Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1874-03-09
Betsey Bobbett.

fitting by in his gig, she was sure to be
busy at the front window, picking an
imaginary dead leaf off the -gerani-
um, or culling spray of mignonette to
fasten among her bonny brown curls.
Sometimes she would be coming round
the house from the cistern-pump. and
she would firt her ruffies in way to
show the 'broidered hens of her marvel
ously dainty skirts and the trimmest of
all prettily- -arched ankles.
She was as artful as mink. Betsey
was, and it was very certain that she
had laid her plans to captivate the vii
lage squire. Her brother thought So
he was an old bachelor who lived with
her-and all the trouble Ira knew, was
the fear that Betsey would marry and
his cosey relations be broken up. He
embraced every opportunity to say some
thing against every marriageable widow
er or susceptible bachelor in the neigh
borhood
'No, I don't like the looks o. Squire
Wilkins, no how" he said one evening,
as he leaned back in his chair at the
tea-table and picked his teeth leisurely.
Them deep, up-and-down wrinkles
tween his eyebrows are enough for me;
when YOU see them on anybody's face
you may look out for i'll natur' and a
cross, fault-hnding disposition. But
when they run this way" and he arched
his eyebrows up, until his skinny-look-
ing forehead lay all in deep burrows
ploughed horizontally, why then you
may expect a good-natured man, not
fault-fnding nor hard to please
Its nothing to me who's ill-temper-
ed or who has wrinkles, I'm sure, said
Betsey, smiling demurely; ''but | never
believed much in signs Yon know our
old grandmother Tresway was as full of
contrariness as the old fellow himself,
and people looked at her smooth face,
as placid as a china dolls, and they
called her saint, and mother in Is
rael and all such holy, significant titles
You remember how she used to throw
the tea-glnt, tho r,ro"e-b es.,-d- any
thing that came in her way. at US young
ones"
And so the talk of the brother and
sister drifted on until it run into the
past, and they both talked Of old times
and half-forgotten adventures, and they
spent very pleasant evening together,
as they usually did.
The next evening, just after dusk, the
squire called and stayed an hour or so.
He had not intended stopping long
lust ran in to see how Ira managed tC
keep his sweet potatoes all winter-he' d
never had luck in keeping his. somehow
Ira hurried and told him, secretly hoping
that he'd 90 home Immediately, but the
squire was in no hurry.
They talked of election news, an(
discussed the candidate for governor
and for lieutenant governor, and con
gress, and yet the squire fingered. H
was building a new house, frame, story
!, and-a-half, with two dormer windows
that cost fifty dollars each. He sal
y. ''dormer windows were so charming [
!. sit in and watch the sun set in tn
summer evenings when the mellar ligh
fringed all the hills with glory" her
he ran his spongy hands into his pocket
e and then ploughed his well dyed, an
brosial locks. and then fell to milkin
Vt his sooty black beard. while be glance
-. over at the widow, whose eyes spak
again.
s. Or he continued. ''it is pleasant
SIT in dormer winder in the full o tt
E moon and watch him sailin' among
the clouds in all his evangelical majest
eff One knows how to vally a friend at suc
a time" and he rolled up his eyes al
e. milked on leisurely, while he sighed.
e. That's so, said Ira, thinking tn
d. he'd ought to say something to she
Il himself an appreciative listener.
- I've not planned yet how I'll ha
my upper rooms divided of. | want the
n handy and to be as large as possible
and he cast his round. white orbs up
the ceiling, thinking that he looked Ii
a poet whose eyes were in a '.fne fren
rs. rolling
rs This is fine October weather." sa
the widow, tossing back her curls a
rocking gently two and fro, giving /
sss head just motion enough to swing
glittering pendants in her ears a
make them catch the light of the lal
and sparkle there most bewitchingly.
Oh, it was a captivating little art
dodge, and it worked like charm. I
squire's heart melted like roll of j
butter
les Her hands lay prettily in her Ia
she continued +; a always think of W
ITS, the poet sung of October He says:
There is a vigoT in the air
That brings such light 10 hear and eye
.aa As came not with the summer glOE
OF days gJne By. -
!,
use. She recited it rather mournfully, ;
raised her voice at the end of each