The weekly mountain Democrat. [volume] (Placerville, El Dorado County, Calif.) 1861-1862, 1862-10-04
DON'T Propose in the Dark.

it mPanders through the sunny plain of
Hartly Common, and finally disappears
amidst the green recesses of Perge Wood
that pretty square farm house, half hid
den by the tall elms in the flower court
| before it, which. with the spacious garden
and orchard behind, and the extensive
barn yards and out buildings, so complete
ly occupies one Of the angles formed by
the crossing Of the lane and stream-that
pretty farm house contains one of the
happiest and prosperous families in Aber-
leigh large and thriving family of
farmer Evans.
Whether from skill or from good for
|'''''' - % e >''Tt c,'t;.l.l G-eu very
lucky mixture Of both-everything goes
right on his great farm. His crops are of
the best in the parish his hay is never
spoiled his cattle never die; his servants
never thieve his children are never i'll.
HEEVYS cheap and sells dear; money gath
ers upon him Iike a SNOWFALL, ard vet, in
spite Of all this provoking and intolerable
prosperity, every body loves farmer Evans.
He is so hospitable, SO good-natured, so
generous and so homely.
There, after all, lies the charm. Riches
have not only not spoIlt the man, but they
have not altered him. Lie is Just the same
in look, and word and way, that he was
| thirty years ago, when he and his wife,
with two sorry horses. a COW, and three
pigs, began the world at Dean Gate, lit
tie borough twenty miles of. Ay, and
his wife is the same woman-the same
frugal, tidy, industrious. good natured
Mrs. Evans-So noted for her activity, in
tongue ard limb, her good looks and her
plain dressing; as frugal, as good. naturcd,
| as active, as plain dressing Mrs. Evans at
forty. five as she was at nineteen, and, in
in different way, Of course, almost as
goOd.looking.
The children, six boys as farmer EV-
ans promiscuously calls them, whose ages
vary from eight to twenty, and three girls,
two grown up, and One the youngest Oi
the family, are just what we might expect
from parents who are So simple and so
good.
The youngsmen, intelligent and well
conducted; boys, dociIe and promising !;
and the little girl. as pretty little curly
headed, rosy checked puppet as ever was
the plaything of large family. 1t is,
how Wever, with the eldest daughters We
have to do.
Jane and Patty Evans were as much
alike as ever has belallen any two sisters
rot born at one time; for, in the matter of
twin children there has bcrn series Of
pUzZeS ever sihct the days Of DronaiS.
Neatly OF an asc, believe both arr turned
i'inciecn, and ntit!ier Reached /" cnty, rX
actiy OF a stature, (so nigh li.at Frederick
- the Great Wuii.d ll.tN = cuylteG t:teIn for his
tail rrGiHtutJ "ita hazel eyes, mouths
large. i.A li;s, u hite tceth, brown hair
cI,ar, healthy complexion, ai.d that sort ut
nos, winch l. l,it:er Greek nor Roman,
lor aqliiinc. nor cc }'ett hcr ret russo,
that SoiIe .'cI SOILS prefer To them all, but
n".c " "h'ch, u4u'.elat,iy prominent and
su"Iclthtr wei SNAPPED, IL yet, lar a> /
know, anonymous, although II bc perhaps
as conIuIou and as well looking rs is to be
seln on an English lace.
Altogether they were pair of tail,
coui j. inaiiens, and being constantly at
tired IA GARMENTS of the sulnc coiur and
that uo stranger ever dreamed of knowing
th,M apart, a..d even their acquaintahceS
! "rrr rather accustomed to speak and think
) al them geneiai,y as the Evan>cS, than as
separate individuals, Jane and Patty
/ Even tAose who did pretend to distinguish
t..r one from the other, were not exempt
. irotH mistakes, which the siStlrs-Patty
I esq g.ai!y, Who dc!ightcd in the fun So ut
/ lei, iHO..uc- Il uy the unusi4;,l Resemblance
-w,rl apt to favor by changing places in
walk, or s.lpiing from Gne side to the
other, at a country tea party, or playing
a hundred innocent tricks, to occasion at
once grave blrnder and very merry
laugh.
Old Dilah Goodwin, for instance, who,
being rather pubiind, was jealous of being
suspected of seeing less clearly than hci
| neighbors, and had detied the EvanseS
To puzzle her discernment--seeking in
vain on Patty's hand the cut finger which
she had dressed on Jane's-aseribed the
incredible cure TO her own incomparab!t
salve; and could hardly be undeceived
even by the pulling of of James glove,
and the exhibition of the lacerated digita
sewed around by her own unmistakable
bandage.
Young George Kelly, too, the greatest
beau in the village, having bet at Christ
mas party that he would dance with every
pretty girl in the room, lost his wager
which Patty had overheard, by thatsaucy
damsel Shipping into her sisters place, anC
persuading her to join her own unconsci
Gus partner; so that poor George danced
twice with Patty, and none at oil with
Jane.
A bantcring piece Of malice, which
proved, as the young gentleman IA rustic
exquisite Of the first water) was pleased
To assert, that Miss Patty was not dis
rfsaaSed with hsr partneS, ~ How littlt
does vain man know of womapkind =
If she had liked him she would not have
played hun the trick for the mines of Col
conda.
And yet Nature-who sets some mark
Of individuality upon even her meanesI
productions, making some unDoted differ
ence between the lambs dropped from the
eve, the robins bred in one nest, the flow
ers growing on one stock, the leaves hang
ing on one tree-hath not left these maid
ems without one great permanent distinc
tion-a natural and striking dissimilarity
of temper. Equally industrious, Affection
ate, happy and kind, each was kind, hap.
py, affectionate and Industrious in iaI
different way. Jane was grave; Patty was
gay. If you heard laugh or song, be
sure it was Patty; she who jumped the
stle when her sister opened the gate, was
Patty; she who chased the pigs from the
garden as merrily as if she was running
a race, so that the pigs Gid not mind her,
was Patty.
On the other hand, she that so carefully
was making, with its own raveled thread,
an invisible darn in her mothers hand
kerchief, and was hearing her sister read
t while-she that so patiently vas feed
ing, one by one, two broods of young tur'
kies-she, too that SO pensively was wa
tering her own bed of delicate and some
what rare flowers, the pale hues of the