Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1873-05-15


herself of the impression that it was
her usually sober spouse returned
home in strangely exalted condition,
thus to indulge in such unwonted
demonstrations of conjugal affection.
"Git out Git out, l say. Murder
Fire Thieves Annie Do come here
Here's man kissin' me like mad !"
But the intruder had by this time
discovered his mistake, and did not
need the indignant pummellng and
pounding of the old lady's respectable
fists to make him relinquish his hold
and race off as if pursued by some
avcnging fury.
Annie, nearly choked with smother
ed laughter, in spite of her trepid alton,
now came to the rescue.
"Oh, l never was so took aback in
all my born days! The mean scamp
Who could it have BEEN Annie, have
YOU an idea:"
But that dutiful daughter was to all
appearance as innocent and ignorant
as an infantlle dove She tried to
soothe the indignant matron by repre-
sentlng that it might have been (O
one OF the neighbors who, under the
potent influence of a wee drop too
much, had mistaken the house and
the housewife! }! She searched the entry
for the missing spcctacles, arranged
the rumpled cap ribbons, wound up the
yarn. stirred the tire-all in the most
amiable manner possible-and at last
hat tue satisfaction of seeing her
mother subside into her rocking chair
and her usual tranquility of spirit.
But Mrs. Moore was fully awake
now. She had got new idea into her
head, and instead of settling herself
for another nap, she pursued her train
of thought and her knitting both
together, with wonderful rapidity. At
length, stopping and looking keenly at
Annie, over the spectacies, she said
1T may be queer notion of mine,
Annie, but I've fancy that man was
David Winthrop
Oh but If Annie's face didn't catch
fire then! You might have lit any
number of candles by it.
The suspicious symptoms did not
escape the eye Of the skiIlful inquisitive
who calmly continued
" Pears so to me cause them biz
whislcrs put me in mind of his'n and
then the awkward way he gripped me
with his big paws y
No answer. But Annie was wonder
fully busy. She bent over her work
and drew her needle through SO quickly.
that the thread snapped, and then she
didn't have time to talk, she was so
taken up with trying TO coax the thread
through the eye again.
lnlleXibIe Mrs. Moore went on: Il
don't believe that kiss vas intended
for me, after all. DO you, Annie :
Well, Of course, we know it wasn't.
But then do wonder who it was in-
tended for: And | wonder if YOU
don't know something more about it
than You seem fit to telI:"
Me, mother -
"les, me, mother. you was mighty
anxious to get me an pap oh to Aunt
Ruth's tonight; but noticed you was
slickel up extraordinary for all you
weren't going.
Here Annic lost her needle, and went
down on the floor to find it.
Now, Annie" her mother went on
I'm gcttu' Old, know that, but
have not quite lost my eyesight vet,
nor my hearin' neither. Eve surmiscd
a little somethin' about these COINS
on between YOU an David afOre now.
What Al YOU 4 plavin' possum fur:
Out with it, | say. Tain't fair to be
tryin' to come it over your oldmother."
Thus adured, our small feminine
Machiavel made a clean breast Of it.
much relieved to find that mother
hadn't nuthlng agin him and would
give father Il talkin' to about it, an
bring him round"
But, Annie says Mrs. Moore
drylv, in conclusion, Il want you to
tell David Ill rather he'd not make
such IL mistake as that again. | don't
like the feeling of his biz whi,& IS
about my face, and moreover. don't
approve of promislus kissin.' Y
David never heard the last of that
kiss in the dark Old Squire Moore,
OF course, heard of it, and used to take
great delight i'll slyly alluding to the
circumstances when all the parties con-
cerned happened to be present. He
would shake his burly sides with
laughter at David's evident discomfit-
ure and his wife's tart replies, while
Annie would side with her father and
poke sly fun at her sweetheart, and
then both of them would laugh again
at the other two until the tears ran
down their checks.
"Never mind, David" Mrs. Moore
would say consolingly to the abashed
lover, ''let them laugh. He'd have
been only too glad to have been in your
place thirty years ago. He had hard
work to get kiss from me then. |
hope the occurrence will be lesson
to you an Annie agin the un-policy of
underhand doin's of all sorts, seein' as
how they're liable to end, in sich cases,
in kissin' the wrong one in the dark"
j Ho,Card Glyndon.