Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1873-09-30
Tie Maniac's Freak.


lingering look at the retreating fig
ure of her husband, Cousin Fanny
shut the door, and approached the
fire, where our petite Cousin Maud
and myself were sitting.
"How like lovers you and Arthur
are, Fan; it is really a novelty to
see such a couple in this different
world" Maud observed languidly.
George would think | was insane,
if l should kiss him when he was
only going to the club"
Fanny smiled, but there was a
tiage of pride in her tones as she
answered
ave are old-fashioned enough to
love each other, Maud"
The fashionable little woman OPP
ened her eyes.
"Is there such thing as love
/ thought it lived only in books,
and was too frail for everyday
wear"
"Undoubted that is the case,
where marriage is simply bill of
sale or stock exchange; but love
has made our romance q pleasant
reality"
"Tell us something about it,
Maud asked, with awakened inter-
est.
"About what! You have already
seen a chapter of our everyday
life"
"Oh, you know what ] mean /; tell
me where you first met Arthur
something about this agreeable
: love-making," and Maud laughed.
81 am afraid, Irene, that such G
recital would bore you," Fanny
said, turning to me.
"By no means. | have heard
that you had a spice of romance in
the affair, but have never learned
any of the particulars" I rejoined.
"Well, then, as l sec Maud is in
! earnest, you shall hear something
of the manner in which we were in
troduced to our present happy life
- ilnps we're mart, wIuif 49, orlo
father died; our farm was small
you know, and as our family con.
sisted of girls exclusively mother,
by dint of saving, could barely
keep us together with any show OF
responsibility. Such turning and
changing from one to the other
such mcnding and piecing, / am
sure was never surpassed, if it was
ever equalled. Inever throw away
a bit of lace now, without thinking
of the many times that l have
darned for hours on a like bit, in
the dear old days of the past. We
used to say laughingly, that all of
our lace was applique.
"One evening we girls sat looking
over the doleful picture, and sur
prised them all by saying:
"'It is of no use to sit still and
fold our hands to this affair; l for
one shall try to relieve the Little
General 1--WE used to call our heroic
mother this) by ridding her of my
presence
"'What will you do 7! they asked,
in surprise, for they knew l had no
talent for sewing.
"I shall teach,' l said, firmly.
"a short silence followed, and
then sister Ada said:
"1f you really mean what you
say, and would except of such a
position, you can find a situation in
a public school by applying to Mr..
Archer. He was asking me yester-
day if l knew of any one who
would accept of the situation. He
said it was small school, about
eight miles from here, called "Still
Brook School"
"'Just the thing said. Il will
see Mr.. Archer in the morning, and
ask him to take me-
"The preliminaries were soon fin
ished, and was engaged to become
the schoolma'am of Still Brook
School,
Everything was new at first, but
after a week it was decided that my
boarding place was to be changed.
Mrs. Irving had consented to board
me. Now, Mrs. Irving had the
largest and the whitest house in the
neighborhood, and the said house
had the greenest of all green blinds.
Mrs. Irving, too, had the prettiet
flowers and the only iron fence in
the neighborhood. How the peo-
pile did congratulate me! She had
nounr heen known to take a boarder