The Cameron pride; or, purified by suffering : $b A novelHolmes, Mary Jane
General
The Cameron pride; or, purified by suffering : $b A novel
Holmes, Mary Jane
American fiction -- 19th century
Much Wilford regretted that New York was so far away, for a city coffin
was more suitable, he thought, for a child of his, than the one which
Dr. Grant had ordered. But that was really of less consequence than the
question where the child should be buried. A costly monument at
Greenwood was in accordance with his ideas, but all things indicated a
contemplated burial there in the country churchyard, and sorely
perplexed, he called on Bell as the only Cameron at hand, to know what
he should do.
“Do just as Katy prefers,” was Bell’s reply, as she led him to the
coffin and pointed to the name: “Little Genevra Cameron, aged nine
months and twenty days.”
“What is it, Wilford—what is the matter?” she asked, as her brother
turned whiter than his child.
Had “Genevra Lambert, aged 22,” met his eye, he could not have been more
startled than he was; but soon rallying, he said to Morris,
“The child was baptized, then?”
“Yes, baptized Genevra. That was Katy’s choice, I understand,” Morris
replied, and Wilford bowed his head, wishing the _Genevra_ across the
sea might know that his child bore her name.
“Perhaps she does,” he thought, and his heart grew warm with the fancy
that possibly in that other world, whose existence he never really
doubted, the Genevra he had wronged would care for his child, if
children there need care. “She will know it is mine at least,” he said,
and with a thoughtful face he went in quest of Katy, whom he found
sobbing by the side of the mourning garments just sent in for her
inspection.
Wilford was averse to black. It would not become Katy, he feared, and it
would be an unanswerable reason for her remaining closely home for the
entire winter.
“What’s this?” he asked, lifting the crape veil and dropping it again
with an impatient gesture as Helen replied, “It is Katy’s mourning
veil.”
Contrary to his expectations, black was becoming to Katy, who looked
like a pure white lily, as, leaning on Wilford’s arm next day, she stood
by the grave where they were burying her child.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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