The news and herald. [volume] (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1876-1881, 1876-11-23
O, S. c.: THURSDAY MORNING, NOVEMBER q. 1876.

"They are my MISTRESS" she said
II had been desired to fetch them
from the shop"
"Wear them," I said, "al] the
same-they will be none the worse,
and will keep your little feet dry"
"But how Gun I ?" she answered,
with a smile; "they will not fit NE
ut all"
"Too small z" I said, laughing.
eyes, sir" she said, with another
smile, even more charming than the
first. I told her that I should not
be satisfied until I had decided that
point myself, and at last I persuad
ed her to try. The little rogue
know we'll the result Her feet were
quite lost in them.
If have O weakness in the world,
my good fellow, it is in favor of
pretty feet and ankles so, when
Rachel insisted on taking her de
parture, I hobbled as we'll as
could to the window to sec her pick
her way across the mud puddles.
satisfied myself that the girls ankles
were Us undcniablc as her feet; and
she was unequivocally 6ie,a chaussee.
l could not help thinking of this
long after she was gone. And then
it occurred to me that Julia Harper
was certainly on rather large scale.
She had q good figure of its kind,
and she had fine eyes but Rachel's
were quite us bright and much
softer and as for oil the essentials
of graceful and feminine figure, the
mistress was far inferior to tho
maids. I kept thinking of this all
the evening, and after I had gone
to bed. And I thought, too, of the
very unpleasant specimen of Julia
insincerety which had betrayed
itself in the case of the slippers.
The next day WAS IN auspicions
one. Looking prottier than ever
Rachel came with note from her
mistress. Twas in no hurry to opening
it, you may be sure. Iaslcd Rachel
a great number of questions, and was
especially solicitous on the score of
wet feet, which I feared had been
the result of her last homeward
voyage from my lodgings. She had
by this time hnbituated herself to
talk to me in much more free and
unembaTassed manner than when
hrst She came to my apartments :;
and the more she talked to me the
more charmed I was for she OK
pressed herself 30 well, had such a
pleasant voice and delivered such
sensible opinions, that 1 soon began
to think that the mental qualifica-
lions Of the mistress (none of the
highest, be it said) were by no means
superior to those Of the maid. In
deed, to toll the truth, my good
fellow, [ was falling in love with
little Rachel as fast rs 1 possibly
could.
This day, indeed, precipitated the
crisis. We had talked some time to-
gether, when Rachel reminded me
II thought that there was IN express
sion Of mock Representatives, in the
little round fucc) that L had not
read her mistress letter. I opened
it in a careless manner; and had no
sooner read the first line than l
burst out into loud laughter.
"Bravo, Rachel, I exclaimed. You
are nice little messenger, indeed, to
carry young ladys biilets douc.
Yon have given me n wrong letter"
She tookssup the envelope, which had
fallen to the ground, and showed me
that it was directed to edward
Bloxham, Esq" Cali the better,
Rachel" L said "but this begins, Il
am so delighted, my dear Captain
Cox Hurrah for the envelopes !"
I looked into Rachels face. It
was not easy to read the expression
of it. First she seemed INCLINED to
laugh--thon to cry. Then she
blushcd up to tho very roots of her
hair. She was evidently in a state
of incortitude and confusion-puz-
zled what course to pursue. 1 fold
cd up the letter, placed it in another
envolope-not aving, of course,
read another word of it's contents.
What was the cause of Julia's cxces-
sivo delight am not aware up to
this moment but I could not help
asking Rachel something about
Captain Cox. One question led to
another. Rachel hesitated ut first
but at last, with faltcring voice and
fearful face, told mo the whole truth.
She said that sho had felt herself for
some time in very painful and en-
barrassing situation. She rccog-
nized her duty to her mistress, who
had been kind and indulgent to her
but she could not help seeing that
much that hld been done was
extremely wrong. She had all
along been ashamed of the duty on
which sho was employed, and had
more than once limited her disap-
probation buthad been only laughed
ntas aprude. She had often reproach-
ed herself for being aparty to the fraud
which had been practised on me.
She had not ut first fathomed tho
whole extent Of it; but now she
knew how bad a matter it ws... The