Weekly Chillicothe crisis. (Chillicothe, Livingston Co., Mo.) 1878-19??, 1883-01-25
MY LITTLE GIRL.
nARxABY BAMroy, IN DOMESTIC MONTH";

DARNABY BAMroN IN DOMESTIC MONTHLY.
She was n tremendously pretty girl.
| rememberh her as she passed the house
every morning on her way to school
with her little satchcl full of heavy
books and cake, not that mean to say
that the cake was heavy, for tasted it
once, and if it was always as good as
on that occasion, Ambrosia and the
more modern angels food are as crusts
compared with it.
She was eleven years old and was
thirteen, but loved her and she loved
me as dcvotedly, and certainly more
disintercstedly, than if we had both
been ten years older, and she had a
large bank account. We lived on the
same street, within few doors of each
other, and an overture of Sleeps eyes
preceded the drama of our acquain-
lance. With what insignificant and
yet very significant things it all began.
BY degrees | felt the greatest desire TO
"show off, whenever she was spec
tator of our boyish games. can re-
member how much faster ] used to run
when | was chased past her window by
the "wolf," when playing "wolf in his
dcn,n and how much louder used to
talk when by chance | passed her on
the street, and how particular was
about my necktie, and how | used to
throw my hat back on my head in a
iaunty way, and show my short curly
locks to the best advantage, for | had
heard people say how pretty my hair
was, and how picturesque it looked in
confused, tangled mass, struggling
from under my broad-brimmed hat.
used to rumple it on purpose, and tan
Gle it and snarl it until my mother be.
came distracted at my antics, and
would insist upon curbing my ar
tistic efforts with the unartistic comb
and brush. And how | always used the
greatest diplomacy to get the rest OF
the boys to play where we could be
easily seen from a certain window; and
how far | used to jump and how care.
full | was in shooting marbles, when Q
little figure with her head bowed ovel
her lap was pretending TO sew or study
by that same window; and how | used
to talk about her to the other girls, say
ing how pretty | thought her, in hope:
that they would tell her what | said
and | think they did, although an
afraid that as they have all grown old
er and presumably wiser now, they
would scarcely be apt to carry sucl
messages between lovers, and | doub
whether at the present time | shoulC
care to tell one young lady how sur
passingly prettyI thought another was
But none of these little barriers of con
ventionality hindered me then, and on
billing and cooling was diluted through
four or five girls with very satisfac
tory result to me.
BY degrees Ethel (for that was he
name; | had found that out long before
and isn't it just the prettiest name ii
the worldly began to glance shyly a
me sometimes as passed, and when
looked back over my shoulder, as
often did, l caught her once or twic,
watching me. Being caught in whicl
act she straightway rushed out of sight
And when walking Or playing with he
companions they would glggle an,
; laugh and whisper and do thousan,
{ things as insignificant and yet as sig
nifcant as the cccentricities whicI
/, composed the principal features o
,,u hnho ovinr ot that limo
The beginning of our real acquaint
ance was quite romantic and chivalric
: The girls used to play their games i
t the courtyard (notice how | preserv
the flavor of chivalry and romance, bu
8 perhaps you would understand tn
situation better If | should say fror
area) of y certain house on the block
This area Qet me be exact If chivalr
: and romance have to suffer) was larg
/ and capacious, and offered an exceller
playground for the little girls of tn
, neighborhood, where they were prC
tected from the passers-by and til
traffic of tho street. There the
jumped their ropes and "played house
d to their hearts content. One day, on
t of the boys Che had two sisters VIII
{ were younger than himself, whic
: probably accounted for his cleverne'
~ in torturing little girls) chased the.
l. all about the yard, and when Eth,
had for safety rushed into litt
u closet under the stoop, he closed I'll
l. great iron door and Kept her there
L prisoner. She was frightened at I'll
4 darkness and dampness of the plac,
~ and fears of rats. and mice began
y torment tho poor little soul, and 81
o began to cry and scream with sue
piteous little shrieks that they woul
have melted the heart of any one wi
n was not confirmed tormentor. Bl
her jailor only laughed at her an
!, frightened her by pointing out allege
. rats and spiders and bugs in all par
it of her cell, until her fright was sue
Y that she nearly tainted. She certainl
!. would have if she had been ten yea
Is older and had known that the groun
s would not have spoiled her frock.
>, But Sir Knight, in the guise of m,
u self, heard her cries, and in fact hG
9 seen the whole proceeding, for WI
n always looking in her direction to 81
if she was watching our games, Irushe
toward her tormentor with all the di,
>, nifty and influence that my superioriI
of one year and two or three inches
l. stature gave me. "Ain't you ashamt
n of yourself" said Sir Knight impre
J. sively, "to shut the prettiest girl in Il
n block up this wayP The speech W,
Il not very clear nor very coherent, for
" was more concerned about paying h
a stunning compliment than l WI
% about my grammar and logic, but n
B. excited face and clinched fist were cle
Q. and logical, and the Saracenic chu
~ opened the door of the dungeon al
a Ethel ran out. The other girls Q
% gathered about her. and said 1t was
hghamo. an fhera. thav yould fall h