The Canton mail. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 18??-1882, 1875-01-23

purpose of meeting him, but our tw
ladies declare it put me in mind {
the appointments in the papers, for tn
sake of matrimony, with somebody O
has honorable intentions and mean
secrecy.
"The young man went on for while
as if he meant to cut right through be
tween the mother and daughter bu
his courage failed him at last and h
stopped at a window, and stared in d
the bill, "Day. School for Young La
Dies" as if he had never seen such
thing before in all his born days unit
they had passed sometime. He thel
set off again, and disappeared withou
turning his head"
"To re sure it is" said my landlady
"and the only meeting they ever had
for that very day the Parlor had let
ter from France or Scotland or some
other place abroad, which made hel
give me a weeks warning; and at the
end Of that time they went off and ]
never saw them more"
"And is this your story, madam p
asked I, getting in downright rage.
"I told you from the first, mister, y
replied my spare landlady, faring up,
"that I had no story to tell, and if you
don't choose to hear the end of it you
can Just let it alone, there 7"
eft is the end, my dear madam, that
am dying to hear. You have so inter
ested me, and have SO charming way
with you, that really"
"Well, well. It was eight months
before heard anything from the ladies,
and then had few lines from the
Parlor, telling me she had given up all
thought of returning to America, as her
daughter was now we'll married and she
was going to live with her. I hardly
knew at first what the letter was about
or who it was from, for the young man
was gone, too he went soon after them,
into one of the western states; out on
the Pacific slope, believe they call it
my own, and the tax that congress was
going to lay upon furnished lodgings, I
had forgotten all about them. By the
end of the year things we're very dull
with me. The parlors were empty, and
the two pair back had gone off without
paying his rent. The New Years morn
ing of that year I was sitting alone, for
the girl was out, and thinking to myself
what was to be done, and what differ
emit New Years this was a-going to be
from many that I could remember, and,
longing for a good, sociable. prompt
paying ledger, when all of a sudden
knock came at the door that made my
heart leap into my mouth. Not that it
was a loud, long knock-clatter, clatter,
clatter ; nor a postman's knock-ra-tatt
it was three knocks; three moderate,
leisurely strokes of the knocker, with
precisely the same number of seconds
between them, and could have sworn
the knocks were knocked by the young
man, for many time and oft had I
heard them on the door on the other
side of the way"
"I hope to gracious you were right"
said I.
"Never was wrong in my life," said
my landlady, "when I felt anything.
Black coat, white cravat, smooth hat,
glossy boots French polished, brown
hair, all were unchanged. He looked
at me for some seconds when 1
opened the door. and I was just going
to ask him how he did, and wish him
happy New Year, or something that way,
when he just said lodgings yes,
SIR said I, please to step in; and I
showed him into the parlor. He looked
at everything infinitely, but without
moving from where he stood at the
door at the table, the chairs, the man.
tel-piece, the chimney-glass am sure
he noticed that the tail of that lion was
broken (but the hussy as broke it
tramped for it, l can tell you D-nothing
him and at last he looked at
the window, and at the chair the young
lady used to sit in as she sewed and
then, turning quietly around, he walked
out.
"What do you think of them ?" I
asked rather anxiously, as I followed
him to the door.
Wouldn't suit" said he, and so he
went away. I was little put out, you
may be sure"
"Tll take my corporal oath of that"
I.
"But not SO much as you think,
either, sir" said my landlady, "for I
,ould not help feeling sorry for him.
But yet own, when at the very same
hour the first day of the next ye-"
"New Years, next year p
son the very day, hour, minute,
second, the same knock, the same look
in my face, the same inspection of the
room, the same gaze at the young lady's |
chair, and the same answer: Wouldn't
suit 7 The next year.
"My dear madam how long is that
ago."
Well matter of twenty years."
I was glad it was DO worse, for a mis-
giving had come over me, and my i'm
agination was losing itself in the dis
lance of the past.
"The next year." continued my land
lady, and the next, and the next, and
The next, and the next, was as like as
could be. Sometimes the parlor was
lit but it was always just the same !;
he would see it, as it might do for an
other time : and the dodgers being out
he did see it, and still it wouldn't suit.
At last one New Years happened t
be out myself, not thinking it was the
young mans hour, and my as the
thought struck me when coming home,
it gave me such a turn ! I felt as if I
hadn't done right. But it was of no
consequence to him; he only stared
twice as long when the door opened and
he saw strange face. But he went in