The Literary echo, and Pawcatuck advertiser. [volume] (Westerly, R.I.) 1851-1854, 1854-02-09
WESTERLY, r. l., THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 1854.

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of the lady fair, and made altogether
very poetic and sentimental su ject for
her to mediate upon. 1t is but justice,
however, to Miss Sophronia to say, that
although the party may have surely and
speedily sug .ested the doctor-the doc
tor did not suggest the party.
The people of Applevillc were lively,
entcrprising, and intelligent, fond of
social life, and there spread shortly
quite an interest in Miss Browns party !;
and by the time the evening arrived,
not a1ittle excitement was there among
the beaux aud bellies, who were of the
invited. The evening was propitious as
if st Valentine had bribed all the spirits
Of the air, for Miss Sophronia's gratica-
tion, and about half past seven o'clock
nearly all the impatient guests were as
sembled, each decorated with his or her
most becoming fnery Miss Brown had
fashioned with her own fair hands a
covered box, beautiful, with ahite and
gold paper, and wrcathed about with
natural flowers from her conservatory"
(which conservatory, by the way, was
a deep-windowed porch, used in sum
mer as an entrance, and through most
legal-looking post-ofhce slide in the top
the Valentines were to b. dropped. All
were require to make the semblance at
least Of sending letter through the
slide, so that if any were delinquent,
they should not be marked.
Miss Sophronia received her guests
with the utmost suavity, and excited
herself to talk in her easiest possible
style, and to make herself vastly agree
able, in order to give free, uncon-
scious air to the reception, and to pre-
vent any 'mpatience on the part of her
visitors, for the hour to commence the
readings was eight. All the company
had not yet arrived, aud alas, for Miss
Browns equanimity, this all included
the doctor. What if some thoughtless,
inconsideratc mortal should take into his
head to be i'll, or break limb just then !,
and the doctor be called away, and the
light of the evening quenched. 1t was
too much to think Of calmly, and truth
to tell Miss Sophronia was getting
a little nervous, but just as the ringing
clock in the dining-room sounded eight
through the house, his quick, bustling
step was heard, and his good-natured
face appeared in the parlor. He walked
up to the table, smiliagly, still epvelop-
ed in his immense cloak, and no one
could tell by his gesture, or by any
revolution of his humorous face, whether
he dropped into the receptacle, one,
two, or three NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. at
all.
Miss Sophrcnia was quite sure that
her heart beat quicker when the step
Of the doctor was heard, but it never
occurred to her that any ones else might
be in the same condition of accelerated
motion, and if she had chanced to see
the color come into the check of little
Susan Bradley, she might simply have
wondered what the child was blushing
about The aforesaid child, however,
having numbered about twenty sum-
mers, probably felt in her own heart q
right to palpitation aud Auttering, quite
as strong, though not OF as many year $
standing as Miss Sophronia's. And if
the lady-hostess had known how often
DR.. Mason, who was "school COM
mittee man." thought it necessary to
look after the well being of Miss Susan's S
little baud of scholars, she might have
felt-but she did not know it, so we will
not waste time speculatng upon what
she might have felt had she been less
blissfully ignorant.
The doctor had come, the clock had
struck eight, the chair was drawn up to
the table, and the specialized editor Of
the Appleville Chronicle, as by previous
vote, duly installed therein. There was
dead silence, aud an eager looking
forwarJ as the key was turned in the
lock, and the liftJd cover betrayed u
pile of letters of all shapes and sizes
Then, it FIRST occurred to the mistress of
ceremonies, that sad error had been
committed on her part, in not making
sure before hand, that each of the party