Ashtabula telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1874-1880, 1878-02-01
m'sApOlogy.

/ AFFIXED.
Dtm's Apology.
Yes, L really and truly am sorry
Kate, but that doesn't make it easy
for fellow to humiliate himself BY
asking pardon of7sn obstinate, con
Gel ed, wo0den-headed--
! o hush, Dim! Please remember h,
is your teacher. and you ought to re
Speet if you can't like him.
! l don't care; / can't respect a per
feet block of coneeit. Why, Kate
he has no more sympathy with boys
than. if they were so many fence
posts set up in a roY-not half sc
much as if they were Latin verbs OIL
logarithms. 1 can think inst how
he0will look while l am blunderine
through my apology. He will flo.
ger the buttons on his coat with one
hand and drum little on the desB
with the other, and his eyes will be
looking to the right and to the LETT
of me, and over me, and through
me-everywhere but at me. Then
when l have done he will cough
slightly and bow an eighth of an
inch and say: That will do, Blair;
take your seat, exactly as if | had
bunglsd in explaining a problem
Oh! how can l do it?
know it will be hard, Dim, but
thing you would find it still harder
to feel that you owed an apology
which you hadn't made And you
know you really were wrong. and
gave Mr., Bond some reason for be-
ing angry.
But / was partly right--to begin
with, anyway; and | shouldn't have
talked half so strong if he had been
willing to to admit anything. But
he never is"
| am sure you are little too hard
on him, now, Dim. Remember how
pleased he was last winter when you
went through examination so splen-
didly; his eyes fairly shone when
you were reading your Hannibal.
Yes, he felt gratifed as he would
to have an equation come out right.
It was sort of interesting equation,
you see, having his highly superior
instruction for the first member and
my highly superior requirements
for the second. Considered as a
kind of compliment to himself, he
may like me we'll enough, but as a
boy be doesn't care whether he uses
me deceDtly OF not. Oh! | can't and
won't stoop to ask his forgiveness.
I'll quit school first.
Two large, angry tears stood in
Dim's blue eyes as he made this an
nouncement and an expression any
thing but sorrowful spread over his
fair boyish face. Kate dropped her
crocheting, rose and laid both hands
carsssingly on his shoulder, saying,
softly: l want to be perfectly proud
of my brother; and how can | be un-
less he does what he knows to be
right-what he knows his mother
would wish him to do if she were
here?
Don't, Kate! the anger suddenly
evaporating from the great tears,
leaving them pure and tender as
tears be. I'll try and get to feeling
all right about it by morning, if [
can. | said | was sorry a few min
utes ago, but l don't believe I was,
in the right way. Now I'll devote
my time and talents to the work of
getting sorry.
Asa preliminary step suppose we
go and practice duets awhile, said
Kate, taking her brothers arm and
leading him toward the parlor Per-
haps music will prove a valuable as
sistant in your labor. Who knows?
A few minutes later their fresh
young voices were rising and wav
ing and falling in perfect harmony,
and yellow canary bird hanging in
the window joined, and lonely man
passing under the window felt as if
he would like to join in, too, if he
had known how. But he didn't; 50
he only looked on and listened a
minute or two and passed on with a
pleasant picture lying clear and
bright on his mind, to look at after
ward whenever he chose. A picture
of a warm, bright room, softly cur
tanned and finely tinted, and a broth
er and sister sitting close together
in the brightest, warmest part, max
ing music for unfortunate shadows
outside 10 dance to, if they felt like
dancing.
The lonely man had figure of
medium height, firm, decisive step,
well set head, and gray eyes, and
overcoat, the latter rather deficient
as to nap and uncertain as to but
tons, but the eyes neither deficient
nor uncertain in any particular.
He had, moreover, a black hat,
which was like any other black hat,
except that it showed a pointed de-
determination to blow off: but this
was overruled by the mans keeping
hold of it with one hand as he strobe
along. A shade had spread itself
over the gray eyes, and' several gen
erations Of wrinkles took up their
abode between the brows thereof.
This lonely man coming from
visit to nowhere and Fastening
home to nobody was Mr.. Herbert
Bond; and he was thinking as he
pushed his wav againsts the wind;
How happy they looked-Dimiok
Blair and his sister. 1t must be
pleasant to have a sister with brown
hair aud sweet voice, aud pleasant
to have brother like young Dim.
OF course he will leave school after
what passed to-day ay-he is much too
proud to come back-proud as he Is
brillant-and | humiliated him
opsDlv. But then he was arrogant