St. Charles City Republican intelligencer. [volume] (St. Charles City [Charles City], Iowa) 1857-1861, 1860-04-26
Romantic skcttb.
. a Hundred Dollars.

CHATTER I.
My pony has grown very lame
coming down the road, so | stopped
here to see if anybody could tell me
what is the matter"
She had one of those bright young
voices that slid along the words as
lightly as one of Moore's poems slides
into some sweet air.
despair Of conveying that picture
to you with any painting of my pen,
and yet it was such perfect one, 50
full Of fine shades and contrasts, so
real, so impromptu, yet so perfected,
that | cannot pass by it.
In the frontispiccc, then, was the
girl speaker, with one hand grasping
a small silver-mounted riding whip,
and the fingers of the other closed
over her bride.
She was pretty creature, whose
life must have hoycrcd somewhere
about its fourteenth year, with a sweet
delicate face, where smiles were for
ever sliding in and out chasing them
selves up into the deep blue eyes, and
round among the dimplcs that sat by
the small, coral mouth. Her features
were clear and soft, but with nothing
of that doll iook which one often meets
with in girls Of her age, and which is
more rcpellant than almost any con,
ccivablc degree of LONELINESS, es-
pccially to "a shrewd observer, who is
tOlcrably certain what sort Of wo-
man it prophcsics.
The girl wore Il simple black riding
dress, whose heavy folds almost swept
the grass, and the little dainty riding
cap with its solitary sable plume
brushing her shoulder, gave a certain
dignity and picturesqucncss to the
bright face and small figure. She sat
her horse with easy, natural grace.
He was a small, black, glossy, bcauti-
ful Canadian pony, and his large,
bright eyes had in them q look Of al.
most human intelligence.
In the background was n black
smiths shop, or shed, as the little, old,
sooty, tumble-down structure had bet,
ter been dcnominatcd.
\ boy stood in the door of this
building, holding a horse shoe in one
hand, for he had sprung from the
forge where he was heating it, at the
girls summons he was small for his
years, which were fifteen. \ straw
hat, ragged and rimlcsS, was set down
on thick, tangled heap of hair; he
wore blue cotton shirt, and an old
patched pair of trowsers, his face and
hands were begrimmcd and sooty
from his recent labor, and though lac
added great deal to the effect of the
picture, he was dirty, ragged, pOv-
erty-stricken spectacle.
There's nobody else in the shop,
but perhaps | can tell what's hurt
him." said the boy, answering the
girls question in Il straightforward
respectful way, that somehow would
have made you turn and look at him
again.
She did; the boys reply and not his
appearance, must have decided her
for she answered little doubifully
"Well, ! shall be much obliged tc
you if you will look and see, as hate
to keep on, he limps So"
The boy came forward. Whicl
foot is it 2" he asked
The right fore foot"
Gle won't kick, will he?"
"Oh, no, he's perfectly gentle
You're a good horse, aren't you, Va
liant 2" and she stroked the gloss,
neck of the animal with her small
hand, while the boy raised his leg
and examined it carefully.
"He's stuck nail into it, and i
hurts him"
"Oh, dear, what shall | do?"
~ guess can take it out for you
I've seen Uncle Jake do it goot
many times
But wont it hurt him ?"
mot much not half SO much a:
it does now"
"Well, then, should like to hav,
You try"
In few moments the boy returned
with an old pair OF forceps Hadn'
you better get OFF," he said mos
horses are likely to rear and kicl
afore the nail comes out"
"Qh, Pm not in the least afraid,
and she sat still, now watching Tia
boy as he set about the operation
now stroking her pony's glossy neck