Madison Whig advocate. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1839-1841, 1840-03-14


come up-n | heard some body give a lee
tie scream, and with that | jist pushed
the niger out OF the way, and seq |,
s.Miss Miles, how do you do.''
singers if didn't rally pity the poor
gal, she looked so struck up in a heap;
but what ON arth made her act so,
couldn't at first tell, for | felt kinder
streaked as if I'd done somethin that
warnt exactly right, though | couldn't
think what, and ii was as much as mint
afore looked right in her face But jist
as lifted up my head and drew my foot,
arter making one of my first cut bows,
she. stood jist afore me. By the living
hoky, for never was so struck up in my
born days. You know what I've told
you about Miss Miles, about her plump
round form, her red lips and her rosy
cheeks. Wal, III be darned if there was
one of them left shouldn't have known
her no more than nothing, if il hadn't a
been for her eyes and the way she spoke.
Her neck and fored that always looked so
white and hansum when | seed her at
cousin Mary's, and in Broadway, was as
yaller as a saffron bag; there warnt the
least mite of red about her face, and her
hair was all frizzly, and done up in lee
tie bunch, about as big as hens egg be-
hindu She had on a great loose awk lard
looking gown, that seemed 10 make her
look twice as chunky as she used TO, and
that looked more like mans shirt cut
long, and ruffled round than any thing
else. II warnt any too close neither, and
both of her leetle shoes were down al
the heel. There | stood q lookin at her
with all the eyes in my head-my foot
was drawn up tight, and my arms were
a hanging straight down, jist as the swung
back arter | made my bow. | kinder
seemed to feel my mouth open Ieetle,
and that was staring at her harder than
| it was manners for me. But if you'd
give me the best farm in all Wethersfeld
l couldn't have helped 1t, | was so struck
up IN heap at seein her in such fix
| guess it was as much as two minutes a.
| fore either of US said a word; and at last
| Miss Miles turned to the little niger as
savage as a meat-ax, "Truly, why dind't
you show Mr.. Slick into the drawing
| room?''
"Oh, don't seem to mind it, sez |,
| walkln into the room, and settin down in
a chair, with my hat between my knees,
''I'd list as lives set up here as any where"
She looked as if she'd burst out cryin,
but at last she set down and tried to act as
| if she was glad to see me. She begun to
make excuses about her dress and the
room, and said she wasn't very we'll that
morning, and that she'd jest took new
pook, and sot down jest as she was to read
| it.
"Oh,'' sez |, 'Edon't make no excuse; it
amt the fust time that I've ketch'd gal
in suds. Marin used 10 say that she new
err looked worse than common, that some
| body wasn't sart;n to drop in.''
"Will you excuse me one mint, Mr..
| Slick SEE shea mint arter I'd said this,
and lookin down on her awk'ard dress,
as if she couldn't help but feel streaked
yit.
''Sartinly," seq l.; 'dont make no stran-
ger Of me-" With that she opened door
close by. | iist got good peak into it.,
as she went through the door, and an all
fired harnsome room it was. There was
great mohogany bedstead standing in
the middle, with high goose feather bed
on it, kivered all over with a white quilt,
and great square pillows, all ruffied off,
and the winder curtains were part white
and part sorter indigo blue. | couldn't
get a chance to see what else there was,
/ SilS SlOl tic uOOI 10y
sez | to myself arter she went out '.who
on arth could ever have thought that
| Miss Miles was so oId-W hen | saw her
yesterday, I'd took my bible oath that she
warnt more than eighteen, but now I'll
be choked if she don't look as old as the
hills. fever she sees thirty agin. she'll
have to turn like crab, and walk back
wards five or SIX years" What puzzled
me the most was how IN creation she made
out took SO young-but II warnt a great
while afore | made II out as clear as one
of Deacon Sykes exhortations. AFTER
she'd gone out, | jist got up and took a
sort of survey of the room; every thing
was tother end up, heller SHELTER in il !;
| there was no end 10 the finery and harm
some furniture, but it don't make much
odds how extravagant one is laying out
money, if things amt kept neat and snug
in their places. The more things cost,
the more il seems 10 hurt a felIer's feel
ings to see them flung about topsy turvy
as they were in that room. | ruther
think she didn't have her company up
there very often,-but a gal that's got a
good bringin up will be jist as particular
about the place she keeps for herself, and
which company never sees, as if 1t was
likely to be seen every day of her life
begun to be ALFRED glad that didn't
ask her to have me yesterday. for il she'd
been as young as she seemed to be and as
harnsome as an angel, / wouldn't had
her arter seem that little room of hern.
A pocket handkerchief, worked and sprig-
ged and ruffled off with lace, was lying
on the settee, but il was all grimmed over
| with dirt and looked as If would give auv
thing for the sight ofths wash tub. The
carpet was as soft and thick as could be.
and it was kivered over with punches of
posies as nat'ral as life; but there was a
great grease spot close by the FIRE, where
somebody had upset a lamp and all round
the edges and in the corners II looked as
if il hadn't been swept for ever-so-lone
A chist of drawers,-solid shinin mahog-
any, with great lookin glass swung be-
tween two pieces of mahosony on the
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