The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1872-08-24
Dots Baby.

baby. With her soft pink and white pretti-
ness, her crnkling, golden hair, her smiles
and her dimpes. and her happy, innocent
heart, what was Dot but baby herself?
And yet, one day in the rosy ripeneSs of
summer, we had all crowded the parlor in
white Swiss frocks, with garniture of the
loveliest blossoms, and, quite premeditatedly,
but ali in tears, and with yearning regrets
and tender forebodings, and signing looks
backward to the happy girl life which had
been thing of beauty, but would be fair
dream for evermOre, had given her away to
tall, handsome fellow, Harry Ascot by name.
of whom we knew nothing except that Dot
loved him and he loved Dot. 1t was an aw-
fully audacious thing to do, plucking Fate by
the sleeve as it were and bidding her serve us,
noleas UoLens; and when after the cake and
ice cream had been served, and everybody
had kissed Dot, and everybody who dared
had also kissed the blushing bridegroom, and
our darling treasure had chung to us all one
dreadful moment, and cried in the most heart
rending fashion, and said she never, never
c)uld leave us, and she was wretch for think
ing oft, and when somebody had announced
e., time for the train, and Dot had slipped
out of her white silk and into her gray linen
III u twinkling, and that cool Young robber
hal quietly shut her up in the carriage, and
we had flung an old slipper after them for
luck, and Harry, all smiles and inky NOUS
ttche, and Dot, all bushes and sobs and
futtering little rings of gold hair, had vanish
gu ii mist of tears, | went away by myself
to my chamber, now desolate forevermore
AMI had private little weep of my own, and
ii lIly ed in the dismal luxury of horrid fore
bodlngs.
Harry might be brute. He might break
hef heart They might both be killed on the
railway. Harry might lose all his money, and
Dot might have to come back an abandoned,
miserable little woman, to the family ingle.
But this last picture had bright side. |
dried my tears to look at it, and was present.
~ III condition to take myself in hand and
administer good scolding. Harry did not
turn out reprobate. l was made quite
happy By Dots happiness as reflected in her
letter. All, these girls! How confidently,
With VIA utter hilarity, do they flee from the
dear Did hearthstone, lured away by the might
o. that strange, potent necromancer, who
'lcl marvellous lien upon all human
hearts. ~ " ''
- -l-by had letter from Dot, begging
me to come to her, and lying perdu in the
little rose-scented note was the most exuui-
site secret in the world. l went at once, and
before had been many weeks in Dots home
all the wGrd-our world-knew our secret.
mere was day and night of awful suspense,
the stars III their courses seemed to stand still
and all the great round earth to tremble and
qulVer in mute, breathess expectation.
linen, In the hush of the morning, anew little
lie began, and we laughed and cried over
each other, and praised Gods goodness.
which we had dared to doubt only a half
hour earlier.
II was funny to see Harry. He had been
lifted in moment from the valley of despair
t. the sunit heights of hope, and the poor
fellow was dazed. He stood leaning over her
where she lay, like wilted lily, but with
heaven shining in her eyes.
''Oh, Harry, look at himr'
That was just what Harry was doing with
all his might Presently he touched the
baby's cheek with his finger think he had
had suspicion that it was by no means
real flesh and blood, but only a waxen
hoax.
''He's little fellowr' he said contempla-
lively.
All the mother awoEe in Dot.
Little! why, Harry! how can you? He
weighs eight poundsr'
Harry did not recoil under this monstrous
fact. He took it quite calmly.
docs he? WellP still doubtfully, 81 sup
pose he will grow
"GrowP' cried Dot, sobbing and laughing,
Il should think he will. cts only a cues
ton of time. Give him time enough and he
will be as big as you are. Oh, you precious,
conceited fellow. didn know you thought
you were born grown upr'
Dots baby did grow. 1t was in refined,
suitable fashion, after my own heart. new
er could understand the ecstasies people 90
into over your huge baby, who only repre-
sents so much adipo,e tissue
"Look at his armsr' they cry. 'Look at
his legsr' e>-
Dear friends, do look at them. and don't
like them. They remind me of pork! It's
a dreadful thought, know, but can't help
It, suppose it betrays some horrible canni.
bal pedigree, but l never see one of these
over-corpulent babies without thinking how
nice he would be cooked. As for SOUL |
should despair of finding one in such mass
of avoirdupois.
You may think it is only nepotism which
makes me declare that Dots baby. as a
baby, was absolutely perfect His exquisite
limbs would have delighted SCULPTOR.
Indeed, they were modelled more than once,
and we might have had quite museum of
casts, only Dot declared she wouldn't have
pieces OF her baby lying round all over the
house.
The little fellow had a name of his own
very pretty name, too-but he was ALWAYS
spoken of as Dots baby. When he was
zee wears old 1 went to spend the winter
with Dot.
1T is really time you were married, Ruthy."
said Dot. 81 have a foreboding that Won |
will be an old maid. I read the other day |
that there were seventy thousand more |
women than men in Massachusetts. The |
papers didn't say that the most of 'em live
~ the country towns, but 1 know they do.
You shall stay here this winter, Ruthy, and
II you don't get lover by spring, Harry and |
l will pay your fare to Colorado. Only you
% ISN'T make love to Harry, or seduce the
baby's young Affections
This was the week before Christmas. and
onr principal work just then was to 90 shop
ping for presents. One day we had been I'M
usually busy, had lunched down town, and
didn't start for home till the short winter
afternoon was just closing inn
II am wild to see the baby" said Dot as
ne cfowded into the car, already crammed
!, cars always are at the holidays. 81 always
mink when | am going home, "What if any-
hing has happened to him ?'
WHAT should happen to him 90
D3t Knit her two aristocratic eyebrows into
/ frjw1. ''-'0
: Don't be goose, dear, and pretend,
I III know thousand things might have
ZAP 1e1ed to him. But 1 can't tell the man
. drlve faster because l am worried about
ny btby, can I?'
[ smile in my mGiden superiority. he
ieve "a something about conceited Young
)mel wlo fancy that their baby's cradle Is
,e axis Of the planet. Poor darling Dot!
Vl1 c)ulln't l have foreseen the awfnl
ro1ble that was to come upon her?
We got nome at last, and Dot ran I'D the
teps before me and rang the bell. Mary. the
econd girl, opened the door, smiled aft first
lanced past us inquiringly, and then gave =
hort scream.
whats the matter9" demanded Dot.
lrning upon her with white face.
Sure, an it, the baby, ma amp
The babyP shrieked Dot. s'What-
that
The words died on her lips. She was quite
asst speech. But she seized Mary bv fine
leir demand. "''' anu iioi oo III
You said first you'd take him. ma,am
nd WIN | went up stairs and found he
ASH asleep on the sofa as We said tbonoht
1md TUX him. Howly motherl It's lost bo !.
One awful, fixed, uncomprehendino s+ouo
I'd then, as the truth came home To Sor IL,
IL forward in dead faint into nv arms N'U
Oh, how my heart ached and vet I darod '
1t stop t. grieve. We carried Dot up stairs
sent the cook down to Harry's office, and a
airy to the nearest station. In half an honr il
e parlor was full of neighbors and friends
nom the news of our sudden trouble had Fl
ought to us. In among them all came Har- T
pale and wretched, and took Dot in his o
ms.
God won't be so cruel to us, my darling"
your him. y