Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1873-11-08
no W {?

HOWo
Perhaps I an, little too hasty, lit
tie too ready to light up at a moments
notice; but there are some words that
seem to me to carry an especial grain
of gunpowder in them, and the above is
one o. the sort. To have a person,
after you've been through a long ex-
PLANTATION, put his fingers to his mental
ears and query you thus, or, worse still,
Haow ?" is too exasperating for human
nature to bear. But that is what John
Stringer did to me, bending his head a
little nearer, and speaking i'll an absent,
aggrayating manner that tantalizcd me
beyond words.
You see, John Stringer and were en-
gagged we'd been engaged for long
time, and had perhaps got to be little
too matter o course to each other.
We were sitting there over the fire,
after the cd folks had gone to bed, and
fell to telling him about Sophia Mills
wedding-her white silk dress, her
de-cake, and her bridesmaids frosted
all over to match it, and l ended this
way:
But it don't make any difference,
John, to people that love each other !;
all that's O no account than last years
now-drift. They could be married in
calico and home-spun, with their feet on
rag-carpet like this, and love each
other just as well.
"How?' said John, absently. He
was watching the Goals flicker up and
die out again, and picking up a stray
chip now and then to fling on the en-
bers-a fashion he had when he was
thinking.
Now, l had had the headache all day,
and l guess L was rathre more tindery
than usual, though | didn't think so
then: but when John bent his great
broad shoulders over, as if he hadn't
heard d word 1 said, and, in fact, had
something better to occupy his mind, L
just fired up, first, and then the blaze
died down into sulks, and when we part
ed that night John and L had had our
first and last quarrel.
My heart did not misgive me that
when saw Johns great tall figure go
ing out OF the door it was the last time
he'd lift the latch for many year but
SO it was.
You see, [ held my head pretty high
in those days, and | wouldn't show that
was bit cut up about it, SO l paired
tfwith Mrs. Plumbers Jesse, a likely,
spruce young fellow enough, but no
more to be compared to John than a
cockle-shell is to brigantine.
Oh, well, mother sighed, and tried
right hard to bring us together again.
but it wasn't to be.
John was a powerful, muscular man,
and L used to see him go up the road
many II time when [ was out in the shed
milking, and, peeping out at him
through the chinks, thought his broad
shoulders stopped more than ever, and
his figure was growing more stalky like.
Such an awkward fellow as John was |!
l came near rushing out on him once,
with my sun-bonnet an. my sleeves
rolled up, and finging my arms right
round his neck but John liked to see
folks tidy, and never did it.
Tacan Dl,,n,l,nr -, II
village-dapper, neat and dainty as you
please; and all the girls thought I'd
come to my senses when / ousted em
o Jess. And by-and-by it was Jess
that came sparkling O nights, and sat O
winter evenings over the embers, and
he was SO soft-spoken and pleasant that
even mother forgot her vexation. (She
always set store by John, mother did. J
Well, in the spring we We're married,
Jess and me, and 1 had string O.
pearls and real silk bridal dress, and
d fsgtc tckf5jR#adtd kjR#ad Cd Found ssid me and hoped I'd
be happy. 1 hoped so too: | wasn't
sure of it.
Remembering the days that came
after, L can't recall one hard word I
ever heard from Jess. We weren't near
enough to each other to quarrel; we
were just laid apart like two odd vol
umes; there wasn't any fire 'twixt us,
nor any thing 'twixt us, either love or
laughing, whereas John and I had al
ways been bubbling over one way and
another.
worked hard, for my silk dress and
necklace were all had of riches: and
cut up the gown one day to make
cloak for the baby. You see, 1 couldn't