The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1876-04-22

having horror of women who usurped.
as thought, the positions and privileges
of the sterner sex.
| However, / will admit had fair share
of curiosity about the new conner, and so
no doubt had my companions, always ex-
cepting julie Gerard, who was too selfish
and indolent to feel the slightest interest
in any thing or any body. And the next
morning, when young woman pushed
open the swing door, walked quickly up to
me, being nearest the door, and said to
me in low, shy voice Il like low, shy
volces). Z" Will You please show me where
| my desk is?' | am conscious | regarded
her with a look more keen than polite.
| The blood rose to her cheek, and she
returned my look not boldly, but untiinch-
ingly.
Certainly" said |. and escorted her to
her seat catching a fearful grimace from
! Thrall as passed.
| The girl (for she was girl about eight
teen, should think was, in my opinion
an opinion shared by all my fellow clerks.
as found before the day was over-not at
all pretty, not even good looking
She was tall and thin; had large sunken
gray eyes, wide brow, left bare by the
! plain arrangement of her hair, which was
| an vi WI away lIOui IL anu CafeleSSIy tWlne0
| in heavy coil at the back of her head.
rather ugly nose and rather pretty mouth.
| She blushed nicely, the delicate crimson
just tingeing her pale cheeks and touching
her chin; and she had beautiful hands, with
long taper fingers-I noticed them when
she began to write-and her name. as I
afterward discovered, was Stella Starsun.
Miss S'arsun proved so quiet and mousse
| like that after few days we almost for
got her presence, and caffed, laughed. and
sang, when the cat was away, almost as
much as ever.
One thing we all noticed-Miss Starsun
| never went out at lunch time. She nib
bled away at something for Mbout five min
utes drank glass If water, and then tax
| ing book from her satchel read or studied
until time for work again.
"Fellows," said Smith, one day after she
had gone, GIVE found out what Miss Star
sun lunches on"
| Pickles" said Thrall
"Candy," drawled Gerard.
1.-Two crackers" said Smith; 80 neither
more or less. I've watched her for week
through little peep hole I've made in my
screen, and that's all, pom honorr
Poor thing"' said I; that's dry fare"
Mot so bad" drawled julie. 81 Some
unfortunate people haven't two crackers"
"Good heavens. what tortoise you are,
Gerard" said Thral.
Ya-as," said julie.
! The next day ! noticed on Miss Starsun's
desk a pretty basket of strawberries, in
wreathed with bright green leaves. She
looked at it IN evident wonder for mo.
ment when she entered, and then set it
aside; but | was glad to see that at lunch
time she ate the Strawberries with her
crackers, taking what the gods apparently
had sent her, in her usual quiet manner,
without question.
! After that, every day through the Sum-
mer, some fruit offering was laid upon Miss
| Starsun's desk; placed there by order of
old Lawrence, we all decided, whose poor
relation we had long ago made up our
minds the girl must be.
Gradually we became quite interested in
the interloper-she was SO patient, so thor
oughy womanly and modest in all her
ways and worked so conscentiously and
well.
"Only inconvenient to have around
Thrall said, "when fellow feels as though
he must swear or burst" And if she had
only been pretty, half a dozen of us would
have been in love with her. as l said to
Elizabeth Wayland, authoress, who had
come in to see the editor of one of our
numerous publications, and being out,
stopped a moment to chat with me. By
the-bye. those who say all women writers
are ugly, should see Elizabeth Wayland.
1t is pleasure to look at her bright, at.
tractive face-and such delicious charm
ing, harmless flirt as she Isl
"Pretty,' Mr. Dickson" said She
"Where are your eyes?"
"Where they always are when you are
present." l replied
Take them awav in, n, al at opd looLr
at that girl. Nice head, nice broad brow,
nice brown hair sweet gray eyes, long dark
lashes, pretty little mouth, and character
istc nose"
Mice way of saying ugly" inter-
rupted l.
And altogether continued Elizabeth
Wayland, "a refined, lovely face
And so it was.
She had been with us three months now,
and her cheeks had filled out and were
tinged with faint pink hue; her eyes no
longer looked sunken; her brow was shaded
by some pretty tendril-like curls, and
happy smile fingered about her lips.
"Well, stupid?" said Elizabeth Way
land.
"Yes, ma'a am" said |.
And from that day began to fall in love
with MISS Starsun. helped her all could
with her work, which was not much, as
she understood her business almost as we'll
as did | bored the fellows in the other
publishing houses for all their new books
that | might lend them to her. Now and
then l left little bouquet on her desk,
and at last got to exchanging dozen or
so sentences a day with her.
She had a sweet low voice, as | have said
before. and a pretty way, which | have not
said before, of glazing up at you from uu-
der her long dark lashes, which liked me
much.
Well, the long and short of it was that
Miss Starsun had been my fellow clerk only
four months when was desperately in love
with her, and only waited favorable OPP
portunity to tell her so.
1t came. Some of our fellows were on
their Summer vacation; the rest had been
summoned to the room of the chief. l
would be alone with Miss Starsun for an
hour
approached her desk, my heart beating
violently, and leaned over her. She laid
down her pen and looked wonderingly up
in my face.
"Miss Starsun-dear Miss Starsun,"
stammered, "you have woman's tact and
intuition; you can not have failed to see
that IL
"Have ceased to regard you as ga nuis-
ance,'" drawled julie Gerard, who had
silently approached from behind and Sc
cured the taper fingers | was about to clasp,
land !, Steli, my love, as an interloper.
And now put on your hat, say goodbye to
Dickson, and invite him, if you choose, to
call upon us when we return from our we'd
ding tour.-Ta-ta old boy"'
UpcIa Inns RanfiSt Revival HYMN