American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1876-01-22

adored by this simple family.
They were like acquaintance of oil
standing Immediately The stranger ha'
so much to say. He had heard SO nue.
: of them, and apparently all in their favor
from his friend, who seemed to be en-
dowed with all the garrulity of a lover ex
patiating on the charms of his mistress
and to have included the whole family il
his conversation. Many an anecdote wa
repeated and laughed over. So the.
played, and chatted, and grew intimat
and friendly; and Of all the groups Of
that extensive lawn, perhaps the merries
was that despised one on the slope, com
posed of the pariahs of the party, bu
whose only trouble seemed to be that tn
balls would sometimes escape and glid
swiftly toward the water.
A much more serious cause of anxict,,
occupied the others. The ball at al
their feet, the great matrimonial prize
seemed likely to escape them, or, at al
events, to become the prey of the leas
considered of their number
For some time Mr. Smith was pleasan
and complimentary to all, and, as i
seemed, to all alike. They grew desperate
fair checks flushed, white hands, glovet
in the freshest Paris kid, trembled will
emotions and only the convenances o.
| good society restrained them from display
ing openly the feelings of jealous rivalry
of each other, and admiration of the hand
some and charming, but too undemon
strative, swain which filled their hearts.
| By end by, however, one fair one, the
youngest Miss Leighton, pretty deb
utante, only just out, and new to the
world and its proprieties, seemed likely to
overstep the bounds of prudery at least,
and show openly by looks and even words
| her admiration of his beauty and pleasure
in his cncinfu What unc u,nrco he
| seemed conscious of her undisguised
preference, and inclined to return it by
| devOting himself to her; so at least il
seemed TO the jealous eyes that watched
the scene, and the words =" forward mink"
and even "disgraceful conduct" might
be heard borne in angry whispers on the
afternoon breeze.
The mammas took an eager if compare
lively passive part in all this. Mrs. Leigh
Marchmont and Mrs. Heathcote looked
daggers at their half-sisters.
And so time wore on, the shadows
heightened, matrons and prudent chape-
rons began to talk of the rising dews of
evening, to press shawls and wraps upon
the juvenile players, and to call for their
carriages.
The ladies of the family took hurried
and careless farewells of their friends.
They were too entirely engrOssed in the
game-not of croquet but rather of ecarte,
for to score the king of hearts was the OBJ
ject of all, and none could yet proclaim
the fact. Caroline seemed TO be the ia
vorite; but none as yet despaired or gave
up the prize as lost.
At seven O'Clock all the guests had de-
parted, and the home party gathered to-
gether near the house. Even the isolated
game on the slope broke up and Joined
the rest. Mrs. Heathcote began to look at
her watch and speculate on the time of
her husbands arrival, when old Mr..
Leighton, who had carefully avoided the
scene OF gayety, appeared among them,
followed by the missing spouse.
Mrs. Leighton fastened to introduce Mr..
Smith, and Mr.. Leighton was giving him
the welcome due to a guest SO heralded,
when, to the establishment OF all, Mr..
Heathcote stepped forward and claimed
him as an old acquaintance. What,
Heathcotei do you know Mr., Smith
where did you meet?" Where! in Lon
don, of course, at Old Cheatham's cham
bers. Know him? why, it's on my bust
ness he comes. might have saved you
the trouble, by the way, Smith, if had
known should be detained in town till
to-day, but dare say you don't mind
little country air is no bad thing after
being shut up all summer in those con-
fOHndedly close chambers"
No transformation scene in Christmas
pantomime was ever so complete The
handsome stranger, instead OF being the
expected heir, was the despised lawyers
clerk!-all saw at once their blunder.
Smith! what more natural than that the
lawyers clerk, the obscure man of busI
ness, should be Smith! Why were they
SO precipitate? 1t was to his good looks
and calm assurance that the mistake was
to be ascribed, and they most unreason-
ably felt angry with him as the cause.
But nothing was to be said; blank
looks and slight edgings away from his
vicinity alone were perceptible. The
change was SO slight that the
armor of conceit, seemed totally unaware
of it. He had taken all the homage, all
the attentions as the natural consequence
of tie remarkable personal qualifications
of which he was so intensely conscious.
The last thing he would have suspected
was that it could have arisen from mis-
take; and SO he stood still, blandly smil
ing upon all around, and apparently not
remarking that except from the youngest
Miss Leighton his smiles found no reflec-
ton in the fair faces of his new friends.
A still more dreadful idea was dawning
in their minds. If this was the lawyers
clerk, where was the real Smith ?-the
heir? Was it possible that the insignifi-
cant-lOoking, dusty individual, whom
they had been so anxious to "shunt off
into siding''-whom they had thrown,
as it were, into the very jaws of the enemy
who had spent the whole afternoon
making the intimate acquaintance of the
two poor cousins, could be the Prince in
disguise-the husband whom all we're SO
anxious to secure? 1t was too dreadful!
They could have bitten off their own
tongues in despite, and beaten him for
stealing upon them thus, a dusty, un-
distinguished pedestrian.
What was to be done? To acknowledge
their blunder would be to expose them
selves to inextinguishable laughter, so
they made the best of it, like ladies as
they were, said nothing to oppose the
good natured invitation Mr.. Leighton
gave the lawyers clerk to spend a few
days in the country air he seemed to en-
joy SO much, and hid their modification
as well as they could.
And what were the consequences of this
imbrogliog
They were threefold. Before a week
was out the right Mr.. Smith had proposed
to and been accepted by the disengaged
one of the poor cousins, and had promised
a living to the fiance of the other, his col
lege friend and tutor. And the other Mr..
Smith, the handsome impostor, as the
ladies in their hearts called him, but who
had never really dreamed of deceiving
anyone, had elOped with the youngest
being, as we hope, the perfect happiness
of two couples, and, in the case of the
third, no worse results than another fam
lily of poor cousins to be snubbcd and
despised.
Moral.-Young ladies should not be too