The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1875-02-25

and she went her way and did her daily
duty, hoping devoutly that she should
have valentine, If Old Qrihin, as shs
irreyerently called him, did not; also
feeling q certain surety that one woult
appear at its season-John Perkins had
been SO pleased with her pleasure, &C
eager to find out which style she thought
prettiest. II Sway ~.
The 18th was a bright day for ev
erybody, and Mr.. Griffin took his way
to the Office, being vexed in spirit with
regard TO certain man whose credit he
feared to be insecure and who owed him
ten thousand dollars. The man was
honest, hard-working and unfortunate
three facts of no more account to Mr.
Griffin than his blue eyes, brown hail
and English whiskers. To be pressed
for this ten thousand dollars was mat
ter Of life and death to him it was to put
all he had to the hazard of die; but
poor Mr.. Griffin could not risk 30 much
money. All the long way down town he
plotted his campaign against that luck.
less man. The brilliant valentines that
drew his unwilling eye on either hand
affected him as red rag does turkey
If he could have gobbled he would He
did growl, half audibly, and almos,
scared q weak-minded old lady on the
other side of the omnibus out Of her lit
tie wits. She thought he was crazy, and
was afraid to get out, lest he should fol
low her, afraid to stay in lest he should
attack; so she bore his presence in a
culver like mold of jelly till he got out,
and then almost tainted from relief. Per
haps he was crazy. I think he suffered
from emotional insanity, myself. think
all insane people ought to be hung, and
the wicked ones put into an asylum; and
there l take my stand and leave the
patient reader to classify Mr.. Griffin.
All that morning he hunted his prey like
q bloodhound. He tracked him from one
place to another, and followed him up,
determined on personal interview,
which, after all, he failed to obtain.
The day was very mild, and Mr..
Griffin got heated. His head began to
ache. He was as much surprised as q
lamp-post could have been to feel . sharp
pain in his lantern; but he was coward
ingram, and the possibility of sickness,
and loss of time, expense of medicine,
doctors bills and watchers, startled him
He believed in prevention; that sickness
might cost him q coffin never came into
his calculations. He was practically an
utter skeptic, with God in none of his
thoughts, but the human aspect of sick.
ness terrified him. He dropped postal
card into the nearest box, telling his
clerk he should not be down again that
day, went home in time to prevent . su-
perfluous dinner being cooked, and went
to sleep, being merely overtired and
heated. In the meantime his clerk, who
was q sharp.witted fellow, and had q
brother in Washington, Congressional
reporter for q New York paper, who with
certain fraternal interest occasionally
to be useful on the Stock Exchange, re-
ceived telegram that caused him to sit
down and write small note to his chief,
as follows:
DEAR sIR.:;tCongress will pass bill to-morrow
eral Hospital for the inebriate Senators, and the
kanawha & Deseret Railroad Company own the
land they have promised to build on. K. & D..
Quick 4 Qusver have $4,000 on baud at 50.
would buyin tonight; but they are shut up, and
have to be of in the seven .. m. train to Albany.
Wy father lust dying there So notify you, as
Now Mr.. Griffin kept everything in his
Office under lock and key-paper, envel.
opes, and all-lest the clerk should I'M.
lawfully use and waste them out of
Office hours. He grudged the pen and
ink; but these might be needed to fill up
q telegram form OF file q bill, and he re-
luctantly left out certain sheets of fools
cap for possible exigencies. MIR. Joseph
Jones. having a sweetheart and not hav-
ing disgust at valentines, had been in
diting one that afternoon to his Susan,
and on the first envelope had dropped q
dreadful blot between her two sweet
names. Luckily, he had provided for
mishaps and bought two, and the COM
pleted missive, neat and gay. lay on the
table ready to send. But when he came
to inclose his note to Mr.. Griffin there
was no envelope to be had. 1t was nine
o'clock and the drop-letter mail for early
morning delivery would soon be closed
there was no help for it. Unaware of
MIR. Grifin's rage at valentines he
scratched out Susan's blotted name as
best he might, and. writing his employ
er's address under it. stamped both epis.
ties, dropped them into the Office, went
home to bed, and left for Albany in the
morning as unconscious of the fire he
had kindled as any other sleepy man on
the train.
Now there was another valentine in
that office, dropped before either of
these two, among the 10000 of its kind,
that was meant to assail Melindy in q
serions and sentimental manner. For
John Perkins was shy and slow of
speech; but his mind was set upon marry.
ing Melindy, and he devised valentine
as neat way of making the offer of his
heart and hand gracefully and accepta.
bly,. Accordingly he bought splendid
sheet, garlanded with roses and garnished
at top and bottom with two fat Cupids
one dressed in the simple drapery of a
rcd and yellow bsndana handkerchief
about his middle, very bent bow in one
hand and scroll in the other, while his
brother was attired in an insufficient
American flag, and held portly CULVER
brlstling with arrows and another scroll
inscribed with legend like that above
the first verse being at the top, the other
below: ~ .E..'' go.
There 10 but only one,
And / am only he,
Who love but only one, .I =
And thou art only she.
Requite me for the Same
And cay thou unto me:
II love but only one,
And thou art only he"
But lest Melindy should consider this
declaration as merely conventional and
uncertain John inserted in the small
gsrlanded space between the scroll.
bearers terse but comprehensive sen
tence of his own, in good set terms: ~
DEAR MELmDY-I mean It all az true Is death
Will you marry met l am comm tonight to
know. YourNalentine, JOHN PERKiNs.
So morning came fraught with fate
Mr.. Grifin's head did not ache, but he
was cross unspeskably. The fire burned
bright in his crate, Lis toast was crisp,
his coffee clear, but he growled and
snapped like real live BEAR" as Me.
Indy said. ....r.-
However, poetic Justice overlook Mr.
Griffin then and there. Melindy had
gone ON to the roof to take down her
a. IL u = q