River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1881-09-22
on A BLACKBOARD.

Mildred Parmenter sat IN the little
parlOr beating her foot mpatiently on
the striped rag carpet. The August
sun peered into the windows, and at the
sides Of the green paper curtains, per-
forated with pin-holes and Tapping in
the breeze, she caught occasional
glmpses of the mountains and the
clouds which made marvellous pict-
urc in front Of the old Vermont farm
house. Two neighbors had dropped in
to see her aunt, AMI the three ladies,
with knitting and occasional re-
sort to their black paper mache snuff
boxes, discussing the probable fate of
a disagreeable farmer in the vicinity,
whose theft of 'yearling" was the
chief topic of conversation in all the
farm houses within the radius of half a
dozen miles.
"An' they dew say" was one of the
passing remarks that caught her car
that they haint never had no idee up
to Goshen what sort of critter twas
he stole, till ole Mrs. Stevens, she said
az haow she seen him agoin-"
Miss Mildred's attention wandered,
she found the conversation dull, but
she looked at the women with new
curiosity. ''And this is their life," she
was thinking, "a clean apron, pinch
of snuff, and Il neighborly call after
the dinner dishes are done up, dis
cussion OF old Mrs. Browns paralytic
stroke, Deacon Stehbins' third wife,
Matilda Hines success with her sage
cheese, and the new bell on the town
hail.
One of the thin monotonous voices
10, u
Mary Ann, you know she lives two
miles from that there"
Miss Mildred caught up her hat and
sauntered out of the front door Only
few rods away We're the pine woods,
cool, STILL fragrant. She seated herself
ut the foot of gigantic tree, and, lean
ing her head against the trunk, went
off into one of the reveries which lately
seemed to fill the waking hours of her
life.
A wagon came rafting along the
crooked sandy road. Her uncle was
returning from a trip to the village, and
as he drove into the shed he called to
her, 'Letters, darter."
1t was always his name for her, she
was so like daughter he had lost. She
waited for the letters, not very impa-
tiently, till he came by on his way to
the house. There were only two of
them. The one from her sister she
opened first.
"And Mr. Elson came yesterday"
ran one of the paragraphs. eve told
him of your fancy to bury yourself all
Summer in the rural districts, but as
sured him You would join us for a week
at least, before we returned to New
York. OF course that is the only thing
that prevents him from leaving the
Springs at once By the way, he heard
before he came up that it is all over
between you and Oscar, and that Oscar
is engaged to that cousin of his, Ella
Hunt, who was always held up to us as
a model of all the virtues. | don't
doubt that she is exactly suited to him.
Mamma is delighted that Mr.. ElsOn is
going to stay withus. You know, Miily,
what she has set her heart on, and of
course you won't disappOint us all
He has grown little stouter than he
was in the winter"
She threw the letter aside, unfinished,
and sat perfectly still, her hands tight
" clasped in her lap. Oscar Brant en-
gagged to his cousin Ella Well, that
things Ella had an amiable DISPOSE
ton, was defined, creme, ladylike all
WAYS. She never acted on impulse,
never gave away to n quick temper,
and had never said or done, IN her
whole life, thing she had reason to be
sorry for. Yes, Mildred reflected, she
was altogether the proper person for
Oscar Brant, and with queer little
laugh she thought of the hopeless diff
erence between herself and this most
admirable woman. But the laugh was
so nearly akin to sob that she dared
not to trust herself to go ON thinking.
She caght up the other letter from
young lady sojourning at Saratoga. 1t
was addressed in large, dashing hand,
covering the whole of the envelope.
"Whv will she use violet ink p was Mil
dred's thought as she opened it. 1t
was as dashing inside rs out.
"You are certainly gay deceiver,
INV dear. To think that your health
required rest and mountain air, so that
YOU could neither give your family nor
me the pleasure of your society !
understand it all now. and really |
can't blame YOU. Oscar Brant is more
entertaining than hotel full of people,
and handsomer than ever. | saw him
for just moment en- route for Lake
ChampIain with his party. Camping
out must be such fur And to think
you happened to have an uncle living
so conveniently near. OF course you
see Oscar every day or two.
There was four-page description fol-
Loving of the costumes wore at a ball at
the Grand Union. Mildred Parmenter
10 this day has never read word of
it.
sMore news" how little her Saratoga
friend guessed at the truth in the easel
And Oscar Brant was only four miles
away. She could not help it now if the
tears came Why could they not let
her alone? she Thoughts. She had come
mp to to the New England hills to gain
some Of the strength and peace She
had lost after she and Oscar Brant had
parted.
She must try for it harder than ever,
now that the time drew near for her to
return to the city.
Her mother and sisters won. / wait
for her at the Springs. Mr.. Eisor would
wait, too: Mr. Elson, worth half mil
lion, sixty years old, his head bald and
shinev; short, fat, fussy man, WHO had
grown little stouter." Ugh! The
would all go home together, to the fall
fashions. and dinner parties, and formal
calls She thought suddenly of the
stuffy parlor, and of the three ladies
with their gossip about the new minis
ter and neighborhood's mumps and
measles. What was there to choose
between city and country life? Life IT
self was intolerable everywhere. Des-
pair at Is is very hopeless sort of des-
pair. Mildred laid her head ON the
ground with great tearing sob. ''0h,
how can | bear it?'
She went back TO the house presently
She would conquer this foolishness, so
She told herself. as she kept saying over
and over again the whole summer long.
She would conquer her temper. too;
grow humble, AMI docile, and patient
If she tried hard, perhaps, before she
grew to be very old woman-and 10 to
her was an immense age-she might be
amiable, too: serene, self-poised and
lovable She was quite charmed with
the ideal she imagined of herself. As