Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1870-12-08

supper John addressed his conversation to
Huidah. who sat 1t the table with the
family, for in the country in those days il
would have been considered Q great out
rage to make. a ''help' wait Tor the second
table. John would turn from the liter.
airy conversation to inquire Of Huldah
about his old playmates. some Of whom
had gone TO {. the West, some Of
whom had died, and some Of whom were
settling into the same fixed adherence TO
their native rocks that ha6. characterized
their ancestors.
The next day the ladies coIlj get no
good ont of John Harlow. He got up
early and MIXED the COW. He dlt wood
and carried it in for Huldah.s He rode old
Bob to the brook for water. He did
everything that he had been accustomed
to do when boy, finding as much pleasure
in forgetting that he was man, as he had
once found in hoping to be a man. The
two boys enjoyed his society greatly, and
his father was delighted to see that he had
retained his interest in the farm-life. though
the deacon evidently felt an unconquerable
hostility to what he called that scrub.
brush on the upper-lip.' ! think if John
had known how strong his fathers feeling
was against this much cherished product
he would have moved the crop and grazed
the field closely until he got back to the
city
John was not insensible to Janet Dun.
tons charms She could talk fluently
about all the authors most in vogue,
and the effect Of her fuency was really
dazzling TO man not yet cultivated
enough himself TO see how superb
cial her culture was. For all her learning
floated on top. None of it had influenced
her own culture. She was trimming full
of that which she had acquired, but it had
not been incorporated into her own nature.
John did not see this, and he was in
fatuated with the idea of marrying wife
Of such attainments How she would
dazzle his friends! How the Governor
would like to talk to her! How she would
shine in his parlors! How she would de-
light people as she gave them tea and talk
at the same time. John was in love with
her as he would have been in love with a
new tea-urn ora rare book. She was a nice
thing to show. Other people than John
have married on the strength of such q feel
ing, ar called it love. For John really
imagined that he was in love. And dur
ing that week he talked and walked and
rode in the sleigh with Miss Dunton, and
had made up his mind that he would carry
this brilliant prize to New York. But,
with lawyer-likc caution, he thought he
would put Oft the committal as long as
possible. If his heart had beer in
his attentions the caution would not have
been worth much. Caution is good
break-water against vanity; but it isn't
worth much against the spring tide oflOve,
as John Harlow soon found.
gan to feel a warmer feeling for Miss Janet.
1t was not in the nature OF things that
John should walk and talk with pleas
ant girl week, and not feel something
more than his first interested desire to
marry snowy wife. His heart began to
be touched, and he resolved to bring things
to crisis as soon as possible. He there
fore sought an opportunity to propose.
But it was hard to find. For though Mrs.
Holmes was tolerably ingenious, she could
not get the boys or the deacon to pay any
regard to her hints. Boys are totally de-
PRAYED on such questions, anyhow, and al
ways manage to stumble in where any
privacy Is sought. And as for the deacon, it
really seemed as though he had some de-
sign in intruding at the critical moment.
do not think that John was seriously in
love with Miss Dunton. If he had been, he
would have found some means of commu-
nicating with her. A thousand spies with
sleepless eyes all round their heads cannot
keep man from telling his love some
how, If he really have love to tell.
There is another fact which convinces
me that John Harlow was not yet very
deeply in love with Janet. He was fond
Of talking with her Of Byron and Milton,
Of Lord Bacon and Emerson, i.e., as have
already said, he was fond Of putting his
own knowledge on dress-parade in the
presence of one who could appreciate the
display. But whenever any little thing re-
in the sitting-room, he was given to slip
ping out into the old kitchen, where sit
ting on chair that had no back, and lean.
ing against the chimney-side, he delighted
to talk to Huldah. She couldn't talk much
Of books, but she could talk most charm
ingly Of everything that related to the
country life, and she could ask John many
questions about the great city. In fact,
John found that Huldah had come into
possession Of only such facts and truths as
could be reached in her narrow life, but
that she had assimilateds them, and
thought about them, and that II was more
refreshing to hear her original and piquant
remarks about the topics she was acquaint-
cd with, than to listen to the tircless stream
Of Janet Dunton's ostentatious erudition.
And he found more delight in telling the
earnest and hungry minded country girl
about the great world of men and the
gerat world of books, than in talking to
Janet, who was, in the matter of knnMl=
edge, a ffttfe 5ldsee, If may be allowed the
expression. And then to Huldah he could
talk Of his mother, whom he had often
watched moving about that same kitchen
When he had spoken to Janet Of the asso-
Citations Of the old place with his mothers
countenance, she had answered with o quo-
tation from some poet, given in tone OF
empty sentimentality He instinctivcly
shrank from mentioning the subject to hel
again but to Huldah it was 80 easy to
talk of his mothers gentleness and sweet.
ness. Huldah was not unlike her in these
respects, and then she gave him the sort OF
sympathy that finds its utterance In ten
der silencc-so much moro tender than
any speech can be. @ffg
He observed often during the week that
Huldah was depressed. He could not
exactly account for it, until he noticed
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