American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1876-02-26
VOL. XXVI.

and she still strained her eyes over tn,
silvery sea.
| /" Aunt Deborah, what makes yor
crys"
the tears from her checks.
| =" Aunty, has your ship Prince or
boardr"
alt has a barley sugar bird cage and q
Westinghouse for my dear boy" salt
aunt-as l now know-evasively and
then mounted that imaginary rocking
horse and soon cantered off into the land
of dreams.
/ often heard that story of the Princess
afterward-up to the time when l was put
into trousers and wore. frilled collars and
caps like an elongated concertina, taper
ing to a tassel that offered the attractions
of bell. rope to the vulgar, boys of the
village. heard, too, but aunt did NOT
tell me, of Mr.. Somebody who had once
wanted to marry Aunt Deborahi but she
Tilted him, my father said, and Mr.. Some
body went abroad. According to my
father, he was supposed TO have married
in revenge ten savage wives, who brought
each a cotton Observation-Disclosures for
her trousseau, but my farther said this
only to tease Aunt Deborah, and never
believed 1t was true.
In the year 1 was put into trousers we
lost Aunt Deborah altogether. 1t was a
great year at Sweetcr0ss, i remember. 1t
was in the winter time. We had kept
Christmas rierrily, In a downright old
fashioned winter, and the snow made the
village look like the top of a twelfth.cak
from fuletide right up to ST. Valentines
Eve. / mention st. Valentines Eve be-
cause that was a red letter day with us,
for it pleased the Fates that / should be
born on 18th of February, and we al
ways kept the nnisersary l was al
lowed to sit up till midnight in my own
honor, and make myself as ill as boun-
teous good things would permit. We
had little company, but we were happy
circle, full of good humor and life. My
father and some other of the elders were
full of nonsense-so Aunt Deborah said
for they all declared that she longed for
the dawn of day and the coming of the
village postman. There was great joke
to the effect that the first male she looked
upon on the dawn of the suspicious 18th
would be her Valentine, and aunt laughed
and vowed she would look on none other
than her dear boy. When jokes failed
they took to storytelling, and each had
some merry tale to tell of Don Cupid and
his whims. = y
1t was nearly midnight when it came to
Aunt Deborah's turn, and by that. time
monds and raisins were doing their will
upon my eyelids; but when heard Aunt
Deborah say that she did not know any
stories, reused myself and blurted oIt1
that she knew the tale of ther pretty
Princess; and aunty seemed confused,
and said it was nonsense, and only story
for very little boys. But my father and
all the rest insisted that she should tell it.
She would not, however, and then, little
idiot that was, volunteered the story,
for knew it by heart, and l had not the
sense to see that was covering poor Aunt
Deborah with Confusion -,.-
l remember that 1 had just come to the
part where the Princess was looking over
the silvery sea, longing for the ship that
never came, when the door opened, almost
noiselessly, and we saw a strange man
in the room.
He was muffled up in a rough coat, and
he look OIL fur cap and flicked the snow
from it with his hand. Everybody start
ed up as the light of the lamp fell softly
on his handsome, bearded face.
GOOD -hcavensI''A cried my father;
. Petwoodr' And he took the strange
mans hand.
And Deborah, pale as ghost, had risen
with the rest, and she stood staring at the |
Stranger with lost look in her eyes.
Then she tottered toward him timidIy, |
holding out her hand but he advanced to |
meet her with his arms wide open, and
sunty burst out crying and fell upon his
breast.
Just at that moment the old church bell !
rang out the hour of midnight, and |
heard my father say: +" The ship has come |
rom over the silvery sea-"
And Aunt Deborah looked up into the
strange mans face, and as his was the
irst male face she had looked upon since !
he clock had ushered in the day, / con |
GUIDED that he must be her Valentine.
l was right, too, for the strange man
Petwood was the Mr.. Somebody who had |
to marry Aunt Deborah, and he
lad come back rich from the land of gold,
md had not married ten savages-that /
vas fudge-and he laughed at the story
With the rest. But he did marry Aunt I
Deborah, and he is now my Uncle Pet
wood, the best and kindest of men,
v. Y. Gra1,tic. ..s..