Page:California Inter Pocula.djvu/336



sence and  return  both  alike  will  be  forgotten. Some- thing tells me  I  shall  see  them.

" Will  Barry  I  shall  see ;  my  old  playmate,  school- mate, Will,  Jidus  Achates.  Will  is  married  now,  and he  will  talk  to  me  of  wife  and  little  ones,  as  he  would talk  of  an  extra  head,  or  arm,  or  leg.  Wife  and  little ones  !  I  wonder  if  Will  has  changed.  Merry  meet- ings and  suppers;  bright  eyes,  winning  smiles,  and soul-swelling  music  1  Shall  I  meet  one  nearer  still than  sister  or  mother ;  one  who,  laying  her  head upon  my  breast,  and  tightly  clasping  me  around  shall make  me  swear  to  wander  no  more ;  who  breathintr  rest into  my  soul,  opens  my  eyes  to  beauties  hitherto  ob- scure, opens  to  my  longings  a  passage  outward  and  up- ward, and  who  fills  the  measure  of  my  desires  with her  own  satisfying  self — lives  she,  and  for  me  ? "

Millions and  millions  of  such  floatinoj  thoug-hts hover ever  round  the  brain  of  the  waiting,  working one, nerving  the  arm  and  sustaining  existence  itself, filling the  dark  shaft  with  bright  images,  furnishing stuff for  dreams.

I never  thought  I  should  fancy  the  occupation  of  a pawn-broker,  and  yet  I  cannot  see  what  there  is  about it that  should  necessarily  render  shop  and  shopman  so obnoxious  to  Christian  nostrils. It is  said  that  their ox-eyed, hook  -  nosed  and  ugly-mouthed  proprietors make their  money  through  the  necessities  of  the  un- fortunate and poor. Granted, but  who  does  not? Would you  on  that  account  close  the  corner  grocery and the  bakery  ? Does not  your  banker  acquire  a pledge  from  his  wearisome  client  before  he  deals  out to him  the  ducats? Curse them  for  grinding  the poor ! Curse, then,  all  the  world. Curse fathers  for feeding their  children  bread  earned  by  the  sweat  of hirelings  ;  curse  mothers  for  pointing  the  finger  of scorn  to  those  pitiable  wretches  whose  very  existence is contamination  to  their  untempted  daughters. Is your purse-proud  capitalist   who  would   see  a  poor