Ester Ried Yet Speaking

‚
Ester Ried Yet Speaking, by Isabella Alden

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Title: Ester Ried Yet Speaking
Author: Isabella Alden
Release Date: October, 2005 [EBook #9091] [Yes, we are more than one year ahead of schedule] [This file was first posted on September 4, 2003]
Edition: 10
Language: English
Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ESTER RIED YET SPEAKING ***

Produced by J. Erickson, T. Allen, B. Trapaga and Distributed Proofreaders

ESTER RIED
YET SPEAKING.
BY PANSY,
AUTHOR OF "MRS. SOLOMON SMITH LOOKING ON," "HALL IN THE GROVE," "A NEW GIFT ON THE FAMILY TREE," "FIVE FRIENDS," "MARY BURTON," "THE POCKET MEASURE," "ESTER RIED," ETC., ETC.

CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I.
IT MAY BE THAT SHE IS WORKING STILL
CHAPTER II.
WHAT DID IT ALL AMOUNT TO, ANYHOW?
CHAPTER III.
ANYTHING UNCOMMON ABOUT ME?
CHAPTER IV.
I DON'T BLAME THEM
CHAPTER V.
A CHRISTIAN HOME
CHAPTER VI.
SATAN HE HAS 'EM ALL THE WEEK
CHAPTER VII.
WHAT A LITTLE SCHEMER IT IS
CHAPTER VIII.
WHAT WOULD YOU DO, DEAR?
CHAPTER IX.
"TREMENDOUS FACTS!" HE SAID
CHAPTER X.
AND SHE ALWAYS TRIED
CHAPTER XI.
I HAVE BUT TO TRY AGAIN
CHAPTER XII.
I WANT THEM TO GET USED TO PARLORS
CHAPTER XIII.
LET US BE FASHIONABLE
CHAPTER XIV.
"SOMETHING'S HAPPENED!"
CHAPTER XV.
WHAT MADE HER DIFFERENT?
CHAPTER XVI.
HERE WAS HIS OPPORTUNITY
CHAPTER XVII.
I WONDER WHAT THEY'RE ALL AFTER
CHAPTER XVIII.
YOURN'S THE WAY
CHAPTER XIX.
WE HAVE BEGUN BACKWARDS
CHAPTER XX.
OH, WHAT A NICE THOUGHT!
CHAPTER XXI.
HAD HIS EXPERIMENT BEEN TOO SEVERE?
CHAPTER XXII.
SOME PEOPLE ARE HARD TO WARN
CHAPTER XXIII.
PART OF THE GREAT WELL-TO-DO WORLD
CHAPTER XXIV.
FOR YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT MAY COME
CHAPTER XXV.
WHAT DO YOU HOPE TO ACCOMPLISH?
CHAPTER XXVI.
"O LORD, TAKE DIRK TOO!"
CHAPTER XXVII.
AN AWFUL PROBLEM
CHAPTER XXVIII.
MAY SHE GO WITH ME?
CHAPTER XXIX.
WHAT IF I BELONGED?
CHAPTER XXX.
IT IS NO MADE-UP AFFAIR
CHAPTER XXXI.
THEIR WORKS DO FOLLOW THEM
CHAPTER I.
"IT MAY BE THAT SHE IS WORKING STILL."
It was raining drearily, and but few people were abroad--that is, few, comparatively speaking, though the streets seemed full of hurrying, dripping mortals. In the large dry-goods store business was by no means so brisk as on sunny days, and one of the younger clerks, whose station was near a window looking out upon the thoroughfare, had time to stand gazing at the passers-by. They did not seem to interest him particularly, or else they puzzled him. His young, handsome face wore a thoughtful look, almost a troubled expression about the eyes, which seemed to be gazing beyond the passers-by. Just across the aisle from him, a lady, seated in one of the easy chairs set for the accommodation of shoppers, waited and watched him,--a young and pretty woman, tastefully, even elegantly dressed, yet her costume was quite in keeping with the stormy day. The young man's face seemed to have special interest for her, though he apparently was unaware of her existence. A close observer would have discovered that she was watching him with deeply interested eyes. Whatever served to hold the thoughts of the young man apparently grew in perplexity, for the troubled look continually deepened. At last, forgetting the possible listener, he addressed the dripping clouds, perhaps,--at least, he was looking at them:--
"I don't know how to do it; but something ought to be done. It is worse than folly to expect good from the way that things are now managed. Ester would have known just what, and how; and how interested she would have been! I try to do her work, and to 'redeem the time;' but the simple truth is, I don't know how, and nobody else seems to."
These sentences were not given all at once, but murmured from time to time at his unsympathetic audience outside.
Patter, patter, patter, drip, drip, drip! steady, uncompromising business. It was all the answer the clouds vouchsafed him.
With the listener inside it was different. The interested look changed to an eager one. She left her seat and moved toward the absorbed young man, breaking in on his reverie with the clearest of voices:--
"I beg your pardon,--but are you thinking of your sister? You are Mr. Ried, I believe? I have heard of your sister's life, and of her beautiful death, through a dear friend of my husband, who loved Ester. I have always