Knoxville journal. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1874-1986, 1875-09-23

you care more than your pride viii let you
acknowledge for that great, awkward
pooby, who hasn't the courage, nor never
will have. to ask you to have him.
:" Hush, Hetty." said Kitty, as she rose
TO her feet, and her cheeks glowed with a
flush of deepest crimson You do not
know John Patterson as we do, or you
would not utter what you have. He is
not awkward at home with his mother.
You ought to see how kind and consider
ate he is to her. Father drops In there
often, and he says there isn't more noble
hearted man to be found. Yesterday, you,
Hetty, were making game ofJohn because
he wears clothes that are patched and old
fashioned. Jol2 is industrious, and do
you know what he does with his money {?
Father says he is paying off the mortgage
on his mothers little farm, and that when
he has few dollars more than are neces-
sary for payment he expends it for
books. Mark my word, Hetty, John
Patterson will yet be man that you will
be proud to class among your friends. He
has intellect of no common order. It's
only his great bashfulness that keeps him
back now"
Now, Kitty, you are too absurd" and
Hetty laughed as though she thought her
companion in jest. Well, it is leap
year; you had better offer yourself to this
paragon. don't believe he will refuse"
know NO one whom / would sooner
marry-so, therei' And Kitty's face was
scarlet with bushes as she made this frank
acknowledgment.
But John was not looking a. her now
He was crouched in the most remote part
of the hogshead, trying, by various gest
ures, to drive away a huge mastiff which
threatened to make his whereabouts
known.
The sun had gone down, and Johns
hungry horse had quietly walked off
home, and still the two girls chatted
away.
"Well, Bruno, what have you got in
there? I'm sure you've been whining and
paving there for half an hour, at least"
And Hetty came forward and patted the
dogs hairy back with her hands.
why, Kitty, there is some dreadful ami
NAL in here. What apair ofeyes ithasl Are
there any wildcats in the woods? Thank
my nerves, if uncle and Charley are away,
| can fire gun. I'll soon know what
that horrid creature is. In my opinion,
here is where your geese have gone to.
I'll warrant the ground in there is strewn
with bones. You and Bruno keep watch
while run to the house for gum"
Hetty had ratified all this off in breath
less fashion, and before Kitty had time to
look at the dreadful animal" only the
great, luminous eyes of which could be
seen, her cousin was on her way TO the
house
What was John to do now? Stay where
he was and be shot by the courageous lit
tie Hetty, or crawl from his lair Ike
Hottentot from his hut, and right before
Kitty's eyes, too? The faithful dog began
to wag his tail and whine with renewed
animation, and John thought the gun must
be coming surely Life was sweeter 10
him now, since hearing what Kitty had
said of himself, than ever before, and,
creeping to the opening, he began the get
ting-out process.
Kitty, who was peering anxiously in,
saw that the creature" was moving-that
it was coming toward her-and giving
spasmodic little scream she sank help
lessly to the ground, and covered her face
with her apron.
Kitty's distress made John for the mo-
ment forget that he was the most bashtul
man alive, and surely the arms which
Kitty felt encircling her waist were not
those of wild beast Knowing this, it
did not need great amount of courage to
enable her TO uncover her face and see that
the great eyes which had SO frightened her
belonged to John Patterson.
1t was strange that neither she nor John,
during The half hour they tarried together
under the apple-tree, thought of Hetty or
the gun she had gone to bring. Perhaps
neither would have remembered Hetty's
boosted nerve" in connection with the
use Of that weapon again had not that
young lady herself two years later re-
minded certain happy bridegroom and
his equally happy bride of the incident,
and informed them that she knew all the
time that John was in the hogshead, as
she saw him pu. himself there, and that
her part of the conversation under the
apple-tree was INDUCED in solely with a
view to encourage the bashful lover to
propose.
Mrs. John Patterson scolded her cousin
bride-maid for her duplicity, but for all
that it was plain to be seen she was not
angry, especially since Hetty had that
very day acknowledged that she was proud
to class her cousins handsome husband
among her friends.--N. Y. Weekly
How He Succeeds.