Sentinel of the valley. [volume] (Woodstock, Va) 1841-1848, 1843-10-19
MISCELLANEOUS.
JENNY AND THE WATCH.

! giving their watches in trust to yount
women Tor whom they have declared
their attachment. The watch is kep
and carried in tie bosom of the fair one
/ until the anxious couple are united il
the bonds of wedock, when, as matte,
of course, the pledge Of sincerity is Civ
Ell up to its origina! owner This is i'm
agined by The country lasses to be an in.
tlnltcly better plan for securing the fidel.
! ity of sweethearfs than that OF breaking
4 sixpencc. A ~a;ch is a valuable and
highly priced article. 1t is worth al
least couple of pounds, and the loss oil
that sum by an individual in an humble
condition of life is very serious matter
| Still, we believe there are cases in which
the proposed match is broken off, and the
watch abandoned forever; though, doubt
less, this is only in case of great tickle
ness, or when weishty reasons for deser-
ton intervene.
The following lauehahIe incident re-
gardlng watch, SO intrusted, occurred
a few years ago:
Jenny Symngton, a weIl-favored
sprightiy girl, in certain farm house in
Galloway, had been intrusted with the
watch OF her sweetheart, Tam Halli6ay.
IA neighboring shepherd,) which she car.
RED. with the most scrupulous care. in
her bosom; but even the most carefully.
kept articles will sometimes disappear in
spite OF all the precautions considered
necessary to preserve them Jenny. be
IL Nio"i, was esteemed first-rate hand
at preparing potatoes for the family sup
pef' none could excel her at serving
mem up beaten and mashed in the most
'e"s P"ns style. On one occasion. in har-
vest VINE" NE kitchen WAS crowded with
" "o"'oeF OF shearers waiting for their
eNenHs meal, and while Jenny was busy
oe"''',s d mess of potatoes, what 6idthe
oh'ucNy watch do but drop from her bo-
so'n-cna'n, seals and all--into the pot
among me potatoes! Jenny's head be-
ing turned away at the moment, she knew
'lo'lihs oi the disaster, and therefore
cohohued to beat on at her task. She
certainly ielt little surprised when she
felt there was still hard potato to beat.
Notwithstanding her previous diligence;
put thinking nothing it, she continued
tato (alias the watch a hard thump with
the end of the beetle. At length. she
thought she had fairly completed the bu-
slness; and so, infusing a large jar Of
sweet milk into the mess. she stirred it
all up together, and then placed the YES
sci ready for the attack of hungry look
crs-0n.
Behold, then, the pot-a round gawso
tripod. planted in the middle of the floor.
A circle was formed round it in a trice.
and horn for horn the shearers began to
stretch and strive. Many mouthfuls had
not been taken before certain queer looks
were manifested.
'Diel's in the tatties,' eavs one, 4
think they've got banes in them.'
'Banes!' says another, they're the
funniest banes ever saw: they're made
o. broken glass and pieces o. brass; I'll
sup nae mair o. Them
With that. another produced a silver
watch case, all battered and useless, from
his capacious horn spoon; and univer-
sal strike among the suppers immediate
~ ensued. 1t was clear that watch
had been beaten up with the potatoes:
so the good wife had nothing fer it but
to order the disgraced pot out of the
way, and to place basket of oatmeal
cakes and milk in its place.
What was poor Jenny's feelings du-
ring the strange denouemenR On the
first appearance of the fragments of the
watch, she slipped her hand to her bo-
SOM, and soon found how matters stood.
She had the fortitude, however, to show
no symptoms of surprise; and, although
every one was wondering where the bro
ken watch had come from, she did not
disclose her knowledge Of how it had
found SIS way in The pot. AS it had be-
longed to no one in the house. the mate
rials were not identified; and as JENNY
was young woman Of great prudence
and modesty. and had never shown any
one that she had watch in her posses
sion, no one leased her about it. In q
short time the noise of the circumstance
died away. but not till it had gone owe,
the neighborhood that the family had q
watch IN the potato pot, ard. among 9th.
ers. it came to the ears of The owner
Tam Halliday. who was highly pleased
with the conduct of his beloved Jenny:
for he thought that if she had cried OF
sobbed, and told to whom the watch be
| longed, it would have brought ridicult
on them both. Tam was, IN short, De
lighted with the way the matter bad beer
managed, and he thought the watch was
we'll lost, though it had Teen ten times
| the value.
Whatever Tam's ideas were ON th,
subject, Jenny felt conscious that it wa
ther duty to replace the watch. Accor
Edinglv, next time she met her lover, sh'
allowed no time to elapse before she thu
4 l..rnoI hi,a,