The Toledo chronicle. [volume] (Toledo, Tama County, Iowa) 1873-1924, 1878-02-07
MANTY'S VALENTINES.

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MANTY'S VALENTINES.
s"Did have any valentinesP WHY,
of course. always do. / had one
beauty, from, guess, Ned Rogers.
don't know for certain. But, oh! Auntie,
] never told you about the splendid
time we had last year, did I? Well,
you shall hear all about it; for l dom
believe l ever did have such nice time
in my life.
Let me see. What brought it about
was. we were going home from school
one day, lot of us girls. 1t was three
of four days before Valentines, and the
windows were full of just beautiful
ones. We were looking at them and
picking out those that we d like to have,
when Belle Howard (she's dreadfully
proud and stuck up, / never did like
her), she spied one of these horrid
comic valentines, with picture of a
little hunchback on it and some funny
verses, and said she was going to get il
to send to Manly Wheaton.
"He's humpbacked, you know; but
he's just as nice as he can be, and SO
smart! Mr.. Raymond says he's the
best scholar he has in his school. And
we think lots of Manly, and never no.
tice that he's lame, or anything. And
we begged of Belle not to do it; for we
knew it would make him feel dread
fully to get any such thing. He's aw-
fully sensitive. l know he is, for his
mother says SO. She has a school for
little bits of children, you know; SO
Manly didn't have to 60 away to school
till he got to be big. And then he
dreaded it SO at first. But Mr.. Ray
mond was so good to him. He's lust
splendid, l think. And we didn't think
anything about his being lame. So his
mother said he didn't mind it bit,
after awhile.
Well, you see how it was. We
thought it would be dreadful for Belle
to send that to him. But all we said
didn't make one bit of difference. She
said there wouldn't anybody else send
him valentine, and she was going to,
and it would be such fun to ask him
the next day if he had any, and see
what he'd say. She was going in then
TO get it, only she hadn't the money.
81 was real glad, for I thought I'd
ask Burt to go down and buy it before
she had chance. He always does
everything l want him to. And, do
you think, he did go. And they had
half dozen or so of the same kind:
and he bought them all, and said if he
saw any more down town he'd get
them. But he didn't see any, l believe.
"Belle was awful mad because it
was gone; for, after all we'd said, she
was bound she'd have it. I more'n
half believe she said it, at first, for fun;
and then, when we leased her not to,
she was determined to do it. / told
the rest of the girls what Burt did, and
they were real glad. But somehow
don't know how-Belle found it out,
and what do you think she didP The
very next day she sent Burt one of those
comic things, just the hatefulest one
she could find. Of course, he didn't
care bit. He knew she sent it, for she
told Annie Allen she was going to, and
Annie told me.
well, about the valentines. Some
body suggested-I believe it was Hattie
Foster-that we should each of us girls
send Manly a valentine. That would
make just eleven, leaving out Belle;
for we knew she wouldn't send any
thing pretty, SO we didn't say word
to her about it. But all the girls fell
in with it, and they came down to my
house the next afternoon and brought
all sorts of papers and everything to
make them with. think it's great
deal nicer to make them; don't your
g can't think what they all were.
But some were beautiful. Marie STAN
ton bought a lovely one in box; and
her sister made an acrostic on Manty's
name and wrote it inside. Wasn't that
nicep Little Mabel Montague got one
of those raised pictures-I don't know
what you call 'em-of the cunningest
little kitten you ever saw; and her
mother pasted it on some lovely gilt
edged paper, and wrote underneath:
with Midget's compliments. You see
Midget is the name of his kitty, that he
thinks everything of. Amt it funny
name.
"Then Bertha Ryder brought lots of
this beautiful lace paper, and we past
ed lovely pictures on it--doves and
flowers, cupids and everything you can
imagine.
'IwishI could remember whatEvelyn
Barnard wrote on hers. There was
picture of two little doves on it, and
under it she wrote-why can't think?
l believe this was it:
"'Tbese little doves It's plain to see,
They love each other well;
And, # you'll stop awhile to read.
My love for you IL tell.
i love you az love the rose.
The violet, pink and lily;
MY love for you-ah web know
1t never will grow chilly
Wasn't that funny way to end itp
But Evelyn said she couldn't think of
anything to rhyme with scold,' and SO,
as chilly went SO good with lily
she thought it would do Just as well.
OF course, it WASH very good. But
then Evelyn amt but eight years old,
and she made it all up herself.
.Gracie Blanchard wrote some real
pretty poetry, but I can't remember it.
l wish / could.
"And what do you suppose Julie
Granger put inside of hersp A lovely
blue silk necktie. Wasn't that queerp
But it was nice; wasn't itP She cut out
a round piece Of paper, and then cut it
all around in slits-you know how
they're done; and she pasted it on
sheet Of lace-edged paper, and fastened
a cunning blue tassel in the middle, to
pull it up by; and she put the necktie
under that. Wasn't it cute?
Burt came in and saw her making
it, and, after she'd finished it, he asked
her if he could take it little while;
and we couldn't imagine what be want
ed it for. But pretty soon he came
down-stairs and gave it back to her.
He wouldn't tell us anything about it,
only said he wanted to see how it was
made. We found out finally; but l
liant tell you now. You must wait,
Is we did.
What was minep Why, / put two
pictures on some white
'srds. They were just lovelyl One
vas bunch of violets and the other |
'luster Of autumn leayes. They came
~ splendid and looked for I'll the |
yoFld - i they'd been painted right !