The Hancock Jeffersonian. [volume] (Findlay, Ohio) 1857-1870, 1868-06-19

a
IeIes. But young people have mis-
taken idea that old people don
know anything!
Miss Ariel Browne sat in her room
busy with complicated piece G
bright colored webwork that ladie
call "crochet," when Bridget tappe'
softly at the panels of the door.
"Please, Miss Ariel, letter %
"a letter I! and for mei' Dear m
Bridget, who can it be from
"Faix, then, and IFS meself doesn'
know, but Growers office boy brough
it, and an impudent young spalpeel
it is, for"
But here Bridget became con
lscious that her young mistress wa
lpaying no attention to her and with
drew into her department of tn,
kitchen, there to nurse her grief il
solitude.
Ariel's. cheek had turned as pinl
as the inside of a wild ose-bud, a,
she read the superscription of tn,
letter, and her heart beat perhaps .
pulse or two faster than was it:
wont, but she broke open the mis-
sive with a resolute hand, and read
My Dear Miss Browne: "Rathel
cold beginning" she pouted, II mus
beg to decline all further negotia
tions with you. As, you cannot for {
moment seriously suppose care to
possess anything so utterly worn
down and good for nothing, it is use
less to waste our time in any more
preliminaries.
81 will call this afternoon and re-
turn to you the papers you so uDnec.
essarily took the trouble to send me.
"Yours very truly, H. Grover" "
Ariel threw down the note, and
burst into tears.
"The d-hearted. presumptuous
villain" she sobbed. "Papers, in
deed 1 suppose he means the note I
sent him about the picnic Oh, how
foolish / have been, how absurd, and
l am rightly punished for my folly !''
But still Ariel went on; when a
girl Of eighteen has huilt up a gilt.
tering castle in the air, whose foun-
dstions are laid in her own heart,
she cannot see it dashed ruthlessly
into ruins without a few natural
tears!
Meanwhile. Miss Experience
Browne, aetat fifty well-ripened au-
tumns, was reading, with no little
establishment, the letter which Bridg-
cts enemy, the post-boy, had
brought for her.
"U-pon my word" exclaimed
Miss Experience, slowly and emphat-
ically. "The impertinent young for
tune hunting humbug! Does he sup
pose I'm born fool, to swallow such
a pack OF sentimental fiattsry as thisp
Lovely eyes-dimples Ifhe'd said
spectacles and wrinkles, he'd have
been considerable nearer right. No
you don't, my fine fellow--no-you-
don't. Experience Browne hasn't liv-
ed SIS years in the world to fall into
such a trap a. this at last He'll
sscall this afternoon to receive the
answer that is to decide the whole
current of his future life,' will he
Well, let him call. I'll be ready for
him, and I'll warrant me he won't be
in a hurry to call again
Aud Miss Experience chuckled to
herself until all the false curls qaIy-
cred, as she folded the letter neatly,
and put it back into its hurriedly-
directed envelope.
. 81 never had an offer of marriage
BEFORE" she thought, viewing her
sutumnsl countenano. in the pier
glass, and adjusting the little pnffs of
ribbon in her cap-border, '-and it
does make one feel kind of queer
It's something to tell of, anyway.
MISUNDERSTANDING go to sayin sao,0
that am an old maid because i nev-
er had an offer / just wonder what
Ariel would ssy-I guess / won't tell
her; she would only laugh at me!"
Miss Experience drew herself up
as grimly as if her spinal column
were q bar of iron, that afternoon,
when Bridget announced:
"Mr. Grover, meml''
"Show him in, Biddy-I am quite
at leisure to receive him."
And our hero, entirely innocent of
the impending storm that awaited
him, walked into MISS Experiences
awful presence, with a bundle of title
deeds in his hand, tied with the off,
cial looking red tape of his profess
ion.
"Good afternoon, Miss Expert
ence p
"Ain't you ashamed Of yourself,
Harry Grover calculated. the spin
ster, in a deep stern voice. "Get
along with yourself, maxim love to
an old woman more'n twice as old as
you be. just because she's got little
money! What do you take me for,
hey? Walk out of this room, quick,
or I'll throw the big dictionary at
your head! No, no, no, Noae you
have got your answer plain enough
] wouldn't marry you il there wasn't
another man in the whole town %
Harry Grover was little appalled,
at this charge of horse and foot, but
he stood his ground manfully, not
even quailing at the big dictionary.
s:But, Miss Browne, will you hear
me a moment / don't want you to
marry me! What has put this
strange fancy in your head p
"You don't want to marry me ?
Then what the mischief does this let.
ter mean, I'd like to know T'
"May 1 look at it p
Harry took the letter and glanced
at tits contents threw a new light
on the unaccountable state of affairs.
"Good Cupid what blockhead--
what an unmitigsted, inexcusable, in
comparable donkey l. have been
What could L have been thinking
about2
"Hey" demanded the puzzled
spinster.
Excuse me, ma'am, but there has
been q mistake-a-"
And without stopping to complete
his fragmentary sentence, he Tushe
out of the room to the little bay win.