The Tiffin tribune. (Tiffin, Ohio) 1868-1887, 1875-04-01
- -. From Theodore z 7iltoRls Resms.s
sEIle erack Il the Door!

garden, the best servants, ana the
best bank account in X-belOngs
to Mrs. Mehetable Armstrong, wild
ow. Some people also declared that
she was the prettiest woman in
X-;but these were not the. other
women. They said that she had red
hair and was too fat, and Whist the
gentlemen saw to admire in her they
coQld not guess etc.;; but, say it as,of-
ten as they might, every man in the
place was Hetty Armstrong 3 devoted
servant, friend, and, a dozen ofthem,
her lovers also. ArbrighEo deshiRg,
warm-hearted woman she was, as
merry as tboEgA she had meyer kupWn
a care. Not THAT she had forgotten
the love of her youth-the gallant,
black-eyed captain, whose ship had
gone down in mid ocean five years
before, and whose pictured face lay
near her heart night and day, sleep
ing and waking but she was too
full OF life and hope to live entirely
in the past, and loved neither hours
"a good cry" To forget all sorrow,
if she could, and be as happy as she
might, were the two grand rules Of
her life, and therefore people who did
not know Hetty Armstrong thought
her heartless, and madea great mis-
take.
They called her a fiirt, and that was
not true, eitheri She only fiirted with
those who began the game first, and
that the woman had right to do. Al
X, if a gentleman called twice upon
lady, his attentions were said to be
Every particular; if he "saw her
home from meeting," rumor declared
that they were engagedY and II he
spent an evenihg wits her. thsy were
''to be married next week." for GER
tainty; but Hetty Armstrong was
somehow not included in the general
rule. She had determined to do as
she chose. She went everywhere
with every unmarried gentleman oi
her set. She was friendly when she
liked. After setting gossip sfOat, 3
dezen times = sheO gained her spoiHt
and penpIe left her. aloneg 1t was
Hettf tflArtIistrehs' , 's1zaF, { and Int o5in-
dication of matrimonial intentions
For years gentlemen haunted her par
Tors, escorted her hither and thither,
sung with her, danced with her, con-
fided in her, and adored her, and vii
IIaee gossip had not married her, un-
til suddenly stranger made his debut
at X and set the tongues a-gOing be
| yond even Hetty Armstrong; power
of silencine
He was tall, he was handsome he
was conp8ratiyely young. He had
1ust that teuch of the exquisite about
thfn1 which is 50 charming when IS
mans manfor a'that, "faultless in toi
let, in manner educated, accomplish
ed altogether, he openly flung himself
at Hetty Armstrong; feet and declar-
ed himself her admirer. OF course we
do not mean to say he ruined thu
knees of his faultless habiliments by
going down on them, or in any Othel
way conducted himself as did tht
knights of old when heart-smitten
but, after the manner of the nine
| tions quite as openly. ~
He sang to and at the lady, II,
haunted her parlOrs like a welf-dress
ed ghost. He wrote poetry for Tn
''Luminary," addressed to II. A. ant
signed c. r. He breathed deep signs
and gave soit glances, and said thingi
that might have double meanings
And this not for a week or month, bu
for year, at the end of which TIM
Hetty Armstrong began to understand
that she was expectedTby every bod
] to accept Charles RdkeWOod when hl
offered her his heart and hand. Mean
while, the soft, languid eyes and swee
voice, the delicate attentions, and tn
winning songs of her Sdmirer wer
not without their effect upon Hett,
Armstrong; heart. 1t began to b
conscious of certain tremOrs and fiut
terings in his presence. Her cheek
flushed as they had in girlhOod. He
dreams were not the sober, practica
dreams which nature at 6Te-and-tFen
4 ty shonld alone indulge sns and as To
1 days rolled on she felt more conscious
that the "Yes" which was expee ted o
her would be easily uttered.
She tried to be prudent and judg
the man carefully. The result wa
that she declared him to be "an an
GEL" At last Hetty Armstrong fair
ly let 60 the rudder of self-will, il
which she had clung so long, and al
lowed herself to drift down the tide O
circumstances, which were to lead he
1 into thearms Of Charles RokeWocd
IShe felt that life would be happie
with such a bosom to repose upon, AN
began to wonder whether it really wa
necessary for 8 widow to be marie,
In pearl color when white was so be
coming to her complexion.
So matters. stood when Christma
drew near, aud with it HettyA Arm
strongis regular ChfismAs Eve party
Ali X, or nearly al, would be- there
even the Rev. Luther Paragon, wh
, amiabIy forgot to SAP that he dissE
proved of dancing and chsrades Hhe
Mrs. Armstrong declared that ifsh
adored them 1t was always tn
J merriest party of the season at X, an
this time Mrs. Armstrong decide
: that she would outdo herself Ther
! was a dash more of coquetry in he
dress; 3 dash. of extravsgance in %
fsuppef, s glitter Of rare china. and
perfume of rare flowers in the parlol
Just as they say wine warns up th
wits and fancy does love at times. A
things would be brighter, fresher, mol
sparkling, just now, thought, or ratf
= er vaguely felt, the woman who hs
4 lust begun 20 know her heart rign
and thought she knew anOther's. /
She stood, in her rich dress of sill
and lace, flowers in her hair and o
= her bosom, before her guests arrived
before hergrate fiSe in the parlor, Hhel
some one touched heron the shoulde
lsnd, tarning, she saw Charles RokI
,1WOOd. M
!. Her face Was . little paler, her ey'
q more earnest in their look than usua
: and sort of happy terror hung upo
her as she guessed why he had com