American citizen., 1876-08-19
THE TWO sBONNErs.

NIECE PRUDENCE:-Tbee knows that
do not follow after the fashions of the world
nor indulge myself in the putting on of ga,
apparel, as is the manner of some, ever
among Friends, in these days; but still, ]
desire to be decent and orderly in dress.
and, rs my best bonnet has become worr
and discolored-thee will remember re-
marking it when thee was here last-I de.
sire thee to purchase another for me. Thee
knows what Iwould like: drab straw Of a
comely shape, designed IS a a covering TO,
the head. with a decent drab ribbon upon
it. The Quarterly Conference meets here
next week; and. If thee will send it befor.
that time, shall be grateful to thee.
Thy aunt,
BATHsHEBA BOYCE.
Prue Boyce, gay little maiden OF
twenty. who gave no sign, in her ap
pearance. of the Quaker blood in he,
veins, read her aunt's letter, with b
laugh at the stiff phraseology, and a,
expression Of surprise at the contents.
then opened another letter with the
same post-mark, &C, Maine:''
DEAR COUSIN PRUE: Aunt Bathsheba
says she is going to write you to send her a
new best bonnet. don't know what is 60
ing to happen, when Aunt B. gets SO frisky
Astral! Nothing can surprise me now. ]
expect to see her waltzing with Jedediah
Crowfoot, who sits at the head of the high
seats. Do you know how long she has worn
that "best bonnet" as she always calls itf
It is new and startling idea to me that IL
ever had beginning, and can possibly come
to an end. have always regarded it as one
Of the antiquities of the earth, supposed that
it came out of the ark, and that nothing
short Of another food would put stop to
Aunt Bathsheba's wearing it.
But what am writing for is to tell you to
be sure not to get her another of those hor.
rid old pokesl II you do, will never for
give you. You know Aunt Bathsheba is
just as pretty as q pink, If she
is ALMOST forty, and If she could
ouly be coaxed to dress like other
people, she would look better than
any yo'ng girl in G.. There isn't
persen among the Friends, now, who dress
es SO horribly as Aunt B. unless it is Jede-
diah Crowfoot's wife, who's q hundred, II
she is day. But Aunt b. groans about
our "degenerate ways" If 1 try to coax
her to be little gayer, and says we are fast
getting to be "world's people.o For my
part, L hope we are!
: Well, what 1 want you to do is to get
Aunt B. pretty bonnet, and yet not SO gay
q one that she won't wear it. You can tell
what will be becoming to her, and yet will
not shock her out of her senses.
Captain Stephen Hargrave, Aunt b. g old
has come home. You know
grandfather wouldn't let her marry him.
because he was Of the ssworld's people. ,,
He is q very handsome man still, if he is
. little bronzed and weather-beaten; and he
never has married. He came to meeting
LAST Sunday-though he isn't Friend-and
you ought to have seen the color come into
Aunt Bathsheba's cheeks, every time he
looked at her; and 1 can't help having a
it does seem too horrible
to harbor for moment-that Captain Har-
grave more than the Quarterly Conference
is at the bottom of the new bonnet. Aunt
Bathshebs won't be so shocked by pretty
bonnet as she would have been month ago,
take my word for it. Your afectionate
cousin, Phoebe BoYcE.
cit is queer that Laura johnson
should have happened to send to me
for her wedding dress just at this time.
I shall have to make only one journey
to the milliner's." thought Prue. ssAnd
sciH get something a1ittle gayer than
her old bonnet for Aunt Bathsheba,
though, as for its being on Captain
Hargrave's account, don't believe q
word of it! Phoebe doesn't know how
set she is as well as do. Aunt Bath
sheba setting her cap for any body-to
say nothing of the worlds people! The
idea is too ridiculousl"
Prue tripped off to a miliher's, and
bought two bonnets. One was a drab
straw, with a "decent drab ribbon -
upon it, but with, also, q drab feather
upon it, and wreath of forget-me-nots
in the inside. The shape, too, was not
one OF the 'horrid pokes," though it
was little more of a Towering for the
head" than most of the prevailing
styles.
The other was a very coquettish little
affair, of navy blue, with wing as well
as feather, and face trimmings of light
blue, with a white rose nestled dainty
in the midst.
alt is very jaunty and Stylish"
thought Prue; s'and that is what Laura
likes, or used to like, though, now that
she is going to marry q minister, she
may like more sober things; but, if she
does, she ought to have told me. 1t is
the prettiest bonnet I saw, and just
what should like myself"
So, Aunt Bathsheba's and Laura
Johnson's bonnets were purchased and
dispatched to their destinations, and
Prue anxiously awaited news of their
and the opinions of their OWL
ers concerning them
She waited more than a week before
she heard from either. Then came a
little note from Phoebe:
DEAR PRUE:-Great things have hap
ened since you heard from US. and the
bonnet which you cent to Aunt Bathsheba
is the cause of them all! When Aunt b.
opened the box, and saw that gay and
jaunty little blue and white. and winged,
and rosy-pos'ed hat, my first thought was
that you had gone raving crazy; my next,
that you had had the audacity to perpetrate
JUNG on Auut DatnsneoA! anu tnen
dreadful feeling of envy seized me; 1t was
Buch Q beauty of bonnet!
Aunt Bathsheba gazed upon It with
] really thought, at first,
Prue, that she was going to faint!
"Oh, Aunt Bathsheba. do let me try II
on! It is such n beauty" j cried,
Aunt u. was speechless.
IPut It on, but can't say that II was very