The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1882-04-12


principles of the Christian religion or the
duties of the Christian ministery.
"AMem.-That the shining seats are in
the hands of God, and that He causes even
the wrath of man to praise Him.
"'Mem.-To consider prsyerfully the
subject of contracting q matrimonial al
lance with Miss Cordelia Brewster
"That is It'll / knew / was not mistaken;
and / felt that / had leadidgs from the
Lord in that direction; and yet, in the midst
OF manifold cares and distractions, it wholly
slipped my mind, weak and erring mortal
that am. But it may not be yet too late"
And the minister seized his hat, giving it
hasty brush with his sleeve, and hurried to
the door, turning, however, 10 lay his hand
with unwonted tenderness upon his sons
head, saying solemly, ''Samuel, thank
you tor this suggestion, and I would that
could perceive in you as lively signs of the
workings of grace as l do of wisdom. and
dissernment beyond your years"
Samuel, left alone. looked after his father
with most lugubrious face.
"For q Teller 10 go and do it himself,
that's the worst of It'll hadn't better let
on to Nose and the rest that did it. No
more fun if she comes here; she'll want
Teller not to tear his clothes, and have his
clothes and have his hair brushed every
minute, and no pie or cake between meals
Well make it lively for her, though-Mose
and Hose and 10 and l."
All unconscious of what was in store for
her, Miss Cordelia Brewster was engaged
in inspecting and admiring her new dress.
which had Just been sent home from the
dressmaker's. Miss Cerdelia was a plump
little woman, with pinkish bloom still
| lingering on her cheeks, and no trace of
Times frosting upon her chestnut locks.
Why she mad never married was mystery.
For ten years after her father, the village
doctor, hsd died, leaving her modest COM
petence, the gossips had been on the look
cut for signs of matrimonial in
tentions on her part. When she had passed
thirty, and was still Miss Cordelis, people
gradually ceased to speculate about her.
Fer some inscrutable reason, they decided
that Miss Cordelia meant to be an old maid
to the end of the chapter. 1t was observed
that even John Parmenter, who had some
what indefinitely chung round" her for
years, "kind o. dropped off,; he no longer
sat in the singing seats, where Miss Cordelis
still serenely kept her place, despite the ri
valry of younger choristersi so they were
not so frequently thrown together, and he
A
from the weekly prayer-meeting; his old
sorrel mare was very rarely seen fastened to
the hitching-post btfore Miss Cordelia's
door of Sunday night; and only once or
twice had he been seen shyly to offer her a
nosegay of southernwood and cinnamon
pinks, which grew to great perfection in his
garden, and of which, in her girlhood, Miss
Cordelia had been very fond.
Many other admirers had Miss Cordelia,
but she had turned cold shoulder upon all
and seemed perfectly contented to live on in
her comfortable old house. with trim box
bordered flower beds in the front yard, and
lilac bushes crowding in at the windows,
with her handmaiden Tryphosa, who was
not as her name suggested, a blooming and
romantic young maiden, but an ancient and
angular spinster. who believed in signs and
omens, and always "felt" coming events 'in
her bones Tryphosa was now gazing at
the greensilk with melancholy expression
of countenance.
"Green means forssl1en; there amt
no depyin' it. And Seliny Wilson, that
was merried in green, was laid out a
corpse in it before the end of the year;
and Mertildy Lyman, that was mer-
risd il white muslin sprigged with green,
and green bunnit strings, she had drunk.
en- husband that fell off the haymow, and
dislocated his spinal column, and everybody
knew her twins want bright; and"
"But l am not going to be married In it
you know, Tryphosa," said Miss Cordelis
turning merry face up to Miss Tryphosa's
doleful one. perhaps it is only unlucky a:
a wedding dress. AS for being forsaken
there doesn't seem to be anybody left to for.
sake me but you, and am not afraid thai
al the green dresses in the world could make
you do that
There amt no luck about green nohow,
said Tryphosa "If twas laylcck, now, or {
handsome brown"
II suppose L really ought to have had
black" said Miss Cordelia meditatively; "but
some way the spring coming on, with every
thing so fresh and bright, made me feel as
used to long ago, and I've made believe tC
myself wouldn't own it to anybody but
you, Tryphosa-but I've made believe I wa:
a girl again. And that is why 1 had this
green silk"
"ARd that's why you've been putting
posies in your hair. Well, it beats all whai
a difference there is in folks. Now spring
puts me In mind of house-cleanin' and soap
bilin' and bitters-Land sakes if there AIM
Psrson Greeley a-comin' up the walk, anC
nothin' but the old cropple-crown for din
ner, and all skin and bones at that, and b,
a-comin' in the yard this blessed minutel"
Miss Cordelia whisked the green silk out
of sight, and smoothed her crimps demure
ly down, as she fastened to greet her visitor
1t happened that Miss Polly Watkins, VIII,
went about the village peddllng concoc
ton known as Watkins's Unspproschabl
} Liniment, was so fortunate as to be passin,
just as the minister opened Miss Cordelia'
| front-ysrd gate.
. ''There knew we'll enough that ther
want never so much smoke without som
5 fire. Miss Badger needn't think she coul,
5 make me believe that green silk gown witt
train didn't mean something. So it's tn
r minister. Well, men-folks is terrible short
sighted creturs. There is them in Westhelt
that would make him good sensible wife
Miss Polly was SO unhappy as to go oil
for nearly quarter OF q mile before sh
: met anybody to whom she could tell he
1 news, and then it vas only DR.. Ramsay
n jogging along behind his old white horse
i and between him and Miss Polly "ther
5 WANT as she expressed it, ''no great likin
q no more'n there was apt to be between tn
b of trade" But still news was news. an,
Miss Polly could not resist the temptation
s Of an opportunity to shareit it.
/ We'll, things do turn out queerl" said sh
doctor to himself, meditatively Ticking a
II off his old white horse as he logged alon
e again. Il wouldn't have thought sh
y would have had anybody let alone the oil