The New era. [volume] ([Portsmouth, Va.]) 1845-1847, 1846-05-14
THE STOLEN KISS :
OR THE FANCIEs OF A BEAUT


Janet was an Imaginative creature. She was
tall, she was SANDER; her neck was as graceful
az a swans neck, and her head and face were per-
feet Let the reader imagine perfect head and
face, and he will be in possession Of the right idea
of what Janet was. and how she looked. Janet
was very young-only sixteen--and Janet was
beauty.
One afternoon--it was four o'clock-Janet took
up a book, which was full of pretty little love
tales. All! Janet was an imaginative creature
She did not put that book down again until ten
O'Clock at night.
Janet slept upon one Of the prettiest little beds,
IN one of the pretiest little rooms that her fathers
house Gt was very pretty little house) contain
ed. IL it could have been permitted to any one
to see Janet enter her room that night, and place
lamp on the table. and sit down on her bed, and
gaze upon certain part of the carpet in deep
revery, and not see that part of the carpet at all
but see the lovers, and the fathers, aud all the
characters, in the story which she had been read.
ing-l say. if it could have been permitted to any
one TO see Janet then, she would have been taken
for sPirit-a mere spirit, without a particle of
flesh or blood.
But nobody permitted to see her; and so
Janet slept and walked, and it was morning. But
1t was very late in the morning, and Janet got
scolding. Janet's mother scoded her when she
walked her but Janet was too pretty TO be scoded.
and told her she was the LATEST and worst daugh-
Ter she had, and she had four and told her, too,
that Charles, whom she called her cousin, (though
he was not,) if she did not make haste, would
come and catch her a-bed
should like to see him catch me a-bed,' said
Janet, though. of course, she would not like ary
such thing.
But Janet had but just got out of her room,
when she met Charles and his father Now.
han ,harla liz IL hoe r. L r..
aud gentleman adopted him as his son. This
gentleman was Jauet's uncle, and SO she called
Charles her cousin.
Cousin Charles said Janet, and Uncle Ell
dred, are we going in the country to-day2'
Now Charles was as good looking lad as you
would see in walk from the Bowling Green to
Union Park. His hair fell in large curls over
ears. collar, and every thing. But it was very
pretty hair, and as long as he could prevent il
from covering DIP his bright black eyes, his mo-
Their, his father, and Janet, said it was pity to
cut it. So it grew and grew, and curled and
cured land everybody said it was very pretty hair,
and the black eyes, which It did not hide, were
very pretty eyes, and that Charles was a very
pretty boy.
When Charles and Janet got out in the coun
try, they rambled over fields, through woods, and
across meadows, until they got tired They then
sat down upon grassy bank which was covered
IS,
was soft, like moss; and if it had been the best
kind of silk velvet, il would not have been apy
better.
Now when Charles was little, quite little. il
had been favorite diversion of Janet to Irvine he,
fingers in among his flowing curs, to bring them
down over the bright black eyes, and then, when
the bright black eyes could not see her, to steal
kiss, and he chased and chased. and caught, and
kissed her himself, a punishment But this
wa xphn 1it,In l.
would, no doubt, have been highly improper.
And yet Charles-the presumptuous Charles
had no sooner seated himself beside Janet, than
ne put his arm around her neck, and kissed her
What impudence! what insolence! to kiss the
cheek of perfect face, with his arm around
neck as graceful a swans, and that cheek, and
that face, and that neck, full sixteen summers old.
without as much as saying. by your leavel' ia
net was very angry-very. She left him, and
started for the house, without saying one word
Il dou't care!' said Charles: but he did care.
he would not have said SO.
He had half mind to run after her and ask
her pardon, and kiss and make up; but his pride
Iepelled the idea, and he threw himself down on
the soft green bank, and again exclaimed 6 don't
caTep
Next day, Uncle EIdred took the young people
home. The indignant Janet would not speak to
Charles. and Charles would not speak to the in
uiBHaHt Oauet, anu 81 were as DAD as thew
could we'll be.
And SO they continued for a month and year,
and two years. But, during all this time, Janet
was very unhappy. She blamed herself again
and again for being so uDkind, and wished again
and again that Charles would come TO see her.
that he would only speak to her, and she would
forgive him with all her heart But Charles
would do no such thing. He came to the house
very seldom, and when he did come, it was not to
see Janet.
Il will write him letter. said Janet, and ex-
plain ALL
And so she did, but she tore it up, and wrote
another, and tore that up too. Thus she was a.
bout as unhappy as young lady of eighteen, in
love and sighted, could make herself.
Now Janet had slight acquaintance with Miss
Saunders, and Miss Saunders being about TO
change her name for that of a very handsome
young man, sent an invitation to Janet to come
and see it done. Janet, like the generai;ies of
young ladies of eighteen, had no objections to at
tend wedding, and so went with her brother.
But what was her establishment when she found
that the handsome young aforesaid was no
other than Charles--her Charlesl She would
have left the room, but she had not the power
The clergyman came. and the contracting parties
took their places. The ceremony proceeded
poor Janet could hardly stand up. She felt