The Bloomfield times. [volume] (New Bloomfield, Pa.) 1867-187?, 1871-07-04

but her hands never stopped doing for
the Shaws.
Now, as she sat there, in her cheerful
and contented loneliness, with the big
clock ticking in the corner, there came a
knock at the door.
"Come in, Johnny Shaw" called out
Keturah, without turning around.
There's the bag of potatoes l promised
you mother in the cellarway. You can
help yourself. shall churn tomorrow,
and your mother may send over for pail
of buttermilk.
"Ahem p
Keturah turned around suddenly, and
there, stood 'Lisha Bates holding his hat
and looking into it as if he expected to
discover the profoundest wisdom in its
depths.
"Sakes alive !" exclaimed Miss Keturah,
"you gave me such start. / thought to
be sure, it was Johnny Shaw. Take a
chair, Usher, and draw up to the fire.
Cold. amt it, for this time of the year ?"
"Good for blue noses," said Usher but
he felt, as he expressed it afterward,
" streaked," much as a man feels when
he is about to break the ice, and plunge
into a cold bath. However he sat down
on the edge of chair, carefully deposited
his hat under it, took out his red silk
handkerchief and mopped his face all over.
There was a preliminary clearing of
the throat and then, Usher said with
that circumlocution of speech habitual to
the horn Yankee
az don't s'pose Keturah, you've got
any grass seed you'd be willing to part
with for fair price p
"Going to put down more Of your
land to grass ?" inquired Keturah, with a
slight accent of disapproval.
81 was squirting that way" returned
Usher, hesitatingly, almost wishing he
could back out of the scrape, and go to
grass himself but he gave hitch to his
chair that brought him a little nearer
Keturah, on the other side of the stand.
"Instead of seeding down any more,
if had your farm, should put few
barrels of lime on the triangle lot, and
SOW in with clover"
"Thats what mean to do" respon-
ded Usher, giving his chair another
hitch utterly forgetful of st. Pauls COM
mand, {" | suffer not woman-to teach"
{" You're pasture looks uncommon well
this SPRING" he added.
Yes, the feed is good" said Keturah
sewing away calmly in the candle light.
The chair hitched a little nearer
" Keturah, that's a mighty fine Alderney
yearling of yours" The tone was sof
persuasive, and melting.
Keturah just raised her eyebrows
"Umphw she knew what 'Lish was driv
ing at now.
The chair hitched little nearer, thu
tone grew more coaxing and oily. " Ket-
urah, wouldn't you, couldn't you, be per
suaded to sell me that critter ?"
The small unmentionables dropped
from Keturah's hand the audacity of tn,
request filled her with amazement.
g How can you ask such a question
Usher Bates? You know | wouldn'
part with that heifer for any money.
fisher had heard that " where there
will there's way" and another wis
saw faint heart never won fair lady.
He determined upon a strike. "Thel
Keturah," he said suddenly, "you mus
marry me, for | am determined to get
lien on that there critter, some way o
other"
IF 'Lishers unheard of temerity ha
stopped here, Keturah would probabl
have thrown the small unmentionables a
him, but he did not wait for such a dis
aster-he got up, made one stride owe
to where the bewildered spinster sat, an
gave her rousing kiss on her cheek.
/ is utterly impossible to predict what woul
have happened if an unmistakabl
"snicker" had not sounded through tn
room. The door had opened during tn
) loving scene, above described, and ad
mitted Johnny Shaw, just in time to wi
ness the announcement He had CON
for them potatoes"
"Them potatoes saved 'Lisher's ba
con, although suspect Keturah had a
ways had sneaking kindness for 'Lishe
At any rate, some months afterward sh
gave him the yearling and herself alOn
with it; and he being good man, wh
knew the use of door mat, was regula
to his meals, and was appreciative of a
! excellent wife, whose price is above RI
bies. can safely say that Keturah's la
state has not been worse than her first
and as to the yearling, it has grown to
famous COW, the best mixer in tn
county, and lives in perpetual clover.
, Say We are told of two men who m,