The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1874-06-11
BETSEY BOBBETT.

Heaven 10 pretty near, know;
And well Co."
BETSEY BOBBETT.
Ny! but Mrs. Betsey Bobbett was .
spry little widow. She walked as though
she was moved by steel springs, especially
if Squire Wilkins happened to be pass
ing her house. If she saw him fitting By
in his gig she was sure to be busy at thu
front window, picking an imaginary dead
leaf off the rose geranium, or culling Z
spray of mignonette to fasten among hel
bonny brown curls. Sometimes she
would be coming round the house from
the cistern pump, and she would flirt hel
ruffles in way to show the 'broidered
hens Of her marvelously dainty skirt.
and the trimmest of all prettily .arched
ankles.
She was a. artful Is amink, Betsey was
and it was very certain that she had lait
her plans to captivate the village Squire
Her brother thought so-he was an ole
bachelor who lived with her-and all tn,
trouble Ira knew was the fear that Betsey
would marry and his coy relations b,
broken up. He embraced every oppor
tunity to say something against every
manageable widower or susceptible
bachelor in the neighborhood.
No, 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 ill.natur' and q cross
fault-finding disposition. But wher,
they run this way" and he arched hi.
eyebrows up until his skinny-lookine
forehead lay all in deep burrows plowee
horizontally, "why, then, you may ex
pect good.natured man, not fault-dndins
nor hard to please"
"lt's nothing to me who's ill-tempered
or who has wrinkles, I'm sure" said Bet
sey, smiling demurely; "but never be
lieved much in signs. You know our old
Grandmother Tresway was as full of con
trariness as the old fellow himself, and
people looked in her smooth face, a
placid as china dolls, and they called
her saint and q mother in Israel, and all
such holy, significant titles. You remem.
Der how she used to throw the teapot OF
the press board, or the boot jack, or any.
thing that came in her way At ma ,sonn9
ones"
And SO the talk of the brother and sister
drifted on until it ran into the past, and
they both talked of old times and half.
forgotten adventures, and they spent q
very pleasant evening together, a. they
usually did.
The next evening, just after dusk, the
Squire called and stayed an hour or so.
He had not intended stopping long-juet
ran in to see how Ira managed to keep
his sweet potatoes all winter-he'd never
had luck keeping his, somehow. Ira hur.
ried and told him, secretly hoping that
he'd 60 home Immediately, but the Squire
was in no hurry.
They talked election news and dis.
cussed the candidates for Governor, and
for Lieutenant-G Governor, and Congress,
and yet the Squire fingered. He was
building q new house, frame, story. arid.a.
half, with two dormer windows, that cost
fifty dollars each. He said "dormer win.
dows were so charming to sit in and
watch the sun set in the summer even.
ings when the mellar light fringed al the
hills with glory;" here he ran his spongy
hands into his pockets and then plowed
his fingers through his well-dyed ambro-
sial locks, and then fell to milking his
sooty black beard, while he glanced over
at the widow, whose eyes spake again.
"Or," he continued, 1T il pleasant to
sit in q dormer winder in the full o. the
moon and watch him sailin' amongst the
clouds in all his evangelical majesty. One
knows how to vally . friend ct such Q
time;" and he rolled up his eyes and
MIXED on leisurely while he sighed.
"That's So" said Ira, thinking that he
ought to say something to show himself
an appreciative listener.
1--WE not planned yet how I'll have my
upper rooms divided off; want them
handy and to be - large % possible
and he cast his round, white orbs up to
the ceiling, thinking that he looked like
poet whose eyes were in Zine frenzy
rolling"
This is fine October weather." said
the widow, tossing her back curls and
rocking gently to and fro, giving her
head just motion enough to swing the
glittering pendants 10 her ears and make
them catch the light of the lamp and
sparkle there most bewitchingly. Oh, il
was q captivating little dodge, and i,
worked like charm. The 'Squire's hear,
melted like roll of July butter.
Her hands lay preetily in her lap; abe
continued: 81 always think of what the
poet sung Of October. He says:
"There is vi9or in the cir
That brings sach light TO heart and eye
As came not With the summer glow
OF days gone BY"
She recited 1t rather mournfhlly, and
raised her voice ct the end Of each line
until she came to the last, and abe gradu-
ally let it die away in whisper.
That was artful dodge number two.
Ira was growing uneasy st the senti.
mental turn matters were taking. and,
thinking Of hospitality, he said: . Squire,
s'p0sin' we have basket o. black wal
nuts to eat-some o. them boosters that
growed down on the bottomi"
mo, I believe not; ate hearty sup.
per this evening" said the Squire. !" Nov
my family room ID . tribe larger than
this" he continued, and he looked eli
around the room scrutinixingly.
The widow was glad that she had
swept down the cobwebs that very morn
ing, and that Ira had whitewashed over
head the week before the State fair. tt
all outside appearances she was Q ttp-t0F
housekecper. But sometimes, II she wa
in . hurry, she did not make her bed
more than three times In one week
Nobody knew 1t but Ira, and he didnr
care cent.
Ira stood his ground and managed ID
say something every time the Squire
spoke; he was determined that hl
shouldn't have IN opportunity to talk cen
timent to Betsey, for If he did, dear know,
where It would end. There was Ii,
Squire, well.to-do widower, good pro
wider, only two children, rich, and lookin,
about for . partner to share his joys anl
his sorrows. There was his sister, Bel
sey Bobbett, only turned Of thirty.three
neat handsome, smart q cricket an'
her husband e dead - . door-nail thi
eighteen months and over. and VII,
shouldn't she marry II abe took . notion