The Highland weekly news. [volume] (Hillsborough [Hillsboro], Highland County, Ohio) 1853-1886, 1878-09-26
MY MINISTERING ANGEL.

We were all at Long Branch. All
included Tom and his wife, Nettie, and
your humble servant, Walter ByTne,
TOMS cousin and a wandering waif Of
a rich man, without occupation, home
or family ties. Nettie was Toms
wife's cousin. Ihad heard it said be-
fore I went down to Long Branch, on
Toms invitation, that Nettie had en-
phaticauy declared that she knew she
should detest Walter Byrne, for she
hated an idle man, she despised a row.
ing man, and rich young men were al
ways hOrrid.
Being gifted with a moderate amount
Of seIt-conceit, and accustomed to re-
ceiving rather flattering attentions
from the fair sex, I strOked my mus
tache and shrugged my shoulders, re-
solved that Miss Annette RaymOnd's
detestatiOn was a matter Of profound
indifference to me.
The first time I saw her she was bob
bing up and down, holding on to the
bathers' rope. Tom was driving me
over to his cottage, and pulled up his
horses.
''There's Nettie," he said, SIN the
broad straw hat and scarlet suit. Hal
loa, NetI"
A pair Of sauey black eyes gazed at
US, and a piquant, pretty face was Visi-
bic under the straw hat.
"Where's Amy?" shouted Tom.
"Got a headache"
Tom laughed as We drove on.
"Amy won't bathe unless I am with
her." be said; "she is nine-tenths
afraid"
While I was In my room, arranging
my bachelor belongings, Nettie came
across the garden in a crisp, pink mus
lin, with her black hair loosely braided
and tied with pink ribbons. She was
more than pretty then, the most brilli-
ant brunette beauty, not more than
seventeen years old, slender, graceful
and altogether bewitching.
For three weeks we quarreied about
ten times a day. Nette Knocked at my
lazy speech, taunted my stylish COS
tunes, made fun Of my neckties and
my gloves, and gave me fully to under
stand that I was a coxcomb. I bore it
philosophically, but in my heart /
ragged. Twas not accustomed to being
treated in that style, but Nettie seemed
to ignore my bank account entirely.
We nearly came to a better under
standing once. when Miss Nettie was
carried out by the undertow, and might
have been drowned if 1 had not been a
powerful fellow and a good swimmer.
I brought her home, all limp and sense
less, and she was very quiet all day,
and almost begged my pardon for all
former Offenses in her gratitude. But
the next day she was worse than ever
and the day after that left.
I wandered about almlessly to the
White Mountains, Niagara, up and
down, until October, when a party
going to Europe tempted me, and !
sailed awav from New York and Net
tie. L was not IN love, DuT certainty L
thought more frequently Of those saucy
black eyes, the sweet ripping voice
and beautiful face of Nettie RaynoT
than I had ever before thought Of any
vOman's charms
1t would be too long a story to tell all
my adventures in the next two years,
but it was just SO much later in my
life when I found myself travelling
homeward from Florida, sick and
Wretched.
We had been wrecked off the coast Of
Florida, and was i'll with fever con-
tracted in New Orleans. when ] was
tossed up, high and dry, in suit OF
sailors clothes hurriedly snatched up
as nv sailor nurse and myself dressed
| in the confusion, uncOnsciOusly apprO-
priating each others clothes. My
watch, purse, papers, were all IN my
pockets, but in the sailors coat I found
money enough to carry me home, to
such a home as 1 could command,