The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1881-05-13

Father Bleylock came home, and be-
yond stare and beyond q silent nod
took little notice Of the peddler. He
was q tall man, thin, tacityrn and yell
low. and with neck so small that his
head presented the appearance OF being
stuck ON with pin.
He lighted his pipe, and, after sooth-
ing interval of smoking, "Peddler'd
like.to stop over period, said his wife.
Puff, puff. Don't see no objection. !"
Puff, puff.
Mr.. Pond, as he promised, soon ceased
to be. stranger. The old man dis
'coursed on the grievances OF taxes, and
the old woman, after the manner of
mothers, talked about her daughters.
My gals is edicated," she would say
--"been overt Cookville months an
months a-schoolin'. But Lor thar's
some folks you can't weed the badness
out'n, on Janey's a spitfire, she Is.
Seems If Dick Oscar wants to have her,
but he acts kinder curious about it
blow hot. blow cold. Dunno. Now
Lily is different Can't tell why, less'n
tbs that went to q camp meetin' an
perfessed while befo' she was born.
Somehow she's always been delicater an
quieter like n any Of nay children.
The Bleylock boys, easy, rollicking
fellows, treated the peddler very much
as if he had been q harmless though un-
necessary cat about the house, and were
surprised when Dick Oscar dropped in
one evening, informing them that they
were all pack of fools for "takin' In a
stranger so free and easy"
"Why, I ain't paid no more attention
to tn man n if he'd a-been a preacher, {"
said Sam Bleylock seems 3 if tn amt
no harm t. him." q s1 4k
"He's very God-fearin' man." said
Eliza, softly, an a powerful reader o
the Bible" sE..l1 tslv rr4l
OF you'll take my say so, you'll git
quit of him." said Dick Oscar.
"He's got such beautiful TASTE" said
mother Bleylocl. "It's as good g goin'
to tn city to look at his things"
II see he's a-dressin' you up" said
Oscar, with sneer at the new ribbons
the girls wore round their necks.
Janey sprang up. Her face Redeemed.
In an instant she had torn off the rib
bon, and stamped her foot on it.
"That's how much care for him an his
ribbons, she cried.
Don't fly quite off the HANDLE" said
MIR. Oscar. coOlly.
Poor Janey She had hoped to please
her lover by her scorn of the peddler's
gift, but she was coming to the conclu-
sion that he was hard man to please.
She was passionate young animal, and
she had thrown herself into his arms
with readiness that robbed herself of
her graces. He liked to sting and
stroke her alternately, and was about as
unsatisfactory a lover as Janey could
have found on the Cumberland. But
she liked him, saw with his eyes, thought
with his thoughts. Naturally she turned
against the peddler, and from this time
set herself to watch him.
That harmless young man in the
meantime was doing what he could. He
wandered about the country, selling
such little things as the people could
buy, pumping the Bleylock boys and
making love to the Bleylock girls. The
pumping process was rewarded with
about as much success as would attend
fishing for q soul through the eye of
skeleton. In the love-making there was
more hope.
Janey was accessible to flattery, and
encouraged him with little looks of fire.
But there was something In her eyes he
did not trust, and he was a wary man,
the peddler. Beside, she slapped his
face when he tried to kiss her. But he
soon grew to believe that Eliza-simple,
unsuspicious, serious-would be as clay
in his hands.
Chance favored Miss Janey. She was
bathing, one warm day, in the creek
that ran from the spring, when she saw
Eliza and the peddler coming. like Jack
and Jill, to fetch the pail Of water.
Being naked, Janey could not get away;
but she slid along to cool inlet over
hung with tree branches, and, SO hidden,
waited for them to do their errand. OF
course they stopped to talk. enc
",That pink, ribbon becomes your
black hair nightly said the peddler.
Eliza blushcd. "We're just country
girls, you know, Mr.. Pond we don't
have many pretty things. Seem Is if
the boys don't have any money left after
buyin' the sugar, an flour, an molasses,
an things"
"Meat, i s'pose," said the practical
peddler.
"No; we raise our own meat. Pa
has powerful lot o. hogs"
$50 I"
"But I expect you don't take much.
interest in country lie, Mr.. Pond p
II Why, my dear and Mr.. Pond
slipped his arm around Eliza" I'd like
the best in the world to settle down in a
country just like this. A fellow gets
tired trampin' around. But I'd want
two things to make me happy"
Eliza looked at him with happy conf
dence.
"First little wife at was gentle in
her ways, and good, religious girl, an
one with black hair to set off the pink
ribbins I'd buy for her, an feet foot,
an rcd mouth"
Here Mr.. Pond came to full stop
with q kiss.
"And the other thing?" with bright
blush. tD
The peddler grew practical again.
"Well, It's nothin' more'n some way to
make a livin'. Now, say married q
sweet girl up the Cumberland, and made
n little crop. It's too far to git 1t to