Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1880-04-25
THE SQUIRE'S WOOING.

when Lucy Keene came down the road,
that beautiful June morning; and he was
lust throwing an armful oyer the fence,
when he eau ght sight of her, as she turn
ed the corner. The sun bonnet she wore
was exactly like the one he remembered
TO have seen her mother wear fve-ahd
twenty years ago: and he remembered,
too, as he looked at this one, and the
fresh, rosy face under it, how that one
made his heart f1utter, the first time he
saw it, and how he was so bewitched by
1t or the face under it-he hardly knew
which, for sunbonnet and wearer were
equally bewitching, it seemed to him
that he walked home with Hester Mason,
and had hard work to keep from propes-
ing to her.
He wondered now, and he had wonder
ed many times IN the five-and-twenty
years gone by, why he had never propos-
ed to her. He had meant to marry her,
and he was sure she liked him in the old
days, but-and he always thought of it
with a sigh-she had married Robert
Keene, and he had married cousin Mary.
Fate must have had something to do
with it he concluded. AS he looked at
Hester's daughter, the old fire stirred
under the dust and ashes of the dead
years and he felt little fame springing
up in his heart.
"Good-morning, Lucy" he said, lean
ing across the fence.
"Op' exclaimed Lucy, with a little
start. 81 didn't think any one was near
and you almost scared me. Isn't 1t pleas
ant? l told mother it was so nice out of
doors that could not stay in the house"
eyes, it is pleasant" answered the
Squire, looking into the pretty face.
SHOW is your mother, Lucy?"
%, she's we'll, answered Lucy. "What
splendid strawberries you are going to
have! The meddlesome hens got into
our garden, and mother says she don t
think we'll have pailful of berries
II want to know!'' exclaimed the
Squire. "Now you just tell your moth
er she's welcome to all she wants out of
my patch. She can have 'en just as we'll
as not. There's goin' to be sight more'n
we want, and l don't like to see 'em
wasted
"Ill tell her, and know she'll be de-
lighted with the chance answered Lucy.
''You know she's such hand to make
strawberry preserves"
''Yes, do" said the Squire, thinking
of old times. "And I remember that
she used to beat all the old housekeepers,
too. They used to say she had knack
Of making strawberry jam, that they
couldn't get hold Of"
''She hasn't lost it yet, laughed Lucy.
s'She'll be glad to have you come to tea.
sometimes, and try some that she made
last year."
81 WILL" said the Squire. ''Lemme
seeI To-day is Wednesday. Tell her
I'll come over Saturday, if it's agreeable;
and guess the berries will be ripe so l
can pick pailful by that time, if they
are I'll bring over some"
"Thank you" said Lucy Gwen ex-
pect you to tea Saturday, then"
EYES," answered the Squire, feeling
very much as he used to when her moth
er smiled at him. Il had q letter from
Charley yesterday, he's coming home in
day or two, to stay
"That will be pleasant-for you," SAID
Lucy, stopping down to pick daisy.
How could he see the blush behind the
sunbonnet9 If he had, it might have set
him thinking.
"Yes, it Will, ;" responded the Squire,
Charley's good boy, and 1 get pretty
lonesome without him. l wish that he
would take it into his head to marry and
settle down"
81 must be going" said Lucy Don't
disappoint us now.
II WON'T" answered the Squire, and
she went on, and he went back to pulling
weeds.
81 suppose it's foolish to think of such
thing" he said to himself, by-and-by,
SHUT folks do such foolish things as that
would be. l don't know as it's anybody's
business but ours. Ii l see fit to marry
Lucy, and she's willing, I'm going to do
it, and the Squire looked about de-
family, as if he had expected somebody
TO object to it.
Charley came home that afternoon.
Al suppose I'll have to tell hilr what
I've been thinking about" thought the
Squire. 81 declare, / hate to- I'd soon
er take horse-whlpping, but there's no
use of dreading 1t and putting it of, as
know of. The sooner it's done with, the
BETTER
Accordingly when they were sitting on
the piazza, after tea, he began to break
the news:
"I-I've been thinking some lately, of
getting housekeeperr' he stammered,
growing very red in the face. A
doesn't aunt Sarah want TO stay2"
asked Charley, unsuspectingly.
81 meant -ahem!-a housekeeper
Of-of another kindp' explained the
Squire, explosively, wiping his face very
energetically, after the completion Of the
difficult sentence
81 think 1 begin TO understand" said
Charley, in great surprise. "May I ask
who it ISL"
"It's-lt's- down the roadI" answered
the Squire, choking considerably over
the words, and jerking his thumb over
his shoulder in the direction of the widow
Keenes.
"That's the way the wind blows, is it?"
laughed Charley. 'I'm glad to hear it
You couldn't do better if you hunted the
world over"
SIM glad to hear you say So" sid his
father, much relieved. ~ felt sure you'd