Tales for Fifteen; Or, Imagination and HeartCooper, James Fenimore
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Tales for Fifteen; Or, Imagination and Heart
Cooper, James Fenimore
Girls -- Conduct of life -- Juvenile fiction; New York (N.Y.) -- Juvenile fiction
"Your letters are the only consolation that my
anxious heart can know in the dreary solitude of
this place. Oh! my friend, how would your tender
heart bleed did you but know the least of my
sufferings; but they are all requited by the
delightful anticipations of Park-Place. I hope your
dear aunt has not found it necessary to lay down
her carriage in the change of the times: write me in
your next about it. Antonio has been here again,
and he solicited an audience with me in private--of
course I granted it, for friendship hallows all that is
done under its mantle. It was a moonlight night--
mild Luna shedding a balmy light on surrounding
objects, and, if possible, rendering my heart more
sensitive than ever. One solitary glimmering star
showed by its paly quiverings the impress of
evening, while not a cloud obscured the vast
firmament of heaven. On such an evening Antonio
could do nothing but converse of my absent friend;
he dwelt on the indescribable grace of your person,
the lustre of your eye, and the vermilion of your
lips, until exhausted language could furnish no
more epithets of rapture: then the transition to
your mind was natural and easy; and it was while
listening to his honied accents that I thought my
Julia herself was talking.
"Soft as the dews from heaven descend, his gentle
accents fell."
Ah, Julia! nothing but a strong pre-possession, and
my friendship for you, could remove the danger of
such a scene. Yes! friend of my heart, I must
acknowledge my weakness. There is a youth in
New-York, who has long been master of my too
sensitive heart, and without him life will be a
burthen. Cruel fate divides us now, but when
invited by your aunt to Park-Place, Oh, rapture
unutterable! I shall be near my Regulus. This,
surely, is all that can be wanting to stimulate my
Julia to get the invitation from her aunt. Antonio
says that if I go to the city this fall, he will hover
near me on the road to guard the friend of Julia;
and that he will eagerly avail himself of my
presence to seek her society. I am called from my
delightful occupation by one of my troublesome
sisters, who wishes me to assist her in some trifle
or other. Make my most profound respects to your
dear, good aunt, and believe me your own true
friend,
ANNA."
{Regulus = prince}
At length Julia thought she had made the discovery
of Anna's reason for her evident desire to spend the
winter in town--like herself, her friend had become
the victim of the soft passion, and from that
moment Julia determined that Katherine Emmerson
must seek another residence, in order that Anna
might breathe love's atmosphere. How much a
desire to see Antonio governed this decision, we
cannot say, but we are certain that, if in the least,
Julia was herself ignorant of the power. With her, it
seemed to be the result of pure, disinterested, and
confiding friendship. In answer, our heroine wrote
as follows:
"My beloved Anna,
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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