The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1877-05-31

Accordingly, he soon discovered that, by
/ q singular coincidence, the best trout
fishing in vsaggville was on Squire
Browns farm. Good-hearted, hospitable
Squire Brown, who liked the young fell
low and his college stories, whenever he
encountered him, insisted on bringing
him home to tea or dinner, as the case
fmight be. So Dick often had the pleas.
ure of seeing Dswless domiciled on
Browns piazza of summer evening
with perfectly at-home air, peculiarly
\ aggravating. Other people also noticed
his frequent presence there. Craggville
was one ofthose small, quiet places, where
anything in che way of news is boon,
to be made the most of. Filtration was
as yet one of the undiscovered arts there.
| When young man in Craegyille began
"paying attentions" to q young Woman
Lie meant business. His first Sunday
evening visit was the beginning of the
1 end--a sure symptom of matrimony.
/ So it happened quite naturally that
Mrs. Smith should tell Mrs. Jones that
Orestus Cooks nephew was paying his
attentions to Mollie Brown, and she pre-
sumedsit would be an engagement Mn.
Jones told Mrs. Robinson Roxy Beman
taking tea with Mrs. Robinson next day,
that lady impaired the great intelligence
to her, only by this time it had become q
fact. Roxy went home, bursting with
the.tidings,. TO Dick. When Dick came
in with the milk pals, Roxy met him in
the kitchen with, "Richard, what do you
suppose heard this afternoon2"
'tI don't know" said Dick with strong
appearance of not caring as we'll. Not
that he was one of those men habitually
cross and snappish at hometo his mother
and sisters. But of late the lines had
fallen for hin in hard, dreary places.
His heart was sore and heavy within
him, and be felt weary and Disguised
with everything, with life itself. Roxy
proceeded with all the enjoyment natu-
raj to the first imparting such an item of
news. "Mra. Robinson says that Mrs.
Jones says that Mrs. Smith told her that
Mollie Brown is engaged to that Mr..
Dawless. I've been expecting it. You
know he is there half his time. What
do you think about it, Richard7"
The twilight was favorable to Dick.
| Possibly that was the reason one of his
| milk pals hit the pantry door, deluging
the kitcden floor.
"How careless you are, Richard, said
Roxy, ruefuliy, contemplating the snowy,
i froth-crested. stream, meandering across
her clean floor. "Now I shall have to
change my dress and mop up. lido wish
you would be little more careful"
| If Dick hsd been dying, Roxy would
not have seeded him, nor would she
now, when the best part of him, his heart
and hope and courage were dying in him,
had she only known. But Dick made no
sign. He went ont to the barn, har.
messed Dandy, and drove away in the
darkness, he cared not where, 80 he could
be alone, and keep his troubles to him
self
| One morning., not long after, Mollie,
| with q sunbonnet tipped down over her
nose, and a tin pan in her hand, was go
ing out to pick the Lima beans for din
ner. She was humming seThere's music
in the air." thinking what pleasant
morning this was, and what fine place
this earth was generally, when, at the
door, she met her father coming in, look
ing much hunbled at something.
II never saw anything like the young
men now.a-days,n burst forth the squire,
sitting down heavily, and wiping his fore
head with his red bandanna. 81 dunno
what we're ali comm to. When I was
young, boy that had good farm COM
ing to him, was contented to settle down
on it, and let we'll enough alone. But
now the young men are all unsettled and
uneasy, their heads full of speculatin',
goin' to do some great thing, and aston.
ish everybody. git rich without workin'
for it" ~
aWhy, what's the matter, father 2"
said Mrs. Brown, busy mixing bread at
the table by the open window, where the
breeze came in freshly through the morn.
ing.glory vines.
| 'Dick Beman's going West. His faith.
er's just been over to SEQ me, full of
trouble about it. He says he dunno
what ails the boy. He's always been
contented enough until lately. But now
his head is set on this Western crochet,
and nothin'll turn him. I thought Dick
had more sense. Here he's sure of one
of the best farms in the county, free from
mortgage, and Mr.. Beman's pretty fore
handed besides; always has money to
lend. I've always sot by Dick as if he
was my own son, and / can't bear to have
him leave"
"Well, Ineyer p said Mrs. Brown, suit
ably astonished. "Where's he going 2
When does he go?" questions Mollie
wanted to ask, only an odd, futtering,
sensation in her throat wouldn't let her,
as she fingered in the doorway glad of
the sunbonnet's protection.
"Out among the Rocky Mountains
somewhere, Montana, or Idaho, or Col.
orado, Idon't know certain which," said
the squire, who had found it difficult to
keep pace with Western geography. 1t
was all Louisiana in his school days.
"He's goin' with a company from New
York, and staxts tomorrow mornin'."
| "My, how suddenp said Mrs. Brown.
"Won't he call and see us before he
leaves"
ri asked him. He said he'd try TO-"
Nellie fingered no longer, but rushed
into the garden, allzin maze, feeling
very much as if the world had turned q
summersault, and come down bottom up
ward. Crsggville without Dick vas q
combination thathad never before dawned
on her mind. She had been, drifting
along where the days had carried, with
no special Thought how.it was all to end.
Dawless's attentions had been far from
disagreeable. What girl of eighteen can
be wholly indifferent to dashing, black
eyed young fellow, better dressed and
more striking in appearance than any
one, she had ever seen before, and, more
over, devoted to her? Mollie, being a
staunch little democrat in her way, and
wont to maintain that q "man's man
for a thai, = would have despised herself
had she realized it, yet she was not en-
tirely unaffected by Dawless's lavender