The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1873-03-14
VOL. XVII.--NO. IL.

her own, and before she could fully realize
her position, she received prolonged kiss
hearty smack, given with significant gus
TO which indicated that the unknown was
taxing his revenge for some past slight
paying on some old score for it said as
plainly as words could have done: "There,
take that!' And all this fell upon her I'M
offending, virtuous matron lips!
"Oh, murder! murder Taint Joshua
neither"
For she had by this time Invested herself of
the impression that it was her usually sober
spouse returned home in strangely exalt-
ed condition, thus to indulge in such I'M
wonted demonstrations of coniugal affec-
ton. "Git out git out say murder
fire! thieves Annie Annie do come here!
here's man kissin' me like mad :"
But the intruder had by this time dis
covered his mistake and it did not need
the indignant pummelling and pounding
OF the old lady's respectable fists to make
him relinquish his hold and race off as if
pursued by some avenging fury.
Annie nearly choked with smothered
laughter. in spite of trepidation, now came
to the rescus
ION, was never so took aback in all nv
born days The mean scamp2 Who
could it have been? Annie, have you any
idea ~
But that dutiful daughter was to all
appearance as innocent and ignorant as an
infantile dove. She tried to soothe the in
dignant matron by representing that it
might have been O. one of the neighbors,
who under the potent influence of q wee
drop too much, had mistaken the house and
the housewife She searched the entry
for the missing spectacles, arranged the
rumpled cap ribbons, wound up the tangled
yarn, stirred the fire-all in the most
amiable manner possible-and ut last had
the satisfaction ofseeing her mother subside
into her rocking chair and her usual tran
guilty Of spirit.
But Mrs. Moore was fully awake now.
She had gotten a new idea into her head;
and instead of setting herself for another
nap, she pursued her train of thought and
her knitting, both together, with wonder
ful rapidlty. At length, stopping and look
ing keenly at Annie over her spectacles,
she said
SIT may be queer notion of mine,
Annie, but I've fancy that man was David
Winthrop"
Vii buO IL AhHlC luCc (tlQIb CATCH
then You might have lit any number of
candles by it.
These suspicious symptoms did not es-
cape the eye of the skilfull, inquisitiYe,
who calmly continued:
"'Pears so to me cause them big whis-
kers put me in mind of his'n and then the
awkward way he gripped me with his big
paws!n
IN INT H.. ell.
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 try
ing to coax the thread through the eve
again
InheXible Mrs. Moore went on:
Il don't believe that kiss was intended
for me after, all. Do you, Annie Well of
course we know it wasn't. But then I do
wonder who it was intended for2 And
ifyou don't know more about it than you
seem fit to tell 2"
"Me, mother 2"
eyes, me MOTHER you was mighty anx-
ious to get me an Pap off to Aunt Ruth's
tonight but / noticed you was slicked
extraordinary, for all you weren't going"
Here Annie lost her needle and went
down on the floor to hunt it.
"Now, Annie, +" her mother went on. "I,m
gittin' old, I know that, but haven't quite
lost my eyesight yet nor my hearin' neither.
I've surmised little something about
these COINS on between you an David afore
now. What ar you playin' possum fur2
Out with it, say. Taint fair to be tryin'
to come it over your old mother"
Thus adjured, our rail feminine Mach
iavcl made clean brest of it, much relieved
to find that mother 'hadn't nothin' agin
him." and "would give father talkin' to
about it an bring him around"
"But, ANNIE" said Mrs Moore, dryly, in
conclusion, "Iwant you to tell David I'd
rather he'd not make such mistake again.
don't like the feel of his big whiskers
about my face, and moreover, l don't APP
prove of promiskus kissin'!'
David never heard the last of that kiss
in the dark. Old Squire Moore, of course,
heard oft, and used to take great delight
in slyly abiding to the circumstance when
all the parties concerned happened to be
present. He would shake his burly sides
with laughter at David's discontinue and
his wite'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 cheeks.
"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. lei had hard work to get kiss
from me then. hope the occurrence will
be lesson to you an Annie agin the I'M
policy of underhand doin's of all sorts,
seein' as how they're liable to end, in SIGH
cases, in kissin the wrong one in the dark.
HOWARD GLyNDoS.