The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1869-11-11

a gentleman said, You have dropped som
of your flowers, Miss, though / don't knov
as you care for them She looked aroun,
and saw, quite under the car, spray of tw,
or three apple-buds and blossom or so. o
course, she didn't go under the car for that
but on to the ladies room; and then she look
ed away and he went oil. But it seemed h
took the same train, for at the next station h
came into the car with the flower in his but
ton-hole; and as it happened, she had one
pinned on her sacque-so they smiled again
looking away from her, which was rather
| awkward, of course He was quiet a nict
! looking young man"
Not SO very young though" put in Alice
sTNNasn't? Well and he Wore a diamond
pin, and puhed shirt~front, and a blue neck
| tie She said ''After she left the cars a
/ Boston, she saw him again, looking after her
with the flowers still in his button n-hole She
staid in Boston several weeks, and she me
the same man fifteen times, always with
flower in his button-hole"
1.-The same flower p nsinterposcd Peter, Will
an insulting, crednlons air.
Phiomena took no notice of his question.
''And every journey she has taken since
she has come across him in Just the same
way" she continued; and every time he Sort
of smiles with his eyes, but gives no Other
sign of recognition. What do YOU think OF
?' said She bringing up suddenly.
81 don't thing anything Of il in particular
only an unusually pretty girl, and an unusu
ally susceptible man. What is there to it ?'
replied Peter.
''Well," said Phlomena, impatiently, ''why
dosen't he try tomake her acquaintance some
how, OF else why does he follow her sop
'How should | know? Is that all z" re-
turned Peter picking up his paper,
1t was enough to make Moses himself
speak out, and Philomcna, being not meckcl
than he, exclaimed
"Cousm Alice, when we have another
story to tell, we will address ourselves to the
sofa-cushions, and then we shall get all the
advice we expect
''Advice! Why, l don't see anything tor
cousin Alice to do but keep along in her own
way. The fellow does nothing to annoy her
as understands and you cannot enter COM
plant against u man for riding in the cars
with a flower in his mouth, . protested Peter
''Some men are Just so sappy'
Gle has done something more than that" ,"
said Philomcna. cat least, somebody has {;
and we suppose it to be he. She continues
to have anonymous presents sent to her.
First, OF book-mark, with u painted apple
blossom on it another time, chrome picture
Of them in Il frame made of apple seeds.
Yesterday he was in the cars again. and kept
such a nervous watch Of her that cousin Alice
became real nervous and to day what DO You
think, Peter? but the letter carrier brought
this -
Philomena held up, rs she spoke, an eN-
quisite ivory brcast-pin 50 dclicately carved
in the form of = cluster Of apple buds that
even Peters quiet blood beat u calm approval
Of its beauty
What can | do, Cousin Pctcr?9 said Alice,
in 4 tlutter 4 don't wish, Of course. to
keep these things, and cannot return them
to anybody.'
Lay them aside; that will not be keeping
them, replied Peter.
''Sometimes Il man seems to be real COM
fort in the wAy Of clearing up and setting
straight, and sometimes he is no better than
4 towstrlng, remarked Philomona, who had
u way of making charges against men as u
body. and not Peter as an individual
And then the dinner bel lopportuncly rang.
Not many days after, Phlomcna and cousin
Alice went down behind the house for some
OF the azaleas thatmade the sloping hillside one
bed of fragrant bloom
There are plenty OF Young wintcrgrcens
further along-let'1 90 for them, and gather
our flowers when we come back, T" said phlo-
mona.
SO they kept on quite to the brook that
picked lis troubled way along the bottom of
the dell, when at turn around-a huge rocl,
they came suddenly upon man with fishing
tackle and a string Of trout.
'.Why, Osborne Grav!r 2 exclaimed phlo-
mena, running forward in delightful surprise,
How came You here? didn't know You
were in town! Why haven't you been to see
us?" she continued.
TO her surprise Osborne Gray blushed and
bowed awkwardly, and forgot his usual ready
flow Of words. And then, still more to her
surprise, on looking around to introduce
cousin Alice, she found the lattcr's face the
color Of the azalea blossoms she had stuck in
her belt; and general desire impressed al
over her to pinch her left car and 90 lnyisi-
BILE, like the old con Juror in the story. But
much rs Il whortlcbcrry bush to hide behind ;
and with n strange shyness cousin Alice re-
turned Mr. Gray's embarrassed salutation.
"How qucerly they bohavc?' thought
Philomena. But at that time she noticed the
genteman's pufled shirt front, diamond pin
and blue ncck-tie, with u bunch of azalcas in
his button-holc answering precisely. as it
happened, in place, to those in Alice's belt.
And then her eyes were suddenly opened,
and she saw that cousin Alicc's mysterious
car acquaintance was nobody but Osborne
Gray. after all. Osborne Gray Why she
had known him ever since she was born. A
bachelor of some years standing 1T this time,
rich and agreeable, and polite 10 everybody
but so odd, and as hard to bring under bit
and rein rs a wild colt of the prairies
Every new girl who came to town was sure
TO mistake his pleasing civilties to her as Il
stranger and a woman, to De symptoms Of
the heart; each one believing she was the
discoyercr of himself for whom Osborne had
been waiting all the lost years. And each
one as soon as She showed the beginnings of
a tender interest had been dropped by him as
though she had been a hot chestnut.
''And now she has turned out to be some
body whom somebody knows, it is all over
between him and cousin Alice; and | could
see she was really interested as well as he"
mlsed Philomcna with real regret; for though
she was no matchmaker she knew what was
appropriate The cnchantmcnt with all be
gone for him and, besides, he won't ever
dare look at her again for tear he should be
encouraging false hopes. lcould shake him. =
said she to herself.
But she was mistaken. Something like en-
chantment still seemed to hang about cousin
Alice's curls and dimples; or else-who
could tell pit might be Osborne Gray felt
obliged by his code Of courtliness to be some
what polite to Philomcna's guest Which
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