AN AUTUMN SONO. All the summer's worn and old; The sun lias censed a-ooing it. \ Trees ure drooping blood and gold- Blood for murder of the right, And gold to hide it out o' sight; L'ut for all they are so bold 1 think they'll fail for doing it Till the careful sun is cold. Till the watching stars for dread Go out, and cease to lighten it, Cruel earth drinks up the red, Wrung by lußt of greedy gain From the broken sweater's pain, From the dying and the dead, Till never moon may whiten it With her silver pity shed. Ye who tread a golden way With hearts of others paving it, Hark! the autumn voices say: "The yellow leaves He anklo deep, But through them still the crimson peep, ltuddy drops to Btain the day. No ufter rain-drops, laving it, Wash the purple from the clnv." —[Nina F. Lnynrd, in Harper. LOVE—FIFTEEN." A STOItY FOR GIRLS. Of course lawn tennis had made its way to the pretty little village of Ashtou and, of course, "The Inseparables," as Madge lloston, Neil Glynn and Elsa Trent were universally dubbed, wel comed it with open arms and henceforth became its devoted followers. They had been very enthusiastic over croquet two years before, but now cro quet seemed too tamo, and the croquet set had been left to the tender mercies of little Bobby Trent, who scattered the mallets and balls over the premises and set up his wickets in the most unexpect ed places, so that the members of the family were liable at all times of the day to find themselves reversed, so to speak —their nosci in violent contact with mother earth and their heels waving in the air. The summer before Nell Glynn had gone to New York for a week's visit, and had come home with glowing accounts of the new game. "Why, girls!" she exclaimed, while lier black eyes shone aud her closely cropped head bowed ex citedly, "croquet is nothing to it. You don't know how jolly it is. I saw it played in the Bark." "Why can't we play it?" queried Elsa in her slow way. "What must we have?" "Ever so many things and they cost so much! We must have balls, a racket for each one of us and a net. Then, if you | want to be very high-toned you have i tennis shoes, a cap or Tain o' Shunter ami 1 a blazer and a blouse and other things." All this sounded delightful aud they entered into a discussion of the subject with all the interest which fifteen-year old girls usually have in anything prom ising fun. "Your lawn would be just the place , for the court," said Madge, as she twist ed Elsa's long yellow curls around her fingers. They were on Mrs. Trent's' piazza, Elsa and Madge sitting on the top step, while Nell was perched on the railing, looking like a gypsy in lier red dress, with herstraight black hair falling all about her shoulders. "Girls, I'll tell you a plan,"and Nell's tan shoes swung vigorously back and forth as she spoke. "Let's earn it. It's too late to play this fall, so we will have winter to work in." "Yco," rojoiuod Madgo, "but lIOW ill the world shall we ever do it?" "Oh, if we keep on the watch we shall find ever so many chances to earn a little. Why, only yesterday Tom offered me ten cents if I would go down to the post office for him. I wish I had known of this ; I'd have gone." "Yes, and we might go without some thing and save money instead," put in Elsa. "I'll save what I.spend for candy, and that will help sonic," said 3ladgc, who had a sweet tooth. "Young ladies, I'll donate the net if by spiingtimc you have raised enough money for the rackets and balls," came in deep tones from the window, where Uncle John, who was always sure to fa vor any plan for giving the children a good time, sat reading. Neb in her joy sprang to the ground j and was executing an Indian dance upon | the lawn, when suddenly she plunged in- ! to a clump of rose bushes and disup- I pearcd from view. "It's that horrid Bobby's wickets," cried Elsa as she and Madge rushed to the rescue, and at length, amid much laughter, they succeeded in pulling Nell out. All through tlie Winter months the girls seized every opportunity of adding to their fund aud the result was that one warm Spring day Uncle John brought home a large package from New York containing the rackets, net, balls and a book of directions. With his help the court was marked off and the net put up, and from that time forth at all hours of the day could be heard the sounds of i laughter, mingled with phrases unintel ligible to the looker-on, such as "love fifteen," "pick up," "deuce," "thirty all," " double " and others equally mys terious. The vigorous exercise did the girls good and the faint color in Elsa's pale checks and her improved appetite delighted her parents and Uncle John. Nell and Elsa had each made a "Tam," Nell's of pale-pink worsted and Elsa's of blue, while Madge's mother had given her a red nml white tennis cap, and now the three girls were each trying to save money enough to get one of the pretty striped blazers they had seen dis played in the store windows in the town. Elsa's elder sister Helen had played several times the previous summer while on a visit to a friend, at which time she had bought a racket, so that now she sometimes made a fourth in the game, and was considered an authority when disputed points arose. Of course, with so much practice the girls soon became quite good players, and seemed about equally matched, though each had her strong points. The lawn where they played was bordered by a thick, closely-trimmed hedge, on the other side of which was a tiny brown house. About a year before a middle-aged woman named Bassett had come to the village and rented this cot tagc, and, though she appeared to have some means of hev own, she increased her income by doing fine washing and ironing for two or three of the wealthiest families in the place. Occasionally one of the tennis players would make a wild hit at tlie ball and it would go flying over the hedge and lie snugly hidden under Mrs. Bussctt's squash-vines or in her strawberry bed. This was always considered a great misfortune, as it gen erally necessitated a long search. One day towards the beginning of Au gust, Nell, in reaching upward for a ball, gave it such a vigorous side-knock that away it went over the hedge. A groan went up from the three and Nell was starting towards the gate when, to their surprise, the ball came back over the hedge and fell at their feet. Their sur prise was the greater in that they had just seen Mrs. Bassett go up the road and there was no one else in sight, so they went on with their game. It was not long before another ball was sent towards the hedge, but, fortunately, I did not go over. However, when Elsa went to get it she could find nothing of it. She was peering into every corner for it when a voice at licr side said: "There it is sticking up in the hedge." Elsa jumped, the voice was so near her, and turning quickly around found her self staring into a pair of bright brown eyes. The owner seemed to be a girl about her own age, who had evidently been watching the game through a small opening in the bushes. "Oh. thank you," said Elsa, recover ing herself and reaching up for the ball. "Do you like to play tennis?" "I like to watch it, but I have never played," was the answer. "It's great fun," rejoined Elsa, as she went back to her game. After this their balls were always thrown back aud Elsa always had a nod and a smile for the face peeping through the gap; and one afternoon shortly after tenuis was suspended for a time, while : an earnest discussion went on. "Why, Elsa, we don't even know her | name!" exclaimed Nell. I "Yes, we do; it's Klioda Lewis. She ' told me the other day." "Itseems queer, though, to ask a wash erwoman's niece or granddaughter, or whatever she is, in to pUy tennis," said Madge, shrugging her shoulders. "She may be awfully disagreeable when we come to know lier." "She isn't any real relation to Mrs. Bassett. Her mother died when she was a little baby and Mrs. Bassett took care of her, and now she is staying there until September, because her father is going to be married again, and then she is go ing home, and she doe 3 seem real nice. Mamma says she must be lonesome. She thinks it would be nice to ask her over. Helen says she may use her racket when she isn't playing. I don't want to invite her though unless you arc both willing." "Well, I don't mind if she is only go ing to be here until September. You may as well ask her. Maybe she won't want to conic." Madge assented, and not many min utes after Miss Rlioda walked demurely , in at the gate, lier eyes were bright with pleasure, and the girl came to the ' conclusion that if she only did not have I such a homely, old-fashioned dress on : | she would really be quite pretty. But, as Nell said to Madge while the other two girls were hunting for a ball, "How can you have nice things when your mother is dead and you are poor beside." Rlioda proved to be an enthusiastic learner, and often made quite brilliant plays, but she was too apt to get excited and rush madly at the coming ball, which, of course, is the 6urest way to | miss it. But she was always ready to j laugh at her mistakes aud soon became I a great favorite. I All four girls were thrown into a state of great excitement a few days Inter by ' a proposition which Uncle John made. He proposed—Mrs. Trent having first conseuted to the plan—that the first week iin September