The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1879-04-30
Her Blue-Eyed Boy.

When others tread the may dance, ?. "..
Or smile in happy dreams and sleep.
Torn from these loving arms away,
By those who rocked not tear or prayer,
Ere thou couldst speak thy mothers name,
My tiny bud, my babelct fair. '' a,r"
"My boy, my boy, my blpe-eyed boy, 20. T., a.
% Could I within thy bright eyes gai.e, q,
Or have an hour to kiss thee in, ..e - ..,,
'Twould light up many weary days. -..
But thou art lar away from me; '.'
Between us oceans pillows beat,
And can but thy picture kiss, ; .,. .,
My fairy rose, my babelet sweet" "
AS Miss Isabella Spooner finished read
ing these verses and proceeded to cut
them out of the paper they had graced,
with a pair of scissors that in company
with bunch ofkeys hung from her gen
erous girdle, murmur of admiration and
sympathy arose from her audience. This
audience consisted of Mrs. Spooner, Isa-
bella's mother, tall, thin, pale woman
with a great deal of forehead-that is, in
regard to height-and very white, well
shaped hands, which looked as though
they had been nodded out of lard; Mrs.
Dusenberry, lady who looked about
fiye-and forty, but who, aecordingto her
own calculations, grew young so fast that
her friends confidently expected that in a
few years she would be a girl again, with
lips so thin that they came near being no
lips atsall, .bumpygbrow, small black,
uneven eyes, a. nondescript nose and Ia
figure remarkable !. for its obtrpsive-
ness ;b Captain SHottop, Miss Spooners
uncle, d hale hearty, rather handso-Eo {
man, who had spent most Of his life In 4
sailing vessel; Mr.. Wellington Octoper,
a Young pork merchant, called tDevil,
fish" by those of This companions who
had been to the Aquarium, because it
came SO near being Octopus, you know"
with reddish hair, reddish complexion
and no forehead to speak Of; Miss Eugenia
Ann Octoper, sister ofthepork merchant,
a pretty, pert young girl, who came down
to breakfast in diamond earrings, and
talked a great deal about Style" and
two or three elderly men and three or
four young men, who, being mere no.
bodies, can, Of course, only expect mere
mention. 1 Gn1 "a .Ji.5;& 7
It was a lovely day in the last week
of July, and these people were gathered
together on the broad veranda of the
Spooner homestead (Mrs. Spooner took
n few summer boarders for company,
and, truth to tell, they could not have
been in a pleasanter place. The house,
substantially built of gray stone and
draped with beautifully wistarias that
climbed to the very roof, faced the Della
ware river. and the CLEAN Of the water
through the branches Of the catal pa
trees that stood Just outside the garden
gate, laden with snowy flowers, among
which the bees were having rare riot,
was 4 pleasant sight to see. j 2 :
Miss Isabella Spooner, the real mistress
of the homestead mothers extreme
lassitude rendering her only the nominal
one-was comfortable, sentimental old
maid, with an obtrusive figure (in which
respect she formed great contrast to her
friend Mrs. Dusenberry), light, very light
blue eyes, and a snub-nose. She wore
her hair brushed back from her forehead
"a forehead much like her mamma's-
and falling in curly crop in the back of
her neck. In evening dress these curls
were ALWAYS tied 'witha bit of bright rib
bon, which impaired to them quite a
juvenile appearance and charm.
Miss Isabella dotted on poetry, and
looked upon all rhymers as heaven
born.,'e IN. fact, she had an intense re-
spect for and admiration of all persons
connected with literature, and was wont
osay, /" Could I havebeen pen-gifted ]
would have asked no other boon." ,
How very. SWEET said Mrs Du-
senberry, in a soft. too soft voice.. as
Miss Spooner, after reading the verses
quoted above, took her scissors in her
hand. ~."They remind me of some
lines introduced in my first letter to
Professor GAM at the time I became SO
interested in the habits of the birds OF
North America. He said afterward,
by-the-bye,; that the brightness Of that
letter absolutely dazzled him." Mrs.
Dusenberry prided herself on her let
ter-writing, and, anxious that her tai
ent should not be "hid under a bushel. y
wrote on the subject which she thought
would be most interesting to him,
with q hint rs to the impression he
had made on her susceptible heart, to
every man with whom she came in
contact, as soon IS possible after form.
ing his acquaintance.
aAndSwhen sdo tyouy expect her, 1sa-
bella?" asked Mrs. Spooner, lifting hel
hands, of which she was very proud
from her lap, to regard them more
closely, and then listlessly dropping
them again. .,...r ..., ..., ..-.:,
This; afternoon, toward evening,
answered Miss Spooner, taking letter
from her pocket and referring to it
"She writes: Il hope to arrive just a.
the sun is beginning to drown in youl
beautiful river, and the evening stal
peeps forth as bright-as bright, alas
: as the eyes of my blue-eyedr boy"
~: ~ !" How very sweetm said Mrs. Du
senberry. /" It reminds me of3a note
received the other day from DR.. Drake
in answer to one I sent him, beggins
him for a copy of his lecture on tht
Human Skeleton
".Well, I should say she wasJquitt
smart. .Yes-s,n said the young porl
, merchant, in a nasal voice. "'IThen
- verses sounded very pretty. l don
read anything in the newspapers bu
, the lard quotations and the hog marke
reports myself, but I know good potr.
d, when I hear it. And you read first
rate, Miss Spooner, you do. Yes-s."
g "It was NICE" said his sister; "bu
no better than q friend of mine can do
She can write PONIES by. the hour, bu
she don't print none. She don't neet
to, cause her pas rich. She only doe
it for fun"
"Well, I'm blessed" here broke il
Captain Hottop, dropping his feet with
hang from the chair-top on which the
had been elevated, "if I wouldn't like t
know what this is all about. Who j
she? And who's the blue-eyed boy?"
."Why, bless me! you've just come, an
YOU don't know, do you, uncle?"' sal
Miss Spooner, putting the "pome" ava
in her pocketbook, and leaning back il
her chair the better to meet the eyes G
the captain. She's Mrs. Montgomer
Montague, a charmingyoung widow, an