A Story of Four Mormon Girls.

By Sarah E. Pearson

(Previous chapter)

Chapter 5

Douglas went away to school immediately after New Year’s. Agnes and her husband settled in their new home in E—, a mining town one hundred and fifty miles from N—, where Gowan had already built up an excellent practice at law, so the Stuart home looked somewhat deserted. “Now don’t you girls forsake me altogether because my own daughters are gone,” said Sister Stuart to Rintha and Chatty, “for I shall be that lonesome I won’t know what to do with myself.”

“Indeed we will not,” replied Rintha, “for we feel so lost without the girls we are not sure that we haven’t lost half of ourselves.”

“Well, a woman’s heart is the bigger half of her isn’t it?” queried Jamie, who had been an interested listener to their conversation.

“Now, Mr. Impudence, that wasn’t your ‘put in.’ What do you know about the condition of our hearts? I don’t believe you have succeeded in discovering if we have any,” retorted Rintha.

“Haven’t I, though?” he said to himself, but squinted up one eye and made no reply.

“There, now, Jamie, that serves you right for crossing swords with Rintha,” said Sister Stuart, laughing. “I think you will have to come often, Rintha, if for nothing else than to help me keep this boy within bounds.”

“Yes, do come often, grandmother, and be sure to bring your specs,” added Jamie.

“Oh, I don’t need my specs to see what a bad boy you are,” she retorted.

Chatty had quite a serious time that winter, for her mother was confined to her bed for several months, and what with housework and care of the dear invalid and the children, and must I confess it, sitting up into the “wee sma hours” two or three times a week with Fred, the poor girl was pretty well worn out, and got little time for visiting Sister Stuart or anybody else.

Rintha, on the contrary, was quite a frequent visitor, for there existed between the two women, despite the difference in their ages, a very warm regard for each other, and she and Jamie got on capitally.

They were somewhat of a puzzle to his mother, however, for their easy friendship seemed to be built upon too frank a basis to denote anything of love, and as the months went by, another thing surprised and baffled, while it caused her considerable regret, and that was the fact that Rintha avoided all mention of Douglas’ name and persistently remained away whenever he made a flying visit home, and when they did chance to meet, Douglas was coolly polite, while she was simply freezing in her manner toward him.

“Whatever have you done to Rintha, Douglas, to make her dislike you so?” asked Sister Stuart at last.

“Nothing in the world, mother, that I am aware of,” he replied. “I suppose it is just simply one of those cases of ‘natural antipathy.’”

“I am so sorry for it, for I think she is one of the sweetest and best girls I have ever known – so dutiful and kind to her father – and she is so jolly with Jamie, too. I don’t know what he would have done without her this winter, with all the rest of you away.”

“Why can’t he have her always?”

“Oh, I am convinced there is nothing of that kind between them just simply good fellowship, and she has been such a comfort to me, too; in fact, she seems to like us all but you.”

“I am sorry she dislikes me, mother, but I cannot help it. She gave me ‘the mitten’ at Agnes’s reception and she has been decidedly giving me ‘the cold shoulder’ ever since.”

There was something else she had given him of which he was in the most sublime ignorance, and that was her tender loving little heart – not willingly, it had slipped away from her before she was aware, and oh, how she despised herself for giving her dearest treasure where it was not wanted, and how she vowed to herself that neither he nor anyone else should ever discover her miserable secret.

In the solitude of her own room she had taken herself severely to task and exclaimed, wrathfully: “Rintha Rivers, I am ashamed of you, to tremble at the very sight of him, and turn hot and cold at the touch of his hand! And he doesn’t care a fig for you. Oh, you shameless, shameless girl!” and she buried her face in the pillow and shook with a very tempest of sobs. But she schooled her face to hide her feelings and appeared in the presence of others gay and bright as ever.

When spring returned Sister Briggs was able to be around again, the fine balmy weather bringing with it a fictitious promise of health, so Chatty and Fred were married by Justice Whittaker and moved to Idaho where Fred had taken up a ranch. The parting between mother and daughter was filled with agony, for both had a secret conviction, though they tried to hide it from each other, that there was a longer and more solemn parting in the near future.

“It is your duty to go with your husband where he thinks he can do the best, and there will not be the temptations for him to drink there, that there are here,” Sister Briggs had said to Chatty, in her effort to comfort her. “You must try to make me a visit at least once a year, and when I have sufficiently recovered my health your father has promised to bring me to see you. “

It seemed to Chatty that the parting from the beloved, feeble mother was almost more than she could bear, and nothing but the thought that it would prove the salvation of her husband, by removing him from temptation, could have induced her to make the sacrifice.

After her departure Sister Briggs drooped for a time, but she again rallied, and her husband had strong hopes of her ultimate recovery.

The summer vacation was near at hand, and Sister Stuart was in a perfect fever of anticipation of the return of Jean and Douglas, and Rintha was no less hungry for a sight of Jean, for the winter had been somewhat dreary to her; but the dread of meeting the brother more than counterbalanced her longing for Jean; and she seriously thought of going away to make a visit somewhere while they remained at home.

Her father could ill spare her, however, and she decided that it would be weak and cowardly for her to run away when he needed her, so she screwed up her courage to remain.

Everything moved on much more smoothly than she could have hoped. Douglas was kept very busy with the farm work and she scarcely saw him at all. She and Jean again enjoyed many happy hours together.

Jean brought Rintha Agnes’s letters to read, which were full of descriptions of her own pleasant home, and of her impressions of life in a mining town; and the unaccustomed sight of the poverty and ignorance and viciousness of some of the inhabitants sank deep into the heart of this unsophisticated Mormon girl.

Later, she gladly recounted how she had been able, with the generous help of her wealthy and popular husband, and some ladies she had been able to interest in the scheme, to establish the “Ladies Relief Corps,” into which she threw her whole soul in an earnest endeavor to better the condition of the poor and ignorant; and Jean and Rintha joyfully recognized in this, the promises contained in her patriarchal blessing.

Rintha could not help noticing the marked improvement in both Jean and Douglas, and a passionate desire to share the advantages of culture they were receiving took possession of her.

“There is no use in denying myself the privilege of attending the academy simply because he will be there,” she told herself, “for I must school my heart to meet him on the common footing of a friend. Jean says he expects to graduate this year, and we shall probably see little enough of each other after that. If I can induce papa to close the house and rent in Provo, where we can be together and I can look after his comfort, everything else will be plain sailing.”

Her plan succeeded, and the next winter not only found Jean and Douglas and herself at the renowned institution of learning, but Jamie as well, and his sunny disposition and the genius he seemed to have acquired of bridging over awkward situations and pauses, made him a great help to Rintha.

Jamie fell in love and out again half a dozen times during the winter, and came out of it all breezy and jolly and heart-whole as ever.

Both Douglas and Jean graduated at the end of the year, and returned home; but Brother Rivers sold his home in N—, and purchased a residence in Salt Lake where Rintha continued her studies at the University until she graduated two years later.

Douglas had not been long at home when he received a call to go on a mission so Brother Stuart wrote and asked Agnes and her husband if they could not make them a visit, as he and his wife were anxious to have their children all together once more before Douglas went away.

Gowan excused himself on the plea of press of business, but Agnes came and the re-united family again enjoyed each others’ society for a season.

Then Douglas departed to fill his mission, Agnes returned to E—, and Jean entered upon her duties as teacher in her native village.

To be continued