The Union and journal. [volume] (Biddeford, Me.) 1858-1882, 1870-06-10
BIDDEFoRD, ME-, FRIDAY

such piece of impudence; but Frient
Samuers fat sides shook with laughter
and although his mother threw up hel
hands and eyes. and calculated. oh
grievousr she slyly made capital out y
the play by saying,
IF thee wishes 10 deceive us completely
ifthee Is really Samuel. thee will straight
way give me the money to buy that silver
soup-tureen which so greatly DESIRE
WIN thee let me abide with Friend
tomorrow night, If I bestow II upon
theen
Yea, verify
'Nimrod.' said the young scamp, turn
ing TO his father, thee has my check-booi
in thy desk. Thee takes proper care of it
to be sure. 1t is not convenient, some
times, for me to be without II. VIII thee
get IL for meP'
The play went on; for the chcck-book
was taken from the desk and gravcly
handed to him by his father; and q,
grayely, the pseudo Samuel filled up and
tore out q check Of the sum required, and
presented ii to his mother, but not signed;
that, as afterward learned. was really
uDut DN tIC ont hitti Il w tht
great contcntment of the good lady.
If Nimrod's mother had known why he
desired to stay out all the next night, she
would have cried oh, grievousr in terri
fed earnest. The big, bad boy was crazy
10 90 20 certain fsncy-dress party. Well,
might rs we'll own it; so were Lydia
and Il; and the thing was how TO get her
also for the night. With great deal OF
coaxing and promising persuaded her
mother to let her spend the night with me
and when she hoped we would think OF
the saints, and have II on our minds to
make an improving season of It, we incon-
tinently turned conscience into 'conven-
lent scare-crow,' and said we would.
got Lydia up rs lovely nun, her
sweet, shining eyes and Madonna face ex-
actly suiting the character. Nimrod went
off and hired gorgeous-I,ouis-the-Four-
teenth costume. man-like, never trying II
on; and oh! didn't we have to work over
It to make Il big enough! We cut open
everything, and introduced five-cornc,l
pieces in fashion and with passion per-
fectly reckless. 1t recovered many flights
of inspiration To cover all ofhim, and gen.
ius and agility In equal parts 10 carry
them out; for he bObbed around like n
teetotum. declaring that we stuck pins and
needles all up and down his spine. We
did. And we sowed him up tight in his
costume.
What ii looked like when finished,
am sure cannot describe. If we could
only have disposed of the calves of his legs
rs sacrifical offerings, and kept the rest
of him With his back against the wall, he
might have passed muster. rs most of the
enlargcments were behind; but the great
triangular pieces which we were Obliged
TO put into the backs of his long stockings
made the seams wriggle all around hi,
legs like cork.scrcw, and, rs q well-edu-
Gated Eng.ishman would observe, they
looked so Jolly funny that we screamed
with laughter.
Thee had better settle down into quiet
ness said Louis-thc- Fourteenth. If thee
look once at my legs, at the party. / will
straightway dance sailors hornpipc.'
Fancy Louis-the- Fourteenth with those
ridiculous legs dancing hornpipe.
But how / did enjoy the intense, un-
spcakable delight of those two young
Quakers mt the ball! How wicked and
pleasant il was TO give them this forbidden
glimpse into fliry-land! Lydia even
went through quadrille with little rap.
turous teaching other partner, a handsome
young brigand; while Nimrod, with hi.
patched-up back against door, and those
absured legs drawing corks down among
the chairs of the musicians, made one o
the fiddlers tumble off his seat with laugh
ter, Mt his comments on the scene in the
thee and thou language.
do not think we were ever found ouI
in this adventure; and we never did SC
any more; for soon after, Nimrod, whom
i have called n big boy, but who was In
reality twenty-one years Of age, with q
moustacbe that could only be seen in q
stro ne side-light, got married.!
am certain that Nimrod's parents were
pleased to have him safely married SC
Young; and he was nowise 10th. for Ruth
Gumblc was sweet prim little maiden
who demurely knotted and knitted for her
kith and kinsfolk. and looked bewitching'
ly pretty under bonnets Of the most boiled
down. coal-scuttlc-y pattern. But, oh
she had u rery square chin; and the rav-
ishing little dimple in II could not hide the
fact. from one learned rs in physiog'
noniy. that Nimrod's six feet four, which
bowed and fell at her beck now, would
bow and fall at her beck when they twain
became one.
OF course. I was burdcncd with the
weight of my concern tn 90 To his we'd
ding; and with this end in view / told
Samuel, IL he should be moved to speak
on this most important occasion, 1t would
surely bc blessed on my. waiting mind.
This piece Of solemn ilattery went straigh,
to the mark. and got the invitation ant
thanked him. with face Of sober decorum
feeling all the time like Topy,
"Oh. isn't drerul wicked,
Ching-aring.ring-ring rickod."
But that licht-minded Lydia, who hat
had her arm locked in mine. while wa
praising her fathers preaching-gift, rush
ed into the hall, her cheeks and throa,
pulled out with bottled-up laughter; ant
when joined her. she had the cruelty to
say, oh, Fanny, that fgment of the
brain thy waiting mind overcame m,
ih'' ~ nibNV
and desperately wicked; yet thee f.scin
atcs me;' and she took my face between
her two small hands and kissed me.
LYDIA answered sternly, and giving
her n good pinch. If you want to So,
desperate wickedness, combined with
distracting beauty, look in the glass; ther
put ON your sugar-scoop bonnet, and come
out with me. for wish to buy somo tea
spoons for the BRIDE
The Inconsistent unsympathctic sur
shone gloriously bright on the wedding
day; but the mcetinS-house did Its best
crowded. one side with black. the Other
with drab-colorcd Friends-to assert il
self. II was what well-educated young
Englishman would call n swcll-weddinS,
for Friend Samuel and Gumblc were Jolly
rich (more well-educated young English
MANI. and Abigail Shoetie, the grea
preacher. was Nimrod's aunt.
Tho bride and prpom sat Inv thcmselve,