Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1861-01-30
L" When will Mr.. Jacobs be here, father"

when will Mr.. Jacobs be here, father"
Tomorrow afternoon in time for tea"
Never had Fanny felt such dread of {" to.
morrow afternoon" in all her life. 1t came at
last, and she knew the expected guest had ar
rived, because Uncle Joshua was in the parlor
down stairs talking to somebody she felt sure
was Jeffry Jacobs.
"I'1l run out and get the eggs out Of the
speckled hens nest" thought Fanny, "before
put on my best dress"
Fanny considered the gathering of the eggs
her sole prerogative, and had any one else
| touched the hens nests, there probably would
not have been another egg laid in Uncle JOSH
ua's barn, 30 well was it understood among the
feathered tribe that Fanny never "shoOed'
them off the nest to get the fresh egg, or picked
the she'll to hurry out the little chickens not yet
ready to be hatched.
Fanny had scarcely reached the hay NOW;
when she heard Uncle Joshua enter the stable
below and commence to descant upon the fine
points of that "off OK to his young guest
II would just like to get peep at that
young man" thought Fanny, and stealing to
the edge of the NOW she ventured to look down
into the stable below. Alas for Fanny, The
board on which she stood tipped with her
weight and In a cloud Of dust, down she went,
alighting squarely on the back of that off OK.
Had witch on her broomstick fallen before
him, our Jacobs could not have looked more
astonished Fanny could have cried with vexa.
ton and shame, but Uncle Joshua took her like
baby in his arms, put her over the next stall
whence she could escape into the house, and
went on talking of his of OK as if nothing had
happened.
At tea Mr.. Jacobs wondered if that graceful
little figure presiding at the table was the same
that came down upon him with such perfect
rush, as he termed it, out in the barn Unfor.
tunately for Fanny, she had a face which once
seen is never forgotten and though she had
cOmbed her hair differently and changed her
dress, and decked her hair with daisies, Mr..
Jacobs made up his mind that it was the same
head which he had seen decked in dust and
hay seed a little while before.
- Never mind" thought Fanny, "I'll dis
guise myself in q new dress tomorrow. I'll
finish that blue silk which father brought me
from New York, and then he'll be sure I'm
not that dusty little wretch he saw out in the
barn"
With a heightened color she talked to Mr.
Jacobs, and the evening slipped away 50 de-
lightfully that the young man retired with firm
conviction that country air was already doing
him much good.
The next forenoon, when the house was quiet
and Fanny imagined that Mr. Jacobs was out
in the fields with her father, she took out her
blue silk dress and commenced sewing upon it.
Hard as she tried to keep up her indignation
for Nathan's quiet desertion, her heart would
swell and soften in spite of herself, and the
blue silk would have been ruined if salt water
could have spotted it, Finally she threw
aside her morning wrapper, and tried on the
new waist to see how it would fit, for Fanny
was her own dressmaker. Uncle Joshua's house
had no superhuous furniture, and the only mir
ror 1t contained hung in the psrlor down stairs
Fanny thought she would ran down while no
one was about and see how her dress looked
She certainly looked very sweetly, with her
hara l. r~lI. Al
finished waist, and her white skirt contrasting
with the rich blue silk. She walked into the
curtained parlor, turned herself around and
around before the glass, and well pleased with
the figure she saw reflected there she made
smiling bow to it, and stepped back few PAGES
and courtesied, held out her hand in a most
bewitchiDg manner, and said "How do you
do 9" then suddenly drew herself up and stood
as if Misunderstanding wildly at the glass,
then covered her face with her hands and
darted from the room. What had she seen
there, it was another face beside her own,
with eyes full of amused pity, and mouth
struggling to keep from breaking into smile
Fanny knew that it was Mr.. Jacobs face, who
was sitting at the opposite side of the room
the darkness of which had prevented her from
discovering him when she first entered-that
he had seen all her ridiculous gestures and
strange attire.
"I'Il burn the blue dress up :" she exclaimed
as soon as she had regained her own room. II
shall hate Mr.. Jacobs, am sure 1 shall
Must he always see me in my most ridiculous
plights 2" She actually cried with vexation;
then sat down and wished in her heart she
could just get glimpse Of Nathan, she would
like to see if he looked sad or happy.
When Fanny had told the mornings event
to Uncle Joshua, he only laughed heartily, and
pOoh-hooed at it, and told Fanny Mr.. Jacobs
was gentleman, and she must treat him as
though she did not know he had been in the
parlor. But a woman finds it difficult to for
give the spectator Of any of her silly absurdi-
ties, however unintentionally he may have
acted such part; and Fanny, notwithstanding
it was very plain that Mr.. Jacobs sought her
society on all occasions, avoided him as much
as possible. He made up his mind at last that
her heart was pre-engaged, and determined to
learn who was his rival if he could
In the little sitting-room down stairs stood
box-iounge, answering the same time for closet
and couch. 1t was simply a rough, board box
about six feet long, and two feet wide, with
lid to it. 1t was far from being air.tight, the
back being pretty we'll perforated with knot
holes. 1t was no longer used to put any
thing in, but it was Uncle Joshua's favorite
resting place when he came in at night and had
his "wssh" after hard days work. In this
little room was one deep window, curtained
with chintz and opened upon the porch.
= 1rO BE CONTINUEBl