Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1873-05-22
MISS DOLLY CORNElsED.


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MISS DOLLY CORNEHED.
II shouldn't be surprised any day
Dolly, to see David Wlggin tying hi
horse at your gate" said MIR. Blount
rogoiehly, gathering up the reins.
| ~Nonsense. brother anything the mat
ter with his own hitching: :post?" retort
ed Miss Dolly, turning to the doorway.
Mr.: Blount laughed. Everybody fell
bound to laugh at Miss Dolly's crisp say
ings. She had kept hcr friends in gooi
hum0r these forty years.
"And when David calls on you." pur
sued Mr.. Blount, more seriously, Il de-
hope, Dolly, you'll give him chance tt
do bis errand. ThaCll be no more'n fai,
and the man won't be easy till he has
freed his mind'
"What mischief arc you tho forerunne,
Of now, James Blount ?" cried Miss Doliy
facing about like soldier on drill
What upon earth have / to do with
David's errands ?"
"Well, his wife's been dead year o,
co." said Mr.. Blount, suggestively, shut
ting one eye and squinting with tho other
down the length Of his whip stock, "and
lately he's been asking about you. You
can put that and that together to suit your.
self"
"Fiddle-sticks !" eaid Miss Dolly, en-
erge.ica ally.
Il shan's say have him, or don't have
him-though there isn't likelier man
living than David-but l do say, Dolly,
you ought to give him hearing" And
having con WINGED himself beyond reason.
able doubt that the whip was all righ', Mr..
Bleunt tickled his sleepy horse with it
| and drove away.
"Oh, my sorrows!" CALCULATED Miss
Dolly, closing the doc. with an afflicted
countenance, and sitting down SO quietly
for once that q photographer might have
copied her then and there.
Not that he could have done her Justice.
for her expression was too quick and
varied to be caught by any trick of chem
icals, and without it Miss Dolly's physlog-
nomy would have teen rather character
less but for her Roman nose. This organ
gave tone 10 her face. By which would
not be understood literally, US saying that
she talked through It in a nasal whine. /
mean simply that in metarhorical sense
this bold feature spoke loudly Of energy.
And Miss Dolly always had abundant
need Of energy-else why her nose
Every two years during her childhood she
had been tiptoed into the east bedroom to
see a new baby, till, at Ler mothers death,
five little brothers fell to her charge to be
cosxed and scolded into manhood.
".You can't bring up them boys" croak.
ed do'orous aunt ''Tbe I'll run square
over you. Dorothy Almeda."
Dorothy Almeda was Miss Dollv's bap.
tismal name, but it was 80 manlGestly too
big for hcr that most of her friends would
as soon have thought of labelling q tiny
homeopathic vial with quack medicine
advertisement as Of calling her by it.
"Let 'em run over me, as long as it
doesnt hurt 'cm!' laughed Miss Dolly,
skewering her f.xen hair with o goose.
quill, and tying tow apron over hor
calico long-short preparatory to "bring
ing up" said youths.
From that day forward she went cheer.
lily on, making the best of everything,
though it must be confessed she often
had odds and ends to work with, rs people
usually do have,who are born with filcul.
ty. Somehow she fouod time tor all her
duties excepting matsimony. If that were
a duty,it was one she cou'dn't and wouldn',
attend to while her father and the chill.
dren needed her. Divers young men
thought this q great pity, among them
David Wiggin."
"Don't be silly, David" said Dolly,
when he limited as much to her, where.
upon David went of straightway aud
married Olive SearIe, tho plainest girl in
tho parish. This happened thirty years
ago, and now David was again wifeiess,
and again the current of his thoughts
turned toward M;ss Dolly, who still lived
at the old homestead near the foot OF
Bryants falls. Her father had died some
months before. Of the boys james and
Ezekiel had settled on neig ghboring farms,
and the remaining three were in the West.
David'r benevolent heart warmed with
compassion as he remembered Dolly's
lonely condition, and he felt that it would
be exceedingly kind in HIM to offer her a
home, especially as he owned as good u
place as you'd find on the river, while the
Blount cottage was fast falling to decay
lie wouldn't let her former refusal OF hin,
tell against her, for, now he looked back,
no really didn't see how she could have
married anybody Mt that period. She
ough: to bo rewarded for tho devotion she
had shown to the family, and, for his part
he felt magnanmous enough to give her
q second chance to accept him. Such was
the worthy widower's state of mind whom
he asked James Blount, with mock humili.
ty, whether it would be of any use for
him to try to make bargain with Dolly
"That's more'n can toll" Mr.. Blount
had answered "Dolly's puzzle. You
will have to find out for yoursclf.o
Mr.. Wiggin smiled, in complacent antic.
ipation Of acceptance. Indeed, If it might
not seem like = reproach to tho memory
of his lost Olive, l should say that the
kind.hearted man rejoiccd in this oppor
tunity Of making Miss Dolly's happiness
Benevolence was in his face, benevo
lence wus in h s spirit, as he sailed forth
ct an early day to acquain' her with he r
good fortune. The broken harrow whict
be had strapped into tho wagon to give
the neighbors u reason for his trip to th'
Falls was by no means typical OF monta
laceration IN lis owner. fiis feeling US HI
approached Miss Dolly's moss. grown cot
tago was purely one OF thankf kfulness Thu.
It was in his power to provide her bette
) home. Not that be was grateful 50 Iii
dead wife for leaving vacancy there
Mr.. Wiggin had mourncd faithfully fol
Olive a year and dnv ::
Miss Dolly was out in the garden gath
ering catnip. She Ecver used it Herself
I but there were nervous old ladies in tn,
lyillsge who looked upon this herb as tn