The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1881-03-25
Select Story.
NICK Won DAMENBERG /;
OR, LOVE THROUGH A KNOT HOLE.

|
paralel--the houses on one side abut
ting with their back yards upon th,
houses of the other; for even palatia
mansions, with brown stone fronts, hav,
their back yards, where aristocratic chill
drcn are permitted to play.
Some twenty or more years AGO th,
scene of this true story opens.in the back
yards of two elegant homes thus situa
ted. One morning n fine. manly bow oI
II was on one side,and beautiful little
curly-haircd darling say years old, OF
the other side of n high, close, board fence
The boy was tying tin can to the tail
of a struggling Maltese cat that had
clambercd over the dividing fence, and
the girl with flushed face and swapping,
angry eyes, was looking through the
knotholo. 1t was her cat.
As soon ms our little lady had fairly
taken in the situation she called through
the fence with her pointing lips to the
hole: Il say you boy, have You seen my
kitty7'
"No, he replied
"Hou are nasty, bad boy, and tell
stories; you have got my kitty and if
you don't give her back to me I'll build
fire and burn your playhouse down.
This was not an idle threat, for our
youngster on the Fifth avenue side had
a playhouse, supplied with toys and
curios and playthings provided by his
rich father and indugent mother as an
inducement for their only and pctted
child not to mingle with the vulgar play
mates of the street
81 say, who are YOU" asked the boy.
"Never mind-give me my kitty"
Il will if you will kiss me-
laughed silvery ripping laugh.
Yes, s,through the knot-hole."
"Well, give me my kitty first"
mo, give me the kiss first
"Will you give me my kitty thcn?'
eyes, truly"
'Well, put your mouth to the hole"
And to the hole he placed his face and
received the smack of n sounding kiss.
"There, now give me my kitty"
lie did so. The little thing, ,scrambling
| over the fence, was soon safe in the arms
of its little mistress. She kissed it again
and again, while the boy looked on.
Il say, its nasty to kiss cat
"a cat is not so nasty as great, nasty
boy"
eyes, it is for ] PLAYED Joke on YOU,
for you kissed me on my nose"
"Only | didn't for didn't kiss you at
all. | spit on my fingers and rubbed them
on your nose, and then smacked my lips
didn't kitty" Again she laughed with
a loud and merry laugh.
The boy turned away with an angry
flush, threatening to ''gct cven."
The children, whose silly episode we
described in our last chapter, grew up
children usually do. Miss Lillian was
sent to school, passing her bread and
butter days at Vassar, growing up to be
come a saucy beauty of spoiled 49, Our
hero OF. the cat had graduated and stud
led his profession and travelled in Eu
rope, and was sowing his fathers money
AS young men who havcno knowledge
of the trouble of money getting are apt
to do. From time to timc-she from
school and he from college, she from her
and he from his European tour--had
visited their respective homes in their
respective avenues; but had never met
Nor did the now widowed mother of the
fair Lillian know even the names of the
family of Won Damcnbcrgs, whose only
son Nicholas had had his nose spit upon
through the knot hole of the division
fence. Years went flying by. To young
people years fly, but are long, to old peo-
pie years drag, but are short. These
young folks were killing time. Lillian
was drifting about the world with her
gentle, quiet mother, who found it an
easier life to be dragged about by her
imperious daughter than to remain at
home with her. Nick was abroad on
his own. hook; sometimes yachtingamong
among the iiords of Norway, and some
times shooting on the plains of upper
Montana.
At last both parties met--at the Cali
fornia Geysers. Nicholas Won Damen
berg, with two companions in shooting
jackets, had arrived from ''scoot around
Clear Lake" They had arrived, guns
in hand, in advance of their luggage,an
as yet had not registered Mrs. Mar
garet Mercer and her daughter, Miss lii
| lian Mercer were established pupStS