Middletown transcript., 1877-08-04
At first / disliked her-she had such

/
everybody, or so liberal as she w
with her limited means.
People talked about that girl cruell,
and / loved her because l pitied he
and knew her to be as pure as a
angel.
She had pretty brown hair, an
large, soft eyes, and color in he
cheeks like the heart of a May ros,
and mouth that made you thin
straightway of kisses but such an ole
old look in her face, that / have ofte
seen in girls into whose life too muc
work has been crowded.
I noticed a marked change in tn
toilets at supper on the arrival Of thi
young Adonis. Angie had donned he
blue fchu, frilled profusely with tn
richest Of creamy lace, and stuck ful
Of little blue bows, over silver-colore,
silk, that rustled and shone like star
light. Her husband had left her LIT
tie property, which she privately de
clared she was not going to work he
fingers to the bone to save, but should
use it as a means to get a second hus
band.
Miss Florida wore purple silk, witt
dead white bows, that made her, witt
her dark eyes and skin, look like (
lemon, and crazy fringe of curls upor
her forehead, that made her look leanel
and more eadaverous than ever.
Mrs. Yetherby wore sea-green, with
a surplus amount Of jewelry. Emily
Mills, who came late, and did not know
Of the new arrival, wore white calico
with sprig in it, and the cotton fac.
tory not being an overly clean place,
the sleeves were smutty. I saw young
Ellery look at her with his lovely,
dreamy eyes; and when I saw her look
up at him, 1 knew it was all up with
her, and knew as well as I do now that
she would fall in love with him, and l
did hope she would take fancy to my
son, Watson, who, though not a par
ticularly brilliant boy, is honest and
good-principled. I knew enough Of the
world to know that fine clothes and
fine ways and a city-bred air would at
tract a girl where the sober, prudent
ways of my Watson would make no
impression. IF ever Lucifer came
down in the form of an angel of light,
it was young Roy EIlery. Whenever
I saw him walking with Emily in the
shady walks, | shuddered; 1 dreaded
to have her under the charm of his
magnetic eyes, and his dazzling ways !;
but I dared not say anything, being a
widow and dependent on my boarders
for living, and Ellery was my best
paying one.
'Beware of q man, though he be your brother,
Who has hair of one color, and mustache of
another"
quoted Miss Florida, sharply.
Yet, for all that, I noticed she did
not take her own warning to heart, for
if ever a woman threw herself at a
mans head, it was Miss Florida Dorm.
In spite of the lack of so many front
teeth, she smiled in his face constantly /;
did he try to Airt with willing Angie
Barker, in the parlor, she would be
sure to be sitting bolt upright near /;
did he attempt to whisper any sweet
things to shy Emily Mills in some twi-
light corner, she would contrive to
wedge her hife-like blade of figure
between them.
So the summer crept away, and he
had likewise crept into the hearts Of
all my womenkind. Angie had snub-
bed poor Mr.. Geasly, and devoted her
self entirely to Ellery. I knew Of the
two, the latter liked Emily best, but l
felt sure he would never marry her;
the young men Of to-day are too cool
hearted and too cool-headed, too keenly
alive to their own interests to marry
50 poor girl.
So I watched her with dismay, grow
ing shyer and shyer, and coloring like
an Italian sunset whenever he spoke to
her; and Mr.. Geasly growing daily
more stolid and Grabbed, and my son,
sadder and more awkward.
I had a summer house built for the
boarders out on the lawn-it was no
part of the plan when it was built that
almost everything that was said in that
house could be heard almost
anywhere near. Tonight Angie and
Ellery were sitting on the rustic seat
within it, and Emily was leaning
against my garden wall, among the
bushes. I was in the wood
ihed looking over my citrons when I
heard Roy say:
"What could have made you sup
pose I loved Emily better than you
Why, the girl is well enough in her
way, but what man would wish to
marry a girl who wore a sprigged
,alico and worked in the cotton fac
ory2'
I saw Emily start and pull her bou-
Iuet Of asters to pieces, then l saw her
Urn suddenIv and walk down to +he |