Elsa seems to like Philip,” Amy said after we had gone to our room at the end of that first pleasant evening. I agreed with her, and said that it was a burden off my mind to see Elsa really’ interested in a human being again. “Philip is a man of wide experi- ence,’ I wenton. “ He has seen much and thought much, and I think he will help us with Elsa. He continually re- minds me of Percy. But he is Percy with the charm of Philip added, for Philip is of a deeper nature, a more cultured mind.” Amy said, a little wearily, “I am ashamed to say it, but sometimes late- ly I feel a little tired of amusing Elsa. I am afraid it is getting on my nerves,” and putting her head down on her arms she surprised me by bursting into tears. ECOMRRIC Oe CO