Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1879-04-18
HER BLUE.EYED BOY.
Harper's Weekly .

Harper's Weekly.
My hoy, my hoy, my blue-eyed boy
For tuee sigh, for thee weep,
When others tread the May dance,
Or smile III happy dreams aud sleep,
Torn by these loving arms away,
BY those who rocked not tear or prayer,
Ere thou couldst speak thy mothers name,
My tiny bud, my bahelet fair.
MY boy, my boy, my blue-eyed boy,
Could with i'll thy bright ewes gaze,
Or have an hour to kiss thee in,
'rwould light up many weary DAYS,
But thou are far away from me;
Between MS oceans pillows beat,
And can but thy picture kiss
My fairy rose, my babelet sweet"
As Miss Isabella Spooner finished
reading these verses, and proceeded to
cut them out of the paper they had
graced, with pair of scissors that. i'll
company with Il bunch of keys, hung
from her generous girdle, murmur of
admiration and sympathy arose from
her audience. This audience con-
sisted of Mrs. Spooner, lsabellas moth
er, tail, thin, pale woman with great
deal of forehead is, in regard to
height-and very white, well-shaped
hands, which looked as though they had
been nodded out of lard; Mrs. Dusen-
berry, lady who look ed about five and
forty, but who, according to her own
calculations, grew young SO fast that her
own friends confidently expected that
in few years she would be girl again,
with lips so thin that they came near
being no lips at all, bumpy brow. small,
black, uneven eyes, a mondescript nose,
and figure remarkable for its unob-
trusiveness; Captain Hottop, Miss
Spooners uncle, a hale, hearty, rather
handsome man, who had spent most of
his life in a sailing vessel; Mr.. Yelling
ton Octoper, n young pork merchant,
companions who had been to the
Aquarium, "because it came SO devilish
near being Octopus, you know" with
reddish hair, reddish complexion, and
no forehead to speak of; Miss Eugenia
Aun Octoper, sister of the pork mer-
chant, a pretty, pert young girl. who
came down to breakfast in diamond ear
rings, and talking great deal about
Style" and two or three elderly men
and three or four young men, who,
being mere nobodies, can, of course,
only expect mere mention.
1t was 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
a few summer boarders for company,)
and truth to tell, they could not have
been in n pleasanter place. The house,
substantially built of gray stone and
draped with beautiful wstarias that
climbed to the very roof, faced the
Delaware river, and the CLEAN of the
wather through the branches of the
catalpa trees that stood just outside the
garden gate, laden with snowy flowers
among which the bees were having rare
riot, was pleasant sight to see.
Miss Isabella Spooner, the real mis-
tress of the homestead-he mothers
extreme lassitude rendering her only
the nominal one-was comfortable,
sentimental old maid, with an obtrusive
figure lin which respect she formed
greet contrast to her friend Mrs. Dusen-
berry light, very light blue eyes, and
snub nose. She wore her hair brush
ed back from her forehead much like
her mamma's-and falling in curly
crop in the back Of her neck. In even
ing dress these curls were always tied
with bit of bright ribbon. which inn
parted to them quite a juvenile appear
ance and charm.
Miss Isabella dotted on poetry, and
looked upon all rhymes as heaven
born In fact she had an intense re-
spect for and admiration of all persons
connected with literature, and was wont
to say, Could have been pen-gifteG |
would have asked no other boom"
"How tery SWEET said Mrs. Dusen-
berry, in a soft, too soft voice as Mrs
Spooner, after reading the verses quoted
above, took her scissors in hand. They
remind me Of some lines introduced
in my first letter to Professor CAM at
the time / became so interested in the
habits of the birds OF North America.
He said afterward. by-the-by, that the
brightness of that letter dazzled him. "
Mrs. Dusenberry prided herself on her
letter-writing, and, anxious that her
talent should net be hid under bush
ell wrote on the subject which she
thought would be most interesting to
him, with hint as to the impression he
had made on her susceptible heart, to
every man with whom she came IN
contact, as soon as possible after form
lng his acquaintance.
And when do you expect her, Isa-
bella y asked Mrs. Spooner, lifting her
hands, Of which she was very proud,
from her lap, to regard them more
closely, and then listlessly dropping
them again.
"Inls afternoon. toward evening" an
swered Miss Spooner, taking a letter
from her pocket and referring to ii.