Then the two fell into a discourse about their future prospects. Letty often thought how happy it was that she and John were like-minded upon the most important of all subjects. They were sure to draw together there; and, that being the case, she could not fear that they would ever be in danger of serious disagreements.
Indeed, their acquaintance had begun at Mrs. Willson's Bible-class, two years before. They had gone together from Mrs. Willson's Bible-class to the doctor's class, had joined themselves to the people of God at the same time, and still went to church together every Sunday; though John had taken a Sunday-school class, which Letty could not conveniently do. Letty looked forward with pleasure to setting up her household in the fear and love of God,—to daily morning and evening prayers, and Sunday readings of good books, and grace said at a table neatly set for two persons. By the time they reached the church-door, the unpleasant impressions left by her aunt's remarks had passed away, and she felt fully in tune for the sacred services.
Agnes did not go to church; Joseph was not much of a church-goer. Indeed, it may be doubted whether he had been within the walls of any place of worship a dozen times in six years, till he was engaged to Agnes,—when he went sometimes, to please her. Agnes had been a Sunday-scholar as well as Letty, and at one time Mrs. Willson thought her very hopeful; but of late she had grown giddy and careless. She became very irregular in her attendance at Bible-class; and more than once Mrs. Willson had seen such behaviour in church as gave her great pain. At last she spoke to Agnes about the matter,—very gently, indeed, but plainly, as was her duty.
Agnes first denied the charge, and then grew angry; declared she would not be watched and made to give an account of herself like a baby, and at last left the Bible-class altogether. Mrs. Willson was very sorry; but there seemed no more to be done; and she waited and prayed, hoping that Agnes would see the impropriety of her conduct and return to her duty.
In reality, Agnes meant no particular harm; but she was giddy and easily influenced. She was rather unfortunate in being thrown among such a set of girls as those with whom she worked at the shop. There were two or three who took the lead in every thing; and they were extravagant, showy girls, caring for nothing but dress and company, and vying with each other as to who could get the greatest amount of finery out of their limited earnings, and make the gayest appearance in the street. They affected, too, a great deal of independence,—discussed all sorts of subjects with the greatest freedom, not to say flippancy, and had books circulating among them which were any thing but desirable reading.
Agnes used to be shocked, at first, by many things which she saw and heard; but she soon grew accustomed to them, learned to join in the laugh, even when the joke was by no means a delicate one, and to read books in her own room which she was very careful to hide from her mother. She would have liked to go out in the evenings with her companions, running about from store to store and flirting with the shop-boys, or joining in frolics of a still more questionable nature; but this her mother would not permit.
Mrs. Train was not a very wise woman, but she had sense enough to know that it is a great deal easier for a young girl to get a stain upon her reputation than to wash it off again, and that simple imprudence and giddiness may lead her to do things which she will bitterly repent all her life afterwards. So she looked sharply after Agnes's associates, and, in general, kept her pretty well under her own eyes. It was this very care of her mother's, at which Agnes often grumbled and repined, which won the girl her husband, after all.
Joseph Emerson worked in another department of the same factory where Agnes was employed. He was struck at first by her rather quiet manners; and then he began to observe that he never saw her running about in the evenings with the other girls, and discovered that she went to church with tolerable regularity. Joseph was not always perfectly steady himself, and he made no pretence to religion; but, like many other such men, he admired piety in women, and he thought, too, that it was a very good thing for them to stay at home evenings, instead of running about the streets. So he began to pay Agnes various little attentions; and in process of time they were engaged to be married.
Joseph had a good trade; he was a skilful hand, and earned large wages; but he had never laid by a dollar in his life. He was as fond of dress, in his way, as Agnes was in hers. He liked to smoke, and to drive horses, and a visit to the theatre now and then; and thus, without any thing which could properly be called dissipation, his money melted away about as fast as it came, sometimes, indeed, a little faster. He said to himself that he had now a motive for saving, and he meant to be very careful. He really did economize so far as to be able to make a small payment upon his house, and he hoped before spring to be able to furnish it comfortably. He meant that they should board through the winter and go to housekeeping in the spring. So they were to be married the next month; and Agnes was already buying her wedding-dresses.