River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1881-09-29

drawing-room as a gem would be in it
setting.
Very glad to renew your acquaint
ance, sir, was Mr. Warren's greeting
81 hope you'll get along with our plain
republican way CT living"
''Plain?" echoed Won Held. "Why
this villa is one Of the finest | ever saw
and your grounds are almost an Eng
lish park. There's thing here bu
taste and opulence.
''Wen -and the happy proprletoi
smiled contentedly-"w well, count,
don't mind confessing this seashort
place cost me something like half mil
lion. A little money, you know, buy
everything"
"Sol" responded Van Held, resortinl
to his useful German monosyllable.
The guest was soon at home in the
superb house, and filed it with plenty
of distinguished callers. Members o
the German legation dropped in. il
friendly fashion, so did the French anC
Italian ministers. Dora conversed witt
each in his own tongue; then she would
play and sing to Won Held all the sum
mer evenings, while the perfume o
.are flowers and the flood of moonlight
made a sort of witchery in the room.
The count said TO her one day: 81
never cease to wonder at your varied
accomplishments, your taste, your per
feet seif-possessionand perfect-pardor
me-" He stopped, checked by the
slow gaze of her brown eyes; but she
understood the compliment as plainly
and with less sacrifice of dignity thar
if she had received it in words. "You
have nothing of what / expected to find
in this new country. You would fit a
European court
Thanks" answered Dora, with the
languOr proper to a much-be1attered
woman. II hope you won't be shocked
by such crudities as still exist in oul
society here"
"Oh," responded Won Held, "under.
stand me, pray. like all strong char
acteristics. independence, freedom OIL
speech, originality of thought, quaint
ness of expression, | admire, even il
they are not always in the most refined
taste"
Dora smiled, and understood another
and subtler compliment that embraced
even her surroundings.
Won Holds patience with Phil, the
most noisy of Yankee boys, made papa
Warren remark, with a significant
laugh: "Ycu see, Sarah, our guest wants
to be friendly with all the family"
Friends the two certainly were, and
went of on long tramps and fishing ex-
cursions together. On such occasions
the boy, finding the foreign name toe
hard, addressed Won Held as "Mr
Count" or oftener with only the jolly
hail, 81 say'
One day Phil screamed from long
distance down the river bank lit was
Pills popularity to yell his converse
ton across wide distances): "Mr
Count, say, to-morrow's the Fourth
You'll have to get up early if you &C
out with me-"
"Oh yes, I'll get up. It's your ma
tional holiday"
"Bab and me always get up early tc
fire crackers. Got bite?"
"No. Is Bah the dog?"
DOG? No; Bab's a girl"
A laborer in field across the river
looked up, and answered, "Hallo ~
thinking the remarks were addressed
TO him. "Ain't talking to you," Phil
explained, fortissimo, then trumped
out the information: "Bab is Barbara
Chase. She's my cousin. Her mother
is fathers sister. Her fathers dead
She's awfully poor. We amt. But
she's a nice girl. She's seventeen.
She's q little taller than | am. I'm
thirteen. III, soon catch up to her"
I'm glad to be in New England on
your great national holiday" said Won
Held to Dora that evening.
ooh, you mean the Fourth of July.
Let me see. It's tomorrow. Such a
dreadful bore! But we keep out of the
blare and glare here. Fortunately the
grounds are large"
"Then you do not care for the
day ?"
"Only children and the lower orders
celebrate these dreadful national fetes.
OF course patriotism must be popular
lied, and this is the unpleasant, noisy
form it takes"
''You are entirely cosmopolitan; you
have no national enthusiasts" remark
ed Won Held, politely observa 1t. Then
he strolled across the lawn to smoke a
cigar.
While he was gone box arrived by
express. Mr.. Warren ordered il
brought in, and explained "Its full OF
fire-crackers for Bah"
Surely, papa" exclaimed Dora
chat child Bah isn't coming here to
morrow p
"Why not?"
Because she's such queer, plain
little thing, that
Samuel, you ought to know better, y
demonstrated Mrs. Warren, "than tC
let Count Won Held see such girl as
Dora's cousin"
Nonsense Babs not very stylish
but she hasn't got money to buy that
sort of thing. She's my sisters child,
anyway, and | mean to give her all the
tirecrackers she wants, and a place to
fire 'em off in" Mr.. Warren was con.
scious of having done but little prac-
tically for his niece, and was tena-
cious Of doing sonething sentiment
tally.
cts your own fault" snapped the
wife, with an energy born of her new
ambitions, ''if the count is disguised
with such queer-looking relations.
Barbara was dressed in common
coarse blue flannel when l last met
her." said Dora.
'Ion't you worry about the count,
Mr.. Warren answered, soothingly
GIVE shown nm Ill the mills and the
Boston house. He's no fool. He won't
mind Bah any more than he minds
Phil. Moneys money, my dear
moneys money.
The family las ill-luck would have it,
were seated that evening in full light
the weather being rather cool, and into
the parlor came the dreadful Bah
dressed in the condemned blue flannel
1t was an old dress, and not pretty noi
was Bah very pretty girl. She was
rather small had warm reddish haii
dressed in two hard, ungraceful braids
good, fearless gray eyes skin slightly
freckled nice dimples, little cleft
chin and fresh childish mouth.
81 came for my firecrackers, uncle,
she said
There was y murmur of introduc.
ton, she bowed to Won Held, then
with a laugh, tucked the box under
her arm, and throwing back some jest
at the uncle, who saw her off from the
front door; she ran away across the
lawn toward the village
The next morning at breakfasts Won