The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1879-10-01

| n good time. They soon became very
sociable. When he attended her home
in the evening, he held her hand all the
way, and after while he formed the
habit of relinquishing it with a gentle
pressure. This excited no resentment
though she had always repelled similar
! familiarities when attempted by others
Her Oldest brother noticed this growing
intimacy with some anxiety. One day
he said to. his sister, "Loolie, l advise
| you not to go so much with Robert Nor.
! ton"
She held out her skirts and made
sweeping courtesy, as she asked, PRAY
what objection has your reverencep
Don't let us joke about it, Loolie.
am serious" he replied. 81 know more
about him than you do. He goes with
a set of drinking fellows, and he gets in
toxicated."
Her face flushed, and she answered
brusquely:
Il don't believe it. The young men
envy him, / suppose, because he is
handsome and has the ways of gentle
man; and so they make up stories against
him. / see him often, and never saw
any signs of his having been intoxi-
Gated"
81 have" rejoined her brother. And
he went on to prove his statement by
various details of times and places.
Loolie, though she positively refused to
believe, was effectually sobered by the
warning. That night she lay awake for
a long time and shed many tears. The
next time Robert Norton proposed to
escort her home and attempted to take
her hand, as usual she hastily withdrew
it. And when he inquired whether he
had offended her, she merely answered
No" and Immediately left him to join
some girls of her acquaintance who were
walking ahead of them. Accustomed
to being n favorite with young ladies, he
drew an inference agreeable to his
vanity.
lie thought Loolie was conscious of
getting attached to him more than was
strictly proper, so long as there had been
no specific proposals on his part; and he
resolved to remedy that by an early
avowal of love. But he did not find it
so easy TO obtain interviews as it had
be n. She was polite when they met
but obviously wished to avoid being
tlone with him. At last, however, by
persistent watching, he found an oppor-
tunity to ask her to be his wife. To his
great surprise, she answered:
No, Mr.. Norton, | cannot marry
you"
You have become very formal all at
once with your Mr.. Norton" rejoined
he, with forced laugh.
"When / called you Robert did not
know of you what l know now," she
replied.
9 And pray what do you know against
mcpw, said he.
Il know that you sometimes get in
toxicated," she replied.
Z" Who told you go P" he inquired, very
hastily.
mo matter who told me-" she re-
Joined. " 1t is true; and l never will
marry any man who gets intoxicated"
But am not drunkard, Loolie," he
pleaded; Though / confess have some
times been rather the worse for liquor,
when | have been with a set of gay fell
lows"
Isn't that the way drunkards gener-
ally beginP" she asked.
" suppose it's" he answered. but
taste Of intoxicating liquor again"
My dear Aunt Eliza married a man
who made the same promise, and a
wretched life she has had OF it. l shall
not ver ture to try the same experiment.
l thank you for your offer, but / cannot
accept it. Good evening, Mr.. Norton"
And she vanished from the room. He
was offended by her plain speaking, and
manifested it by very cool politeness
when they met. A few months later she
was informed that he had gone to Cali
fornia.
Her companions noticed change in
Loolie. She entered into dances and
frolics with less zest and although she
used to initiate flute to perfection, she
now professed to have forgotten how to
do it. Conjectures were whispered
among the girls that she was in love
with Robert Norton, who had fiirted
while with her, and then gone off and
left her. The young men said that Bob
Norton couldn't have been such fool as
to leave her if she were in love with
him. More than one tried by very
marked attentions to console her for his
absence; and some of the opportunities
seemed so eligible that her parents ad-
vised her not to let them slip. But in the
silent watches of the night she communed
with her own honest heart, which said
to her, What right have you to marry
one man and love anotherp" She ban-
ished beaux from her thoughts, and left
gossips to wonder at the chances she was
losing.
A year passed without any tidings of
Robert Norton. Meanwhile, her father
sickened and died and the withdrawal
of his earnings rendered it necessary for
the older brothers to put more money
into the common stock for family use.
TO accomplish this they resolved to seek
their fortune in California, where, at that
time, the streets were supposed to be
paved with gold. They chanced to be
among the lucky few, and before many
months had elapsed they sent for their
mother and sisters. The first news that
greeted them on their arrival was that
Robert Norton was in their neighbor-
hood, that he had pounced upon a rich
vein of gold and had become million
aire. When Mrs. Draper inquired how
he bore this rapid change of fortune, her
sons laughed, and replied:
He lives like a game cock, and
throws money about by shovelfuls."
Mr.. Norton took an early opportunity
I