The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1868-09-05
Selected Story.
PERSONALS STATION D

and So worthless In the giving, as this same
experiences And then my wife iisnts the
gas, and we all 60 to dinner, ana tne a'nner
is excellent; are not Mrs. Lumpkin dinners
always excellent? And still nna myself
bordering on the case OF Jenny jerks
Miss jerks is otthe klttenish order of girls.
She is round and plump She mas baby
face and innocent eyes. She can be sweet
and tart and perverse and bewitching, lust as
child Is, all at once. The fact, she Is full
grown child; physically woman, mentally a
baby. Baby likes what is bright and glazing.
So does she. Baby is sublimely superior to
reason. So is she. Baby has diabolical in
genulty in getting itself caught by the neck
and skirts and fingers. She has the same in
genuty Tor what she calls "scrapes" Baby Is
AFFLICTED with an evil spirit OF research into
every place or thing that can bite, pinch, nip,
smash, and, in one word, hurt it. SO is she,
metaphorically. Baby is always trying to
put its fingers into the pretty CANDLE" So is
she; metaphorically again! But here the par
ael ends. Baby can be taken away and
quenched in bed, or in nurses lap. Miss jerks
has the liberty as well as the stature, of wo-
manhood. We may shout till we are hoarse,
naughty candle Burn Jennie! Burnt me
oucer and she can still say, as she did to
me,
but want to feel what burn is like, for
myselfyou know
Jenny is visiting my niece Clara, who is as
much OF baby as herself. They crimp each
others heads, and wear gowns cut from the
same piece OF goods. They both wear frllls,
and rosettes Tor skirts, and ribbon, and flow
er for bonnets. They are tightly girted in at
the waist and have short curls, and long curls
and dog collars, and high heels, and Gre
can bend, and nice ankles, and ribbon by the
piece, and distracting little wells. They are
rosy and saucy and coquettlsh very pretty, in
TACT, excepting the Grecian bend; and they
go strolling down Filth Avenue and Broad
way, and think that every fine looking man
with good gloves and shoulders is hero, and
chrlsten every woman in absurd train and in
accessible bonnet splendid" Fancy letting
loose twosuch infants in city like New York!
You know that extremes meet, and that few
old sinners are more reckless than a baby
And these girls say and do things, IN the in
nOcence and ignorance of their hearts, that
make me, tity-years'old uncle, shudder.
Still, what am 10 do about it, fast in my
shop. while Mrs. Lumpkin is equally last in
her kitchen?
You ask, what things? Here is an exam
pie. For a week they have been shut up 10
the house, and for no good cause, you may be
sure. Busy over some engnry oil mischief
walking SUITS was told-and only appear
ing at meals, with hair in crimpng pins, and
Unread and snippmgs OF some gray stuff stick
ing all over them; still they were safe in the
house. and breathed freer; till on a certain
Friday heard bouncing and rustling out
side OF nv door, and, opening it, behold Jen-
ny and Clara!
Now 1 have no more eye for the details of
millinery than beetle; but always expert
enced from my youth up vague approving
consciousness OF white fris and cuffs, trim
boots, fresh hats, gloves and faces, dainty col
lars, soft curls, flowing outlines, and hlmsy
things of lace. Consequently, though / try
to look grim, feel myself soltening, and the
rrevelent minxes find me out at once and
kiss me, and dance about me, and 90 away
flushed no doubt, with this their first con
quest, and leave me confounded. Full OF
malice against my unlucky sex they get into
stage and ride about. Somebody looks at
them; somebody like me from my youth
up" only he is in his youth vet, and has not
arrived at the sup" Jenny discovers hlm-a
woman who cannot see through her eyelids
Is unworthy of the name OF wOman-steals
a look at the locker, and observes that he has
a dark mustache. Stranger looks away. Jen-
ny, very curious to know if he will look
again, steals another glance, gets caught in
the act, and bushes crimson. Clara finds it
out by this time, and takes notes. Stranger
is curious to see if Jenny is looking. Jenny
is curious to see if Stranger is looking. Both
stea! glances, and their eyes meet. BY this
also. Jenny is quite resolved to look that
way no more, but does so want to know if
he is looking still. Looks towards the glass
at the upper end of the stage. A similar
brilliant device has occurred to the stranger,
and their eyes meet in the glass. Jenny
pouts, turns ner back squarely, and for the
rest of the ride looks industriously down
Broadway. The next morning Clara finds in
the paper the following advertisement:
WI tha If fna tvvo To-
dressed alike in gray poplin walking dresses
trimmed with grey SATIN, and who rode on
Friday afternoon from Tenth to Canal streets
in Fifth Avenue stage, favor the gentleman
who sat on her LETT with her address, and
oblige an ardent admirer? x. Y T., Station
d, Post-ofice, N. Y.
Clara read and re-read the advertisement.
They did wear grey poplin. 1t Wds trimmed
with grey satin. Jenny Uds the shorter, and
the gentleman who stared at her so did sit at
her left hand. Clara flew up stairs, her fin
ger on the advertisement. Jenny was brush
ing out her crimps before the toilet table,
Clara thrust the paper under her eyes and
cried, tread that
viii the shorter OF the two young ladies,"'
commenced Jenny, wouderingly, and then
broke off to glggle. Snow, Clara, don't be-
lieve it,
"Dontbele what?"
"That this is intended for u.s."
"'Of the two yOurg ladies,"' continued
Jenny, "'who were dressed alike in grey pop
lin, trimmed with grey satin, and who'-why,
Clara, they are not grey. They are nearer
cream tint
swell. do you expect man to know about
shades and tints?"
1T is very odd, observes Jenny. "There
certainly was gentleman"
Clara, sarcastically, 81 should think there
was"
"And he did stare so at u.s."
"You, you mean"
u could not even look that way. Impert-
nent creature! He wore light coat"
mo, it was dark"
"Oh yes! / remember. Do you suppose he
thinks will answer him?"
"li he does not, should say that he was
q fool to ADVERTISE
Jenny tossed her head.
Then ne is mistaken. i shall do nothing
OF the sort. Not that l think there is any
harm in it, but don't choose. Let him get
an introduction"
"But people can't always get an introduc-
ton"
"Let him haunt the theatres and churches.
them" replied Jenny, despotically, "and go to
hall dozen receptions night to meet me.
That IS what should do"
Clara said nothing. Jenny brushed her
hair and read the advertisement again.
1T is very respectful"
"Yes, and well written. He is gentle
man."
could write, and still he need never know
who am"
Certainly not" Clara evidently sided
with the advertisement. q
But then if did write, what could 1 say?
Address N, Station D. Post-efice. No harm
could come from that. Suppose we try"
Clara bndling.
ooh! have nothing to do with it.
"Then cannot write it. l could never do
such thing alone"
And of course / need not say what hap
pened next. You see already that the two
young simpletons wrote the letter and posted
1t.
1t happened about that time that Clara re-
ceived letter from her mother MRS. Stand
ish), in which was a message for her aunt
Mrs. Lumpkin), and at dinner Clara recol-
lected that she had received letter, also that
1t was from her mother, also that it contained
message tor Mrs. Lumpkin, but forgot the
message, doubtless because OF the more i'm
pOrtant business that size had on hand
Great events turn on little hinges. 1t bappen-
ed that was just going up stairs, and was
commissioned to bring down the letter from
the pocket of Clara's gray walking suit which
hung in the clothes press.
nate fumbling in pockets. First, can
never md the pocket. Next, when found |
can never get into it. went I'D stairs smart
ing with Keen sense of personal injury.
dashed madly into the pocket of the first