Elsa should have a tennis I party, to which she should invite all her friends. If the weather proved pleasunt supper could be served on the lawn, and a line time might be expected. Of course this plan was received with great delight, but their enthusiasm reached its height when Elsa's uncle concluded by saying that on that day there should be a tennis match. Each one of the four was to play a "set" I alone against Helen, and the one who scored highest would receive the prize. "Of course, 1 will do this only on condition that those who lose will be good-natured, realizing that only one can get the prize; but you can all have the fun if you look at it in the right way." They all promised to look at it in any way lie wished if he would only give the prize, and the rest of that month was devoted to steady practice. Rlioda en tered with great zest into the prepara tions, though not being as good a player as the rest, she had no hope of the prize. She secretly hoped that Elsa might get it, but she did not express this wish except to Mrs. Bassett. At last the eventful day dawned clear and beautiful. The first Tuesday in September had been chosen, as on Wed nesday Rhoda was to go home, and as ! she had so few pleasures, they wished to I share this with her. At ii o'clock the guests I began to arrive and soon gay groups were to be seen scattered about the grounds. Some wi re singing, others playing cro- | quel or wandering about looking at the I beds of gray flowers, while a few tried their hand at the new game, occasioning | much merriment both among themselves and the spectators by their awkward at tempts at batting the ball over the net. About 3 o'clock the parents and older friends who wished to see the tennis match arrived, and at 3.30 the trial of skill began. Seats were provided for the older part of the audience, while the younger ones sat upon the soft grass or 1 strolled about. Uncle .lolin wrote the names of tlie girls upon four strips of paper and then, shaking them about in his hat, drew them out one by one, thus determining the order in which tliey should play. Madge's name was the first to be drawn, and with a gay laugh she picked up her racket aud balls and took lier place on the side of the net opposite llcleu. In spite of herself she was a little nervous at first aud lost her first serve, but after this she made some excellent plays and finally won the set, o—3. Elsa's turn came next, but to Rhoda's disappointment she did not play as well as usual, and at the end of the first five games the count was 4—l in Helen's favor. But then the tide turned, and she outdid herself and won tlie set, (I—4. Nell's name was now called and the games were very close. It was feared by some that Helen, though not as good a player, might win Nell's set, for the games were only 5—4 in Nell's favor and it was Helen's serve. But at last, after "deuce" had been called several times, Nell won a point, making her "vantage out." Helen then sent a swift ball, at which Nell made such a desperate lunge that she slipped and slid the whole length of her body, "quite like a base ball player," Uncle John said, but she got the ball over and won, C—4. Rlioda now took her place, though, of course, Madge was looked upon as the victor, but probably because she thought she had little to lose, Rhoda was the coolest player of the four, and,as some times happens in games of skill, the one least likely to win achieves a brilliant success, so Rhoda played as she had never done before, and amid tho cheers of the audience, and after several closely contested games, won tho set, o—l. Then Uncle John took from'liis pocket n small box, and with a low how and a ceremonious little speech presented it to Hhodn. She refused at first to take it, sayine that she was not the best player —that it was all by chance thnt she had won it, and that the prize really belonged to Madge. However, Madge utterly re fused to listen to this, saying that as ltlioda had won it fairly it belonged to her. So, at length, Rhoda consented to take the box, and on opening it disclosed to view, lying in a nest of pink cotton, a beautiful gold pin in the form of a racket, on which lay a pretty pearl ball, while on the handle the words "Love —Fifteen" were engraved. While they were still admiring the gift the guests were sum moned to a dainty supper, after which games were played until it was time to disperse. Rhoda bade her friends good-by that night, jis she was to start for home early the next morning, and so the day ended. One day about a week later Mr. Trent brought home a long, Hat box, which had come by express and was directed to "Miss Elsa Trent." What was her sur prise