Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1876-07-28
PYRAMUS AND THISBE.

1t was very hot, sunny afternoon. So
still was the summer breeze which unu-
sually found it's way over the high hills
until it reached Farmer BoWen's porch,
there to coquette with the prairie roses
which climbed up it's trellised sides, that
now every leaf was motionless, and indeed
quite pale with the heat and dust. Every
body in the old house was evidently taking
an afternoon rest, for dull quiet reigned
all over. Even Towser lay curled up in.
the shadiest spot out on the lawn, and
grandma, who scorned to Ego to bed in
daylight" nodded in her armchair close
by the open door.
Really, life had very humdrum, COM
monplace, tame sort of look. At least
Kathie Bowen thought SO, as she came
running down the hall stairs in the freshest
of crimped lilac musins and most bewil-
dering of new chip garden hats, all field
flowers and daisies. A hopeless, despair
ing little sigh came from the region of her
ruffies around her bodice as, looking all
around for pair Of open eyes to admire
her pretty new costume, she beheld only
tight-shut lids about her. Everything was
so different from what she had looked for
ward to and dreamed Of so long. Surely,
after a four years. course of diligent study
at boarding-school, and finally graduating
day in which one stands "head," a girl
may be pardoned for imagining that life
before her will be brilliant succession Of
golden days, in which the various accom-
plishments and studies of which she is sup
posed to be mistress will serve to illumi.
nate and glorify her own part in the festive
scene. "School was out,'' and kathie was
finished" and at home, but alas ! it was
all very quiet and uninteresting. "Life"
had not begun brightly, at least as Kathie
had pictured it-for country home is not
unusually the background for series of
dashing panoramas. Of course she was
glad to be at home and see all the dear
ones, but there was no one to whom she
could show off her varied knowledge of his
tory, philosophy, French and music no
one, at least, but father, mother and grand
pa. There had been d secret little hope in
the depths of Kathie's heart all along that
Phil Somers, who lived on the farm across
the creek, and with whom she had firted
ever since she was a baby, would be one Of
the first of the Bowenyille beaux who would
welcome her home and fall at her feet in
alteration; but, spite of this hope, all the
young men in the country had futtered
around her but Phil, and she had been
home almost a month without catching a
Sight Of his brown eyes and curly hair. 1t
was certainly very singular; and what was
stranger, when she had casually asked once
CT twice about her old friend and playmate,
her father replied very CURLY, II know
nothing about the fellow" and her mother
locked very grave. Grandma solved the
mystery one day, however, by telling Ka-
THE that Phil's father and hers had quar-
relied over piece Of meadow land, and con-
sequently there had arisen a GOODNESS and
stone wall.
.It beats my time" said grandma. ''how
men like James Somers and John Bowen
boys together and life long friends beats
my time how they could come to hard
words at last, and all about little piece Of
grass. Blood relations, too-their grand
mothers were own cousins, and therefore
the good feeling and property were never
meant to beSeparated by GOODNESS nor a
stone wall; but there it is, higher than your
head, and never likely to be made up Meth
er." Katie comprehended grandma's Gu
rious explanation much easier than she
had understood her fathers short answer
or her mothers grave looks, and it was
| with a hot throb at her heart and an angry
little toss at her head that, listening to her
grandma, she determined then and there
that, aided by her knowledge Of history,
philosophy and Frencb-she had conju-
gated the verb di1laee-and in spite of the
GOODNESS or the stone wall, she would man.
age to see Phil Somers before the month
was full moon old. Forbidden fruit is
the sweetest, and if Phil had been forbid
den to come to see her, he was the very one
she most wanted to see now.
1t was for a purpose, therefore, that the
fresh lilac muslin and new chip hat were
donned SO early this day. Kathie remem-
bered very well that it was Phil Somers's
custom on hot summer afternoons to hang
his hammock on one of the boughs OF the
old mulberry tree down by the brook
| ,R f1n