L. M. Montgomery

“ His letters were gone—those precious letters, held almost too sacred for his own eyes to read after they were written—had been stolen from him! The inmost secrets of his soul had been betrayed. Who had done this hideous thing?
He rose and went downstairs. In the farmyard he found Bob tormenting his dog. Bob was happy only when he was tormenting something. He never had been afraid of anything in his life before; but now absolute terror took possession of him at sight of the schoolmaster's face.
“Bob, where are my letters?” said the schoolmaster. ”

“ There are those who strive to forget a hopeless love; to me, the greatest misfortune that life could bring would be that I should forget you. I want to remember you always and love you and long for you. ”

“ It is sweeter to love you and be forgotten than it would be to love any other woman and live in her lifelong remembrance—so humble has love made me, sweet, so great is my sense of my own unworthiness. "“Yet love must find expression in some fashion, dear, else it is only pain; and hence these letters to you which you will never read. ”

“ Your hair has the gloss and brownness of ripe nuts, and your face is always pale. Your lips have a trick of falling apart in a half-smile when you listen. They told me before I knew you that you were pretty. ”

“ Have you thought from his letters that she was a wonderful woman of marvellous beauty? Not so. She was a sweet and slender slip of girlhood, with girlhood's own charm and freshness. There were thousands like her in the world—thank God for it!—but only one like her in one man's eyes. ”

“ The sun has set; there is now but one fiery dimple on the horizon, as if a golden finger had dented it—now it is gone; the mists are coming up over the sea. “A kiss on each of your white hands, dear. To-night I am too humble to lift my thoughts to your lips.” •••••
The schoolmaster folded up his letter and held it against his cheek for a little space, while he gazed out on the silver-shining sea with his dark eyes full of dreams. Then he took from his shabby trunk a little inlaid box and unlocked it with a twisted silver key. It was full of letters—his letters to Una. ”

“ I crept gently away, that I might not mar your dream. Of what were you thinking, Una?”
“I must leave you soon: Sometimes I think I cannot bear it. Oh, Una, how selfish it is of me to wish that you might love me! Yet I do wish it, although I have nothing to offer you but a great love and all my willing work of hand and brain. If you loved me, I fear I should be weak enough to do you the wrong of wooing you. I want you so much, dear!" •••••
The schoolmaster added the last letter to the others and locked the box. When he unlocked it again, two days later, the letters were gone. ”

“ The longest-living author of this work died in 1942, so this work is in the public domain in countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 81 years or less. This work may be in the public domain in countries and areas with longer native copyright terms that apply the rule of the shorter term to foreign works. ”