The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1864-01-08
THE PERSEVERING BACHELOR.

failed to express his passion at the proper
moment: or, in other words, had not
come to time, and one day his heart was
lacerated by receiving an envelope of
cards announcing that the delightful Lucy
was about to become Mrs. Jimmerson
Crooks.
It was a terrible blow to Peter, but he
staggered up from it, and still loved the
object of his early passion-at distance.
Mrs Jimmerson Crooks revelled in the
delights of matrimony, leading fashions,
her husband, and Peter-at a distance
by the nose for five years, at the end of
which time Mr.. Jimmerson Crooks chose
to depart for another sphere, leaving Mrs.
Jimmerson alone to mourn his death.
Once more Peters heart sprang up from
dust and ashes, and looked forward to the
time when the allotted period of mourn
ing should be over and he could pour forth
the pent up agonies of FIVE years, and ask
compensation in the hand of the fair wild
ow. One year thought Peter is surely
enough time Month after month rolled
away until he could stand it no longer. A
sickish misgiving of the evils of delay
drove him to preeipitate the asking.
When the tenth month came he sought
the widow at her home, and with all the
ardor of a long pent up love poured forth
his tale The widow heard hin-heard
him calmly unto the very end, and then,
with her perfumed handkerchief pressed
to her blushing cheeks, told Peter that
she had only the week before promised
her hand to DR.. Stickleback and oh. why
did not her friend speak before?
4 second time WAS Peters heart torn
into fragments; a second time was he
sent into the world to adnire-at dis
lance.
Time sped On, and once more Peter be-
gan to encourage hope. Perhaps Sickle
back might die; he certainly had an apo
pletic look; and sure enough Peters per-
haps turned out a certainty, and Mrs. DR..
Theodosius Stickleback was once mere a
mOurner. Peter had learned too bitterly
the dangers OF delay to suffer any such
cause TO stand this time between himself
and success. lie would not give the wild
ow Il year, nor yet ten months-nay, not
even six; but the third month he would
go to her with his tale of love deferred
and so he did. We must transcribe the
W INOh = ON NOIuS Nutu Jilt OuGSLcu
was popped:
cob. Mr.. Robinson, why did you not
come before? You know my esteem for
you; you know that / would have set
aside all other offers for you; but oh !
how can | tell you-that only last evening
promised Captain Hawkina. Poor, dear
sweet Hawkins. he's your intimate friend |
| know: I've heard hi.a speak so highly |
of you. OH why did you not speak be-
fore? 2"
And so Mrs. DR.. Tl.eodosius Stickleback |
was transformed into Mrs Jonathan Haw-
kins; and Peter was once more left to
distance.
Still Peter wanted and hoped. Some
thing might turn up, he argued, and |
then he would not allow himself to be too |
late; and something did turn up the |
something being nothing more or
less than the redoubtable captain, vino
turned up missing, having fallen overheard
from the steamboat, while out on target
excursion with his company, and sunk like
a!stone, owing, undoubtedly, to the pom
derous nature of his responsibilities.
The suddeness of this exit, as Peter
argued, must certainly act with depressing
force on the widow, and thought he would
not give her again time to recover and be
admired, still etiquitte demanded a little
time to intervene. Accordingly when up
on the tenth day after the melancholy be-
reavemeut, Peter knocked at the widows
door, bent upon his errand of love, he
rather clluckled to himself that he was
taking time by the forelock. The business
on which he came was quietly told, and
once more the widow was in a torrent of
tears.
''Oh Mr.. Robinson" she exclaimed,
hiding her blushing face in her cambria,
"why are you so unfortunate, and why am
l.: You know my esteem for you, but
you are too late! am already engaged.
You know Counsellor Ketcham ?-my
poor dear, dead and gone Hawkins most
intimate friend. He was with him you
know, when he was called away, and was
the first to communicate the awful intelli-
gence. He was such comforter, and
have promised to have him, this day two
months -
This time Peter was crushed He had
no word to express his broken-hearted-
ness but to rush from the house and go
on as before, admiring at distance.
1t was months before Peter even offered
to encourage hope, and even then it flick
cred. One day he was walking in despon-
dent mood through one of the upper ave-
nues, when he heard sudden shout and
started. Frem half-fnishel building he
saw, as he raised his eyes, stout Mile
sian making gyrations of the air, from the
height of three stories, in company with
a Gaping stone. weighing somewhat less
than halt a ton-the two being slipped
together from a scatfolding at that height.
He saw both Milesian and stone strike
full upon the heads Of two gentlemen pass
ing, and the whole four were in an instant
mixed in an inextricable heap. Like all
the other spectators, Peter rushed to the
rescue, only to behold, between horror and
Joy, the last gasps Of Counsellor Ketchum
and the gentleman who was walking with
him, and the perfect safety of the Milesian
and the stone.
This time Peter would trust to no pass
ing time. Without an instant's delay
mora than to satisfy himself that l;fa Voc