ed casement, and surrounded as
with a halo the sweet, serious face that looked out upon the night;
and far around, even to the rugged mountains that rose as sentinels
over the green valley, earth and air were bathed in that pure and
tender radiance. The flowering shrubs that twined about the little
porch seemed to give forth a more delicious perfume than when scorched
by the sun's warm kiss. The neighboring orchards almost bending
beneath the clusters of buds and blossoms that covered the green
boughs, waved gently in the light breeze that showered the sunny
petals as it passed upon the freshly springing grass beneath. The low
cry of the whippo-wil came now and then from a far-off wood; save
that, and the rustle of the vines clinging about the casement, no
sound broke the sabbath-like repose. The church--scarce a stone's
throw from the little parsonage--stood boldly relieved by the dark
trees which rose beside it; and not far away--not too far for them to
see by day the loved forms of its inmates--they could distinguish the
sloping roofs and brown walls of Mary's early home.

The young bride turned from the scene without, and when she looked up
into her husband's face he saw that her eyes were filled with tears.

"Are you not happy, my Mary?" said he, as he drew her more closely to
his bosom.

"Happy! oh, only too happy!" was the murmured response, as he kissed
the tears away. "I was but thinking of my past life; how strange it
seems that I should have been so prompted, so guided through all.
Then, stranger than the rest that you should love one so humble, so
ignorant as myself. I may tell you now--now that I am your own true
wife, how your love has been the happiness of many years. Ere I dared
to hope that your letters breathed more than a friendly interest--and
believe me I would not indulge the thought for an instant until you
had given me the right so to do--though the wish would for an instant
flit across my mind--I knew that one less wise, less noble than
yourself would never gain the deep affection of my heart. I almost
felt that I could live through life without dearer ties, if so you
would always watch my path with interest, awarding, as then, praise
and blame.

"But, strange as it may seem, you did love me through all, deeply,
devotedly. Oh, what is there in me to deserve such affection! and when
I read those blessed words--'I love you, _Mary_, have loved you from
an early period of our correspondence,' i