Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1882-06-21

| goln' to.
"sTen we about him!' Sakes! child,
there hain't much to tell. Leastways,
yer ma might not be willin fer to hev me
tell it is ther was.
"' Happened so long ago. Ya-as,
that's so, but somehow't seems though
'twasn't but yesterday. Ye see old
Squire Marvin lived next door to your
grandfather, only the old calf pasture, as
they used to call it, between 'em, and
Phil, he was about the same age as
Jack, and his sister Bess was a leetle
older'n Lucy. Ye see livin' so near to-
gether and bein' so near of an age they
was materially consid able intimate. Ny!
when Phil was home they were forever
goin' somewheres, strawberryin' or
hlackberryin' Or picnickin' somehow OF
mother. Phil was uncommon smart
with his books and the old squire made
up his mind to let him hev all the edu-
cation he wanted, so he went off to col
lege and was only home summers and
Christmases. But he walked us all up
when he did come, tell We. Want no
end to his fun an foolin'. Put him
alongside O Lucy and they was team,
hel he!
"Bess was different. She was purity
leetle thing, rather quiet like and as good
s saint. She always seemed to keep
the others straight. They was pretty
wild sometimes, seemed most s If they'd
raise the roof with their frolickin' If t
hadn't been for her. She could quiet
'em down in minute. Poor Jack
Yer poor Uncle Jack, We know. He sot
his heart on Bess. Ye see when Phil
went off to college Jack got kind o. dis
contented, bein' 'bliged to work on the
farm, and when body once gets tired
doin' his dooty, the devils sure to come
along and give him something else to do.
cold Sam Giles had KEEP the public
house In the village fer as long s Icould
remember, but he took the pneumonia
and died, and smart young chap from
Centerville, two miles off, bought the
shantv. There was somethin' mighty
smooth and hatterin' In his ways, and
the boys all took to him. After while
some O. the young fellers in our neigh
bOrhood took to goin' down to the public
evenin's to play games, and Jack went
with the rest. OF course they had to
take leetle somethin', and by'n'by
some on 'em took a leetle morn they
could stan, and folks commenced to say
Jack was one on 'em. And then yer
grandfather and grandmother grew old
and gray and sad-like with the worryin' :,
and Lucy'd try to amuse Jack and keep
him to hum, and when she couldn't she'd
go up stairs to her bedroom and wouldn't
come down no more that night, and the
next mornin' her pretty blue eyes would
hev great, black rings under 'em, and I'd
most know the poor dear'd been cryin'
all night. All the time Jack was goin'
to see Bess, and she either didn't know
or didn't believe what folks said about
him, till finally Phil came home for a
vacation.
"'Twa'n't long fore he found out
bout Jack, and then he used to foller
him round and argy with him and try
to keep him straight, but the poor boy
d got started on the road to ruin and
there was no stoppin' him. They do
say it's powerful easy road to travel.
1t only made him angry t have Phil
watchin' and spyin' of him all the time,
but Bess stopped comm up to the house,
and grew paler and Trailer all the time.
till t seemed s if smart breeze ID blow
her away, and by'n by we knew twas
all broke off between her and Jack, cause
Jack didn't go there no more, and some
times he'd talk bitter against Phil, and
say he never thought he was mean
enough to go back on his old friends and
he'd be even with him yet.
"Then Lucy she'd look frightened at
first. but her eyes would grow bright as
stars afterward. and her sweet red lips
would shet tight together as if she'd
/ n hn7 TO al, IL,
she'd go and put her hand on Jacks
shoulder and kiss his forehead, and draw
her pretty fingers through his black
curls, and tell him he and she'd stan by
each other and the hull world might go
back on 'em if it wanted to. Perhaps no
one knew better'n | did what it cost Lucy
t'say that"
"Why?"
"Oh, well, We see Phil had come up to
the house all along just the same's as
ever, and sometimes moonlight nights
he and Lucy'd &c ridin'.
"No, there hadn't been no promises
took between 'em, not as we knowed on.
Nothin' was settled, but we all thought
twas sure to come, sooner or later.
They was both young, and there was no
use hurryin' matters.
"Well, one night, leetle before this,
they went ridin', and I happened to be in
the barn when they drove in and I
couldn't help hearin' some O. the things
they said.
eye see when Phil helped her out of
the carriage she put one hand on each of
his arms and jumped, and before she
could take em away Phil had 'em both
his Hmm and was kissin' m and then he
said-and it sounded queer like, as if the
words come out afore he could stop 'em,
and there was lot more he was tryin' to
keep back Lucy, there never was an
other girl like you in all the wide world,
never, and never will be. II I was only
through college and dared but Lucy
d pulled her her hands away from him
by that time and I could see by the
moonlight that she was blushin' like a
mornin' glory. But she only laughed in
her gay way, and said, What merciful
providence it is, Phil, that we're not all
made alike. Just supposin' I was like
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