from the breast of Charley Gray.” That same
evening the engagement ring glittered upon Flora’s
finger; and six months later, amid a small company
of friends, they uttered their marriage vows in the
old church at Elmwood; and by many they were called
with truth a beautiful and noble looking couple; and
immediately after their marriage they set out for
their new home in one of the large cities of the Western
Provinces, where Charley was to begin the practice
of his profession. They left us under seeming
summer sky, and I breathed a prayer, that no cloud
might arise to mar its serenity.
About a year after Flora’s marriage I received
a letter from Aunt Lucinda with a pressing invitation
that we should go at once to Fulton; she wished me
also to write, requesting my mother to join us at Montreal
and accompany us. This letter surprised me not
a little, but I was well aware that Aunt Lucinda must
have some particular reason for this sudden and unexpected
invitation; and I at once wrote to my mother, informing
her of her request, and two days later she arrived
at my home in Montreal. We enjoyed a pleasant
journey, and again my eyes rested with delight upon
the familiar scenes of the village of Fulton.
Uncle Nathan met us at the railway station, looking
as hale and hearty as ever. On our way to the
farm I ventured to inquire what had caused our invitation
to visit them at this particular time; he answered
me only by repeating the old saying, “Ask me
no questions and I’ll tell you no lies,”
and so we made no further inquiries. When Aunt
Lucinda came forward to welcome us, I at once noticed
the remarkable change in her appearance; one would
have supposed that at least ten years had been taken
from her age since I last saw her, and her whole manner
was so cheerful and sprightly that I was at a loss
to understand what could have happened; but I never
dreamed of the truth till after tea, when Aunt Lucinda
rose and said: “I want to see you, Walter,
alone in the parlor.” I followed her, secretly
wondering what wonderful revelation I was to listen
to. When we were seated, she said with her old
abrupt manner, “Well, Walter, you have heard
Nathan talk about Joshua Blake, he has come back and
we are going to be married to-morrow and I have sent
for you to attend the wedding. You may well look
astonished to hear an old woman like me talk about
getting married; and the land knows what Deacon Martin’s
folks will say; but as long as they have liberty to
say whatever they please, they needn’t complain.
You remember hearing Nathan laugh about Joshua Blake
and his red hair years ago, perhaps you thought there
was no such person in the world but there was.
Joshua was an only child, his parents lived over at
the village, and we went to school together. His
hair was not a real blazin’ red but only a dark
auburn, for all of Nathan’s nonsense about it.
Well, we loved each other, when mere children.
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