Connecticut western news., 1872-09-06
WILLY MORE'S LETTER.

I'm Aunt Gunter. Job Gunter is my husband. We keep the Anchor Port post office and store, and sell groceries and garden sass, calico, shoes, and medi- cines, like other folks in our line, when anybody asks for 'em.
 When ship comes in, and the sailors come home to their wives and mothers, trade grows brisk. The housekeepers do their best and the ra1sins and dried currents and eggs and butter go off fine. ly, and it's worth while to lay in ribbons for the girls, and smoking tobacco and long pipes for the men.
 Jack and his wages make old Anchor Port brisk for while. but at last he sails away, and all the women seem to ask for will be letters-letters, letters, when they have right to expect them, and when they haven't, all the same.
 It's "Please Aunty Gunter, look over them, and see if there aren't one for me ;'' and it's "Please, Uncle Gunter; it might have got mixed up anI overlook. ed somehow ;'' often and often-God help the poor souls latter Jack lies at the bottom of the sea, and nothing will ever reach them but the news of his shipwreck. But plenty of letters come after all, and sometimes we had to read them for the folks, Job and I, and so we get to know something of their lives.
 Milly More could read and write her self, but still I always knew when she had letter from Will Masset. knew it by the handwriting. and I knew it by her bushes, and by that happy look il her face. When he. came home, sh, bought ribbons and bits of lace by tn, apronful /; and knew where the pack ages of candy that he bought were to go And used to keep Job from Rshins down in Pullman's creek of afternoons because knew that was where Milly anC Will liked to walk. Counting time come. but once in Q lifetime, and I always ikt to see it prosper.
 At last he sailed away, second mate o the Golden Dove and when he came back from that voyage, they were to be married.
 It was 8 sad day when that ship sailed Mrs. Captain Rawdon and her girls were crying on the shore. Twenty women from the Port and five from the Hil were there to see her set sail.
 It was grim, gray day, and the voy. age was to be long one.
 GDA1 Will took Milly to his breast.
 Don't fret, darling he said. "I'I come back safe and sound. I couldn't drown now I've too much to live for. J
 Poor boy in spite of that, the Golden Dove went down in mid-seas, and only three men reached Anchor Port to tel how Captain Rawdon, and the rest were lost, at dead of night, in a most woeiul torn.
 Captain Kincaid brought the news ur to Mrs. Rawdon. He stopped at oul store to tell about it. A nice old man A bachelor still, at fifty-eight, and as handsome, with his white hair and red cheeks, as picture.
 That was twelve months ago, the night l went into the store to sort some things out, as I always did Saturday nights. Through the week Job used to get every. thing mixed up-letters in my a-boxes, candles in the letter-box, eggs where they oughtn't to be, and all the place askew. It was warm autumn night, and Captain Kincaid's vessel was in port and he had plenty of custom. Job served the people while tidied up. I found half the last mail in Q sugar box, and clothes pins in the ground coffee canister and I just dumped them out.
 feather up your letters Job," said I. ''What possesses you, old man p
 And he laughed and piled 'em up And I made VOW to m yself that I'd keep the sugar box full after that, so that he shouldn't use it for the mail.
 ] had twenty-four pounds of sugar. kne wn as "coffee crushed" because il was prepared especially to use in coffee Ifat was the finest sugar Anchor Hill folks often bought though I had little