Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1882-10-05

sNot at all.''
s'What is the matter then :''
s'May not wish to be alone?"
'Oh, certainly" !,
AS red as fire, Tom retraced his steps, but
equally suddenly, he changed his intention
and recrossed the room rapidly to where sat
'sThis is alrnonsense, Lefty. You are real
ly ILL.,"
II am not ILL.,"
ssEither you are ill, or you must be able tt
walk into the dining room. shall send for
doctor at once" g,
"You will do no such thing, Tom; I will
not have it,"
II shall do what I think necessary: In my
aunt's absence am the only Responsible per-
son in the house,
"You are not my keeper"
II am so long as you require one, and Whel
there is no better person to- watch over you
Come, Lefty, don't be silly. Let me feel youl
pulse"
ssI will not am perfectly well, assure
you."
"Then you have been humbugging."
ssI don't know what you call humbugging. y
sTetty, Lefty ! But these are London man.
ners, suppose, or what the people used to cal
the vapors."
I'm the time of Queen Elizabeth"
''No, later than Elizabeth. Now come to
lunch.''
~ will not"
sYou will not ? Why can't you say moth
ing else and you are half crying! These are
hysterical symptoms; l must certainly SEND
for DOCTOR"
Tom sat down at the table, squared his
elbows, and proceeded to indite in large
bold hand the words "My dear SIR"
He wrote no more; unable to contain my
rage and indignation, I seized the sheet OF
note paper on which he had begun to write,
and, crumpling it up in my trembling hands
1 threw it violently in his face.
He rose quickly and started at me.
''The devil !" he began, and then, with sud.
den coldness: 81 think you are quite right
not to come into the dining-room, Cousin
Lettice,n he said, and thereupOn he stalked
out, and banged the door.
I burst into passion OF tears. Anger,
shame and humiliation were swelling my
heart. Suddenly dried my tears. Had not
Tom, so to speak, forbidden my presence in
the dining room Without pausing, even to
smooth my disordered hair, I rushed into the
room where luncheon had been served, and
where the substantial repast still graced the
table, though Toms folded napkin and I'm.
used knife and fork bore evidence to the fact
that he had not yet eaten. Nor did he apparent
ly intend to do so, for through the open win.
dow came the sound of a strident voice that
said
''Put Jerry in the dog-cart directly, Wilk'
ins am gon to drive into Eddiscombe."
had rather have died than have owned 1t,
and yet felt myself vanquished. Tom was
rough countryman, and L was civilized
London girl; he was, of course, unused to the
,,,s1a nf
kettledrums I had boasted many a conquest.
Somehow, however, could not manage Tom
I could not even prevent his managing me.
Furthermore, sense of depression actually
came over me at the thought of his going out
for the afternoon surely, in Aunt Mab's
absence, it was his bounden duty to he my
squire-nay, my slave.
ate my luncheon, however, as was very
hungry, and sat on feeling cross and lonely,
moodily slipping my aunt's homemade ginger
beer with the melancholy reflection that it was
not more fiat than all the world besides to
me, this long, long day, of all my days the
fattest.
Suddenly the door burst open.
"Down, Sambo down, down, Chloe,'
quoth my cousin to the big dogs that accom-
panied him, barking vociferously, and Jump
ing on him with delight.
II say, Lettie (I.etitia, 1 mean,) I've order
ed the old trap round. Pm going to drive you
to Eddiscombe."
''Are you ?''
"I'm sorry, you know" began Tom in
bungling sort of way, that !-l-l lost my
temper, but I couldn't help it,"
'You were extremely rude" | answered
with dignity.
"And you what are you ?" asked Tom
NV
ogy with grace, Lefty, before my humility
dies out altogether its safe not to last long.
Go put on your hat and tippet.'
My what 20
"Your bonnet and cloak, if you like that
better. Of course, Tishy, I know that it is
simply idiotic for man to lose his temper
with woman"
''That is true.''
"a woman may do what she likes !; it is all
silly clIildishness, like the scratching OF a
kitten, or the anger of young canary A
man shouldn't mind, if he is anything OF
fellow, and, of course, he doesn't mind really D
s'My dear Tom,'' l asked with some sar'
casnl, "why you seek my society if am SO
silly 2"
"Why do YOU seek mine" retorted Tom
quickly. "Why did you come into the dining
room, Miss Lefty p
~ QlQll' I Seek--
ooh, yes, you did. Well, you are dreary,
lonely child, and-don't contradict, Tishy-l
pity YOU and want to cheeryou up. Besides, you
are re' not bad looking, though you are my cous.
in. There's soft sawder for you Why, you
have been taught in books, Letitia, that wo'
mans beauty is the main spring of mems
great deeds. What a poor little weak hand
it is - added Tom, incOherently, taking my
feeble member into his large bronzed palm.
'sI don't want it kissed, though" said l,
angrily snatching it away just in time tC
avert the catastrophe. 'How dare you, Tom J!
"sI dare dc all that may become man. y
replied Tom grandiloquently. "Do go and
dress, Lefty. Better a drive with cousin
and the bitter herb of tobacco than dull at.
ternoon and only the stalled OK OF cold beef to
comfort you"
'Who is silly now? But you have eaten nc
cold beef yourself"
81 stuffed myself with late breakfast
Besides, you are like a sanity vision-I see
YOU better when Lam fasting. Down, Sambo
down, sir. Now sit up and beg; of course
you must put on your best manners like your
master, for the sake of this fine lady from
Londonn'
My aunt's dog-cart was vehicle in which
she would never trust herself, and it was there
fore kept solely for the use of Tom. AS fol
Jerry, she was good, quiet beast. Her name
was originally Egeria, but the stable-boy had
contracted and vulgarized this appellation
much as the Aryan races have amalgamated
the noble Sanskrit roots into their divers
modern tongues.
Jerry trotted on affably, and my cousin, a:
we passed between the high hedges that wore
the green mantle, discoursed with eruditior
of the neighborhoOd.
$50 you see, Lettice," said Tom for the
fifth or sixth time, ''that, when the old squire
died, he had got all his property comfortably
packed into ring fence, and when his first