The south-western. [volume] (Shreveport, La.) 1852-1870, 1858-12-08
A New Story of an Old Style.


there was tired party of little ones returning
from nutting or berrying. Every young beauty
had her own experience of its suitability as a
trysting place. The matrons loved it from old
associations and recolections of the time when
their own hearts, then young, leaped to the
music Of some loved voice, and felt the pressure
of some manly hand, as the speaker leaned
over them, sitting on the old stile. True, it
had been repaired again and again; for the
villagers loved it, ands kept it in order. Still
the old stones were there, and it was the old
spot.
Pretty Nellie Greyson, as she sat there, one
summer afternoon, pulling to pieces the last
bouquet left there for her by some love lorn
farmers son, thought sadly of the many times
she had hastened to the old stile with her hand
some lover, the guest of the village, George
Lawton. Poor Nellie! George was the son of
an opulent merchant, man Of wealth and in
fuence, and had been sent into the country to
recruit his health at his cousins, Nellie's
mother.
II did not take long for the hand some talent
ed, young Lawton to win the simple, trusting
heart of the lovely village girl. Nellie had re-
ceived sound English education; but to this
was added no accomplishment. Her soft, sweet
voice spoke no foreign tongue; her pretty white
hands could call out music from no instrument;
and although she could dance the simple figures
of the country dances, she knew no rules for a
stately carriage, or the most finished manner of
receiving guest. George taught her French.
1t was an amusement to while away the dull
hours in a country village, and Nellie was an
apt scholar. AS they bent over the book in the
little parlor, what wonder that they were temp
TO con the verbs, aime and jadore? Then the
old stile was such a famous place to practice
together the Duets George taught Nellie; and
their united voices woke the echoes in the trees
near them, probably very much astonishing
the trees by operate airs.
George had gone home. He had not spoken
word of love to Nellie though every look and
action was more eloquent than the most studied
speech. He wrote to her; but the letters, tho
treasures to her, did not fill up the gap his
absence made; and, as the village beauty sat
musing on the old stile, no one would have
dreamed that half the male hearts in the village
were made over to her. Old farmer Freyson
fumed aud fretted at Nellie's altered ways, and
was half tempted to command her to accept the
son of his neighbor jerks, who was evidently
pining away from the trouble caused in his
honest heart by NellIe's Indifference to his suit.
Nellie, lass" he said TO her that morning.
'I'll love you true and fondly; will you be my
wife? Nellie, your town beau has always beau
ties around him; he'll forget you Nellie.'
And then the beauty, fired by the sneer,
vowed she cared nothing for her town cousin,
and would not marry, not because she loved
him, but because there was not man in the
village worth having. Oh, Nellie! Nellie!
AS she sat musing on the stile, she saw the
village schoolmaster, Henry Sparks. coming
toward her. Now Nellie, before George Law
ton had turned her silly head had given the
most decided encouragement to Mr.. Sparks;
and he felt fully welcome as he took a seat be-
side her on the slile.
"Good afternoon, Miss Nellie,' he said try
ing to detain the hand she pettishly drew from
his grasp. "Nelie," he added in an altered
tone, don't be cross! 1t is so long since l
had a chance to see you alone, Nellie"
"Cross!' Nellie could get no further. She
was almost ready, the silly little beauty, to cry,
as the contrast between her last visit to the
stile with George, and this one struck her.
"There, don't cry Nellie!" said her lover,
Il love you as dearly as l ever did; but you
see you have been so taken up with your town
beau lately that | could not get chance to
talk to you. You were trying to come up to
him in learning French and singing, but it is of
no use. The town ladies can paint and draw,
play the piano, and some of them even write
poetry; but they can't make such cakes as you
can, Nellie or keep house SO nicely I shut
my eyes when | was in town, on their fine
dresses and pretty ways, and kept my heart
true for you. Now, won't you have me. Nellie?
I've been courting you more than a year, ever
since your sixteenth birthday; and you know
love you truly.
Poor Henry had chosen most inauspicious
time. The little heart he coveted had not had
time to cast out the image Of the first man who
had ever really touched it: and as Nellie sadly
pictured Georges graceful manners and courtly
and turned to the simple pedagogue
beside her, the contrast was striking. Georges
dress was so different from that of the villagers
who living miles from any town or railway,
dressed in the fashion of their grand parents.
Henry and Nellie, as they sat on the old stiIe,
would, had they moved into a fashionable
drawing room, have been admirably costumed
for a fancy ball, as country people Of fifty
years ago.
Nellie gave Henry most decided refusal,
and taking no notice Of his surprised, dismayed
face, left the old stle and hurried homeward
As she went, she pictured in her mind the ac-
of the town ladies. This ex-
planned Georges silence on the love subject,
which had SO puzzled the little country girl,
accustomed to the plain courting of the far
ner's sons. Of course, she argued, George
with his fine education and talents, looked for
in his wife; and Nellie deter
mined to have them.
"Father," she said, coming into the kitchen,
where the farmer was overjoying his pipe, Il
want to go to boarding school for two or
hree years.
"Gracious sakes!" cried her mother, drop
Ding the plate she was washing. ''What'll you
want ne1t?"
This was the first mention of the subject.
Nellie was more than two months persuading
md coaxing the old man before he consented
He was rich. Nellie was the only child; and
1t last the unwilling consent was wrung from
lim; and Nellie was taken to the best boarding
school near town. The poor child was at first
much discouraged by the ridicule of her school
nates TT was hard tn bear her dress lauchad