The Shasta courier., 1862-05-24
The First of April.
By MARY CLARKE.

Yes," said Aunt Hetty, laying aside
her knitting, and folding her hands for a
chat with sister Elsie and myself, q knew
it was the first of April l never told YOU
about the first of April thirty five years ago,
when we served my brother Tom such a
trick, did | girls?''
1t there was one special thing delightful to Ell
sic and myself, twas to hear Aunt Hetty tell
stories about her own youth SO we said. ca
gerly: Oh, do tell us about it, aunty -
Your Uncle Tom,'' said Aunt Hetty.
was about the smartest, kandsomest young
chap you ever saw, when be came home
from college to Meyersvile. Your grand
father was the rich man of the village. and
Tom being his eldest son, he sent him to
Cambridge to be educated. Meyersviiie is
even now an outof- the-way- place, but then
ut ~as far from any city or toxin. and of
the direct line of travel. and You can scarcely
imagine a more primitive place. l think
Tom was the first young man who ever left
there for college. 1t made quite a stir in the
place. Mr.. Way, the school master. felt
quite insultcd that Toms education was rot
considered finished when he left him, and
did not speak to father for weeks afterwards
However in the face of all the shrugged
shoulders and raised eyebrows, Tom went !.
amt ane bright day in August Tom graduted
:and came home. lie was then just twenty
with tall, fine figure, coal black eyes and
hair, and wore the most astonishing pair of
whiskers. Such airs as he gave himself.-
Such tales of his conquests amongst the Cam
bridge bellies as he related for our benefit !
Such cutting remarks as he made upon our
dresses and styles of wearing our hair In
short, such a complete fop as he was was nev-
.er before seen in our quiet village Your Ia
ther, girls, who was then a fair haired slen-
der boy of sixteen. was the first to murmur
at Tom S airs; / followed suit; aud cousin
Molly, who was making us q visit, came next
in order; we had an indignation meeting,
and voted that Tom was intolerable, and
must be put down. Bet how?
g If he conld only be caught in love
scrape,' sighed Molly. i am sure there
are pretty girls enough in Meyersville-'
. He won't look at them, l said indig
nantly. If Venus herself stood before him
in one of our quiet dresses, he wonld turn his
nose, and say. rather pretty, but dresses
shockingly,'
g 1t is six months since he::came home,
said Edgar, your father. and he is worse
now than he was at first He turns up his
nose at everything short of a fashion plate .
g oh, | cried, l know how to fix him !,
Can you take the intolerable concei
out of him? 1t will be such fun to play
some trick upon him, to convince him that he
is not so wise as he thinks he is
Our plot was formed then and there
and for the next month we--Molly and l.
were very busy. We sent to Boston for fash
ion plates and materials, smugled them in
to the house while Tom was out and WORKED
industriously to carry out our schemes. Ed
gar looked on, and gigled now and then
but kept the secret. At last we were ready
and at tea time one fiue evening opened oul
battery on Tom.
.s' Oh Hetty,' said Edgar to me, hav,
YOU seen the young lady froa Boston VIII.
is staying at the Blue Bear?
a. Stayinga at a tavern! l said, lookin;
shocked.
.'sOh. believe she is left by her father
uncle or brother. or somebody. Anyhow
there is mystery. She always goes GU
veiled, because her complexion might no
stand the sun like yours or Molly's, and sh
reads novels, they say. all day
- Some of the Boston aristocracy. n,
doubt, said Tom. | hope you will cal
girls; she may give you some hints that ma,
be useful to you. on dress or manners
Molly drew herself up. I'm sure yo,
are very kind to think of US. she said
. Such bonnet. such hounces and ruff
fes ? said Edgar. And green thin;
called a pelisse, all made of green velvet
and trimed with fur
'' Then you have seen herr
60 Oh yes; she sailed down Main stree
just before dusk with all her finery. and
thick green veil over her face, and l saw
her go into the tavern myself. so | mad
bold to follow. and Mr. Mems showed m
her name on the books Mrs. Arabelia Alb
bott, Boston, widow
60 Widow ? said l.
"sYes. A funny thing to put on tn
books, amt it. A sort of invitation to b
wooed by the bachelors of the village
Mems says she came in carriage last even
ing just before dark, and when she got I
the door, she called to some one inside
'Good- bye, father, or uncle, he wasn't sur
which, and the carriage drove off. She ia
engaged rooms for four weeks, and she ha
been locked up in one all day until she too
her walk this evening
Just at this instantthe servant came il