Holmes County Republican. [volume] (Millersburg, Holmes Co., O. [Ohio]) 1870-1895, 1874-07-23

SAID the deacon. I'm love, en-! WOn'l
you hev drop of this honey, say? It'll
make your cheeks red an your hail
curl. Patty Jones took the premium
on honey, did you see? The doctor he
ashed her, the wag, if she made it, OF
the bees. l s'pose Miss Nell's rather
set up with her premium on butter,
amt she? Yonng Briefly is kinder
sweet on her, eh ?"
At the other side of the table Tom
Briefly was whispering to Nell, $50 see
your rag mat took the prize. If it was
for sale 1 should buy it."
ooh, I'll give it to you, if you want it,
Tom," said Nell.
"There's something else 1 wish you'd
give me instead, Nell. Have you tasted
these gilly-fowers? What's the matter ?
You look pale. Any deadly secret on
your mind. Make me father confessor,
Nell, do! Pm afraid that it doesn't
agree with you to take premiums. I'll
tell you what, Nell, if you'll marry me,
and come up to the Hall to live, 1 shall
think I've drawn the first premium in
the country"
"Oh, Tom," gasped Nell, under her
breath, sT don't know what to dol 1
mast tell somebody! Pm almost wild
II didn't take the premium for but
ter! Somebody has exchanged cards
with me. You see should never have
found it ont, but / stamped my but
ter with strawberry; and that
which took the premium has my card
attached to the box is stamped with
well it is no difference what; it is
different, that's all. 1t isn't my but
ter"
"Is that ali ?" cried Tom. s'You gave
me such start! thought you were
going to tell me that your affections
were engaged to the deacon, or you'd
been changed in your CRADLE"
"Now don't laugh at me, Tom.'
sits no laughing matter, when a fel-
low offers his heart and gets nothing
back"
"Oh, Tom, what do you want more
than I've given you already?"
9You've given me the rag mat, and
now 1 want you. Give some folks an
inch, and they'll want Nell"
"But what shall do abou. the but
ter?"
"I'll tell the judges there has been a
mistake made
"And then she'll know she's been
found out"
"And she ought to know it,
''But it'll hurt her, she'll never be
able to hold up her head again. And
don't you see she has been punished al
ready"
eyes, dare say she's heartily asham-
ed of herself. Perhaps you had better
let it go, and give the money to the
poor!"
"But 1 do hate to take credit that
doesn't belong to me-"
However, Mrs. Wheating herself come
to the rescue. She went into the town
hall to taste the prize butter by means
of which poor Amanda had lost the pi-
ano.
"Bless my eyes," said she, "that's my
Mandy's butter, if 1 was to die for it!
There isn't another lot here stamped
with sheaf of wheat, and I'd take an
oath that Mandy's was, though wasn't
fetched up to swearing in my fathers
house. "I'll jest go and get Nell Eus-
tis, and she'll own to it. And of course
Nell was only too glad to resign the
troublesome honor of taking the premi-
um, and the judges were informed, and
it was finally re-annouced that Aman-
la was the successful competitor, and
nobody dreamed how the mistake had
come about.
"They allus muddle and mix things
at them fairs" explained Mrs. Wheat
ing.
But when Amanda's father began to
talk about the piano, Amanda hung
fire; she wouldn't hear to tit cost too
much, she hadn't any gilt to music
and so the matter dropped. But when
Nell fulfilled her dream and married
Tom, and went To live at Briefly Hall,
She gave Amanda her secondhand
piano. that had cost Amanda so
much.
And, after all, Tom Briefly thinks
that it was he who took the premium at
.he county fair.