Wyandot County Republican. [volume] (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) 1869-1903, 1872-09-05
Miscellany.
THE STORY SHE TOLD ME.
BY NJ. A. DENISON.

'sYoU'RE looking at that pretty thing, 1
see," said the girlish creature, as She
came toward me with beautiful baby in
her arms.
had been attracted by the charming
appearance of the little cottage, at the
door of which asked for some water.
Being hidden to enter, sat now at the
tasteful, tiny bay-window, covered with
towering vines, and drank my glass of
cool, sweet milk.
This home-interior was picture in it.
self. The furniture, though made by
skillful fingers, had felt no touch of
the fashionable upholsterer.- The homely
walls were decorated with simple pic
lures, dried grasses and ferns. The floor
was painted and vanished, and made
beautiful with pretty rugs and mats Not
the least attractive of its ornaments was
that little mother, mere girl yet, it
seemed, with her wonderful wealth of
golden hair coiled round a perfectly
formed head, her soft eyes and gentle,
womanly ways. The baby on her knee
was study; no boarded wealth of art in
classic marble could surpass the beauty
of this lowly-born child.
We were friends from the first. this lit
tie girlwoman and /. Some way she
seemed willing to pour into my elderly
ear little condolences that might have
justified maturer friendship. So, as I
moved about the dear little nest, and hap
pened co spy choice piece of workman
ship, she said:
''You're looking at that pretty thing"
Eyes," SAID l, sit is even more than
pretty, it is exquisite
So it is, and everything that's Ben's
taste is justly so.' she replied, with a
glow of pride "Ben went to the fair;
couldn't go well, for baby was ailing, but
that was no reason he should stay at
home / couldn't be as unreasonable as
some women. didn't expect he'd bring
nae more than cushion for pins, or some
neat little fancy-but no, he must buy
that or nothing. I'm sure it's only lady
should have such things, not poor mill
hands wife; but you see Ben thinks diff
ferently"
How it was this dear little woman came
to tell me her story, won't repeat, only
give it to you in her own direct, pretty,
artless fashion. So no more of me. This
was the way she began it:
" You're looking at me, see, and say
ing to yourself, which is true, there's
nothing at all taking about this plain lit
tie woman. Ben says there is he laughs
at me and declares that I underrate my
self, foolishly; but bless your heart, can't
/ see My eyes, you take notice, are
light and gray, sometimes quite colorless,
and as / look at them when l comb nv
hair, think to myself that Britson, ou1
tortoise-shell cat, has deal more beauti
full ones, but there again Ben declares
that my eyes are my greatest beauty
and-oh dear, how can the man talk SO
My forehead is low, and in summer
the freckles will come, though now, deer
IN ahnr Of ~ LII
enough; and my hair would be that hor
rid color, red, only sometimes there's a
tinge of brown IN it that is rather pretty,
I'll allow. Still, altogether, nobody would
think of calling me handsome, even
though Ben does say LILY profile is quite
perfect
If you care to hear it, have fretted
badly, ever since l was child, because
people called me plain. Why / should
have minded, I hardly know myself; there
were but few of the elements of beauty in
the home-sur1 oundings where I grew ur
out of childhood mean aesthetic
beauty, as Ben calls it.
My mother was poor, my father al
ways weakly from a hurt he got whe1
quite young; my brothers and sisters were
more numerous than thought they need
ed to be-
One OF the little ones, her name was
Matty-the dearest little human blossom
that ever made the world brighter anC
sweeter-this boy favors her-had glori
GUS eyes. Everybody who saw her, turn
ed to look again to see her eyes, they
said, in which one could look down into
her soul, and read it like an open book
Dear little angel That made me TAX
more notice when people called M
plain little thing I do believe I wor
shipped beauty for beauty's sake 1
never entered into my little heather hea,
to trace Gods hand in it, or love Him fo
it. We learned little of Him through hu
man means, ON that wild sea-shore wher
the waves sometimes crept quite close u
to the clumsy hut we called home.
CHOW you see how really plain an
and what I truly think of myself-home
ly, short, ungraceful and yet Ben, tn
foolish fellow, stands to it | am HAND
some.
Ben, the great, glorious, noble fellow
hope you'll pardon me, madam, he's m
husband, but can't help praising him
He has made me all 1 am for good
wish you could see him you would smil
al the contrast between US, for Ben is a
handsome as I am homely. I don't car
where he goes, Ben would be noticed
even in his rough clothes, above man
and many man of fashion, and al
proud to say so. His hair is the real, ric
auburn, and curls enough to turn an
wave and shine against his temples, an
his eyes are the real hazel, so large an
soft and tender. The finest gentlema
might envy him his silken moustache an
the beard that ripples over his chin.
"Ben is an orphan. When father mo-
ed into Hilbro' he had an easy piac
offered him in the largest cotton mil
Ben, seeing him there, took fancy to h
quiet ways, because he thought he ws
like his own father, who was killed by