The Manitowoc tribune. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1866-1878, 1868-11-12

inal errand, by an opportunity of insertin;
the wedge of inquiry.
"Ahl Miss Disbrow, Yes, am goinl
to Chicago on little business trip. Won
you come in"
"Thank you, Mr.. Whiting, not thi
morning. Does your wife accompany
your"
; mo, she doesn't. She is going to Gin
cinnati for few days" replied Mr.. Whit
ing, who was as guileless as spring chick
en- and not much more of mo,.thful fol
the maneuvering black fox, who Away.
found great deal more flavor in anythin.
she had unearthed. by skIlifdl digging
GU had better eost,e in" continued he
cordially, "Mrs. Whiting is busy pack
Ing, but she will be glad to see YOU
And the deluded man really believed so
for, although he had lived in such close
relation with Mrs. Whiting for five years
he was only man, after all.
But Miss Disbrow was a woman, and sc
she knew great deal better than .to be
persuaded person is glad to see callers
when packing "Oh, no, indeed Mr.
Whiting Thank you; but I lust ran
over, in neighborly way, to tell you of a
little accident happened to observe from
my window. A pillow fell from the bal
usirade where your chambermaid oe5p
carelessly left it; and is now lying upon
the sidewalk. was fearful it might come
to grief before any of the family missed it.
Good morning." And so speaking, Miss
Disbrow bowed and rustled away.
Benjamin" said she, mysteriously,
when she reached her own rocking chair
again, cannot see why Mrs. Whiting
takes the time to go to Cincinnati when
her husband is away. It would be ma
: ~ f0 loo 4 No IL
that Tightly Bridget Gedakes Or then,
| why not Mrs. Whiting go TO-DAY, while
her husband is here to see her off! I can't
/ understand it."
And with this, Miss Disbrow fell into a
| tit of musing, and unused so long and
| silently that Benjamin fell asleep, and
dreamed he knew where there was wood
| chucks hole with the woodchuck in it.
| Meantime Mr. Whiting kissed his wife
/ (probably,) took his valise, and went off,
happily unconscious of a cloud no bigger
than mans hand already coming up in
| his domestic sky. He thought of no
| shadow darker than the bank of heavy
edampness hanging over his head in the
heavens. And that very evening those
vaporous clouds, having sulked long
enough over the wretched condition Of
the muddy streets, made up their mind,
and expressed it by coming down in an
| emphatic fall of snow, that glided from
umbrellas and drifted against windows,
like slipping off of great white blankets.
/ BY day dawn the streets, and roofs, and
steeples, were white as miller's cat, and
the air rang with the scraping of shoyels,
and jangGng of sleigh-bells.
"Of course Mrs. Whiting won't think
| of starting after such a snow, with every
prospect of the roads being blocked. Of
!
brow, seating herself to the occupation of
looking upon the things of her neighbor
with all the eyes of her glasses. Watch.
ing them so intently, that actually pair
of pigeons flew INTO the belfry of the
| church, and pair of ragged boys peeped
into the vestry window without her know
ing it. But her watch was rewarded, for
at precisely a quarter past eleven, a close
carriage came up to Mrs. Writings door.
As sure az you are born, Benjamin,
she is goingi" exclaimed Miss DisbTow,
apparently as violently astonished as
| though she had been looking all the morn
ing for sight of this very carriage. "And
| tao0 trunks What can the woman want of
taoo trunks, just going down to Cincinnati
for few days." she continued, appearing
to suspect the old trick of the Trojan horse.
"Weu, now, | can't see why she takes SO
much baggage. And as sure as you are
made, Benjamin, she has new travelling
suit throughout, hat and all. A suit Of
silver gray poplin, with muf and col
lar of Astrachan WOOL and an A aska hat.
| She looks as girlish as you please" added
Miss Dtsbrow, bringing her opera glass,
| which always lay conveniently near on a
| teapoy, to bear upon the small figure of
/ her lleighbor, who was turning back at
the door for a last word to Bridget; seem
ing, as she stood there. to the untried eye,
| as cheerful and innocent as a Burgundy
rose. But, alas things are not what they
seem!
eff that woman is ever dissected L want
to see her heart, Benjamin. / believe she
has no more than you could put on the
point of needle. l do So" resumed Miss
Disbrow, putting down her glass as the
carriage slowly ploughed its way along the
snowy street, and taking up the book
mark she was embroidering for the pulpit
Bible.
The sun shone, the pigeons whirred past
the windows, the school boys -balled
the engine screamed, and the cars rumbled
and grumbled and glided out from the de.
pot, disappearing around the long curve
out beyond the city limits, and so away
into the Gmitless somewhere of the wide
world. And with them went little Mrs
Whiting, blithe as a bluejay, and charming
as June morning. But although she
looked so, what if, after all, she was not
simple hearted as daisy?
Ibid you know Mrs. Whiting over here
had gone away, Aunt Alma ?" cried Out
her niece Moraretta, bursting into the
room that afternoon in her usual abrup
way.
"Certainly, niece. Take care, child
Don't upset that pot of primroses"
Miss Disbrow always enjoyed a call from
Moraretta, something as one would see
calf taking his morning walk among one,
verbenas.
Moraretta, a little more and you would
have thrown down the shade over my wa,
flowers Did you want anything ?"
"Why, no, Aunt Alma. just come il
that is ali. But l was wondering who
: Mrs. Whiting went off with, and l though
perhaps you knew"
"Why, did you see anybody with her
What do you mean?" asked Miss Disbrov
J suddenly, so interested that she forgot t.
5 chide Moraretta for swinging pair O
/ scissors by her ribbon, to the imminen
r peril of Benjamin's eyes and of pier
3 glass.
! Eyes, / saw somebody and so did Bell
{ Mosier. We were coming through tn
depot, on our way from school, like W,
' always do, when we saw Mrs. Whiting
| l saw her, and SO, did Bella; and just a
| we said, both together, There is Mrs