The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1883-07-27

plOopcct VI SVtT SotViuS tutu JOSttutr
again. Her first thought was TO go to
the house and send her father after
them. Then she remembered that she
had volunteered to bring them up, and
she must do it in some way.
SO, gathering her skirts over her
arm, she took long stick in her hand,
and, with her sunbonnet hanging over
her shoulders and a determined look in
her eyes, she started on the chase.
But were there ever such perverse
animals in the wide world? Hither
and thither they ran, as If possessed
by the very demon of mischief. In
III vain she ran frantically TO and fro.
All her efforts seemed rather to in
crease their playfulness than to inspire
them with any feelings of respect and
obedience.
At last she stopped in the middle of
the field, painting for breath, with
flushed face, disheveled hair and angry
looking eyes; and, uttering an exclama-
ton expressive of strong disgust, she
threw down her stick and was return
ing toward home, when she suddenly
became aware of masculine presence,
and deep, rich voice asked, "Shall L
help you, miss? p
Looking up, she saw broad-shoul-
dered specimen of the genus homo
rapidly approaching, with an amused
expression in his blue eyes and certain
twitchings of the muscles of his mouth,
showing strong inclination to laugh.
But at sight of the flushed face and
tired eyes, this tall, merry-looking
stranger became suddenly tender and
respectful; and, while Bessie grew hot
and uncomfortable and painfully con-
scious of her demoralized condition, he
remained cool and self-possessed, and,
taking up her discarded weapon, he
proceeded after those refractory bovines
in way that evidently meant business.
But, as though perfectly aware of a
superior presence, to Bessie Maple
toms utter disgust, those COWS formed
quietly into line and marched as de-
murely toward home as if that wild,
wicked frolic had never been thought Of
AS they followed the COWS along over
the green, crocus-dotted sward, the
young stranger conversed in an easy,
off-hand way, which under ordinary
circumstances would have put Miss
Bessie entirely at her ease. But she
was too keenly alive to the fact that
her dress was torn by an unlucky con-
tact with a thorn-bush, her collar
awry, and that her back hair had es-
capped the Legitimate confinement of
c NIB and hair-pins and hung in great,
cof1ee-colored masses about her neck
and throat.
"Where does Mr. Mapleton live ?" he
asked, abruptly, when the COWS were
safe in the lane. and the bars replaced
I'm the new teacher, Mr. Pierpont, at
your service with low bow, "and
Pm going to board with them this
summer.
Right up there" answered Bessie,
indicating the house with a nod, and
smiling in spite of her chagrin "These
are Mr.. Mapleton's cows"
He regarded her curiously moment.
"And you are?"
Miss Mapleton," with profound
courtesy.
"Ahl indeed Mr.. Mapleton's niece,
perhaps"
mo; Mr.. Mapleton's daughter"
Il Think understood Mr.. Mapleton
to say lie had but one daughter, and
that was little girl"
well, he always calls me his little
girl, she said, looking up with comic
ally-counterfeited shyness; and then, as
all the grotesqueness of the situation
burst upon her mind, she gave vent to a
long, low, hearty laugh. 1t was con-
tagious. Mr.. Pierpont laughed too,
albeit there was disappointed look in
his handsome, blue eyes, which was not
lost upon observing Bessie, and at
which that young lady naturally enough
felt little piqued.
"Never mind, Bessie" she said to
herself, "Mr. Pierpont doesn't seem to
care for our company. i really don't
wonder at it, considering our dilapidated
appearance this evening, but we will
take care not to infiict ourselves upon
him more than is necessary"
At the gate they met Mr.. Mapleton
He stopped to exchange greetings with
the young teacher, while Bessie ran
quickly into the house and upstairs to
her room, and did not make her ap-
pearance again that evening.
AT the breakfast-ta she was cool
and stately, and acknowledged Mr..
Pierpont's presence by q very slight
inclination of her handsome head.
For some reason unknown to the
writer, Mr.. Edgar Pierpont had de-
cided that young ladies as class were
somewhat of nuisance, and he had
been particularly anxious, in selecting
his summer boarding place, to avoid
contact with these, as he thought.
super1uous attachments to the human
family.
Whether it was some unfortunate
love affair, which had assisted Mr..
Pierpont TO this decision is immaterial,
so long as the fact remains that he had
voted them altogether unnecessary to
his happiness.
"vain, silly things" he was wont to
say; "hollow-hearted flirts, whose only
idea of life is to angle for the attentions
of the opposite sex, and eventually to
marry n rich man.
But il he hac the least idea that Bes-
sic Mapleton was going to angle for his
attentions, or try to get up the least bit
of a Irritation, he reckoned without his
| bAot Co., che x.,oa 10 o,,I,1,p,o1,r 81.