The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1870-05-04

TIE FATAL BOUQUET.

What may be the ordinary price Of
such Q bouquet rs a bride maid gener-
ally carries to assist her, in the some
times difficult duty of appearing ire
sistible, ! cannot say; but the only
one | ever had anything to do with
cost hle dear, as WA be seen. Never,
0 my friends, make rash promises; or,
if you Go, dent keep them and in af-
ter days il viii be q comfort to you TO
reflect that you were not so good as
your word. 1t was many years ago
that | was obliged to be present at no
less melancholy ceremony than a
wedding; and it has east a cloud over
all my subsequent life. 1t was love
~ afternoon in summer; Zephyr and
Aurora Lad been Joined together in
holy matrimony; the cake had been
cut the champagne had flowed; the
chariot had carried off the infatuated
pair; the slipper had been thrown; tile
tears had been shed; and everybody
was duh as ditclIwater. | sat and
talked with Arahella, who had been
one of the bride-maids Whether a
bride maid nowadays carries her
bouquet as Arabella's was then car
lied, l cannot tell (for l now live much
"out of the worldly but hers was ear
ried by means of q ring at the end of a
sort OF cornucorpia, in which We're
stuck the sweetest of flowers. What
we said, DO not fortunately recol-
lect; but the rite lately performed had
undoubtedly exercised a singular inHu-
ence, so that eyes Were more than usrl-
ally, soft and low, and conversation
was more than usually sentimental
and I am afraid, absurd. At last,
however, it was somehow brought to
pass that Arahella said playfully,
every we'll, then, on one condition"
1"What is it?" asked eagerly.
"That you carry it exactly as do,
and that you take it with you wherever
yon go to-day"
s.These are very easy terms,n l re-
joined, "and l am only too glad to ac-
cept them"
All that followed l cannot remcm-
Der; but my ears, when think of the
scene, are once more filed with sound
as of a low, but laughing chorus, OF
rather duet; aud my lips, when think
of the scene, feel once more the touch
of a something softer than velvet. n
And that something had four fingers
and a. thumb. Snch Il pretty thumb
1t was as lnneh prettier than ordinary
thumbs as q dimple is prettier than .
| kuucl.le. III,
Well, took the bouquet, and | hung
it by the ring on my little finger; and
all at once began to feel uncommonly
like, fool. | had said that accepted
the conditions gladly; now / knew
that ] had spoken in my haste, and
that most men who speak in theil
haste are liars. So took a mornfu
leave of Arabclla, who, rs departed
called out, IN ind, shah see you to,
morrow, aud shall require II full, true
and particular account Of all that be
| f,lIc ,,,, JnuoraE ~
/ replied gaily, as some people say
that is, incoherently, and with a hys
terical giggle.
MS trials began as soon as was out
side the door, for sympathetic cab
man, at once discerning my believer
ed condition, whipped his horse into
gallop and proffed the safe refuge o
Ibis hansom. But l hadn't three hun
Ldrcd yards to go, and it seemed ridicu
lous for a poor aud economical man t
ride that short distance. However,
you are under the impression that, in
free country, such as we have the hap
Epiness to ''move on" in, a man. VIII
not only has on q wedding carmen
(Which is of itself a dangerous thing t
wear in the Streets but also carries
) bouquet hanging by a ring from hi
little finger, can walk three hundre
yards on the Queens highway wit
: Iimpunity, you had better try it. All
! know is, l. couldn't. The cabman, IN
) able to comprehend my refusal IN
D der the circumstances, drove clos
against the curbstone, keeping pac
! with me as j went, touching his hat q
!. intervals, Calculating compassionately
"Keb, sir; you'd better lev a keb--yo
did indeed,n and SO exposing me to
Thousand times rs much notice as
should have otherwise attracted. Lii
ltlerboys, having their attention espet
tally aroused by the eabman, consid
cred the occasion favorable for dc
morstration, which threatened to tax
the form of shying all manner of dirt
and older persons who encountere
ne either appeared to consider that
had mistaken a bright day in June fl
the fifth of November, and laughed d.
risively, or regarded me with sue
u D. g. sl.