River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1884-12-18
JANIE'S CHRISTMAS.


ment" on his forty-acre farm; and as
she worked at a small milliner shop
down town, and wore plain calico
dresses day in and day out, with a
cheap alpaca on Sundays, the other
ladies at Mrs. Simms' looked coldly at
her, or over her, or beyond her. II
they spoke to her at all it was in frig-
id. numbpalsy kind of a way, that
seemed to chill jamie through and
through, to the very marrow of heI
bones.
Miss Verena Gillette, the Boarding
house Oracle, had pronounced jamie q
nobody" after glance at the slim,
little figure, in the pink calico frock,
with hair twisted in mass of glitterine
gold. high upon her head.
$50 old-fashionedi" sneered Miss
Verena. "No more style than dish
PAN"
And her fellow boarders and follow
ers, the Widow Dashaway, Miss Adali-
ma Duffy, and the two Miss Bobbs, al
once took their cue and turned up then
noses at poor, homesick, jamie, who
felt forlorn enough in her new position
among cold-hearted strangers.
However, she was not compelled to
see much of them outside of meal times,
excepting on Sundays, or other Loli.
days for the rest had their places oil
business as well as herself.
81 I,
airs and graces, was "saleslady" in
Griggs & Grimshawe's Mercantil EN-.
porium on Broadway; A1alina Duffy
was cashier at restaurant, and the
Widow Dashaway was teacher in q
Kindergarten school.
As for the masculine portion of the
boarders, they were of no avail in JAMES
case, being prosaic married men, mid
die aged and grum. who swallowed their
victuals and took themselves out of the
house as soon as possible.
But when, as occasionally happened,
jamie had been induced by the we'll.
meaning landlady-who never saw ar
inch hey ond her nose-to spend an even.
ing in the parlor with the other ladies, ;
she might as well have been one of the
china ornaments on the mantelpiece for
all the share she had in the converse.
tion.
Sitting bolt upright on the stiff legged
horse hair sofa, she had the pleasure oil
listening to a discussion of the latest
Styles" Miss Gillette being appealed to
on this side and that as to what would
or would not be worn during the cur.
rent season.
And so to- morrow would be Christ.
mas, and no wonder poor jamie felt
lonely, with the prospect of whole day
in such company.
eff could only afford togo home, y
she thought, winking very hard to keep
the tears back, land see father and
mother and grandma, and the dear old
home / just know how it looks, with
the hickory logs cracking and swapping
in the fireplace, and strings OF dried ap-
pies and red peppers hanging from the
kitchen rafters, With grandma knitting
in her high backed rocking chair, and
mother making cookies for tea, or set
ting away the crooks of milk on the but
terry shelves, and father smoking his
cob pipe, and"
But here jamie broke down in spite OF
all her efforts to wink the tears back.
and sobbed like home-sick child.
Dear mel" sighed Miss Verena Gil
latte, the same evening as she glanced
over the top of JAMES bead at the Wild
ow Dashaway, who sat next, what luck
does happen to some folks! Now there's
my cousin John. [ seen by the papers
to-day" Miss Verena always said seem
instead of 'saw")-"I seen by the pa.
pers he's been left fortune by dis
tant relative out in Arkinsaw."
ooh, Verena"
The Widow Dashaway glanced past
jamie at Miss Gillette.
Glow romantic Do introduce usl'
Eyes, do" chorused the Miss Bobbs.
and Adalina Duffy, glancing around, OF
over, or beyond poor jamie.
"But he amt here" explained Vere-
ma. Hes in Illinois. | haven't saw
him" Miss Verena used "saw" when it
should have been ''seen" III haven't
saw him since last summer year ago,
when I was a-visiting my aunt. John
amt my real cousin, you know. Only
his uncle married my aunt, and we call
ourselves cousins" explained Miss
Verena, looking down on her plate with
o conscious air, which gave her hearers
to understand that if John was not
already much nearer than a cousin, he
would be soon, thereby filling their
hearts with envy on account of the for
tune left by the ''Arkansaw" relative.
''Oh, girls, do look here A gentle
man in sleigh stopping here! Who on
earth is il? ?"
1t was Christmas morning, and jamie
had gone to church. The others were
gossiping in the little parlor, with its
gaudy brussels carpet, cheap, snowy
curtains, and prim, hair-cloth furni,
ture.
"Such handsome man! Who is he?'
repeated the Widow Dashaway, peeping
cut through the slat of the half-closed
window-b blind
She had just time to change her po'
sition when Bridget the hired girl ush-
cred in the strange gentleman.
He was tall and handsome, with curl
ing brown hair, and dark, expressive
eyes.
"Why, Cousin John, what a sur
prise"
Miss Verena was shaking hands, in
PRODUCING him to her friends, and show
ing her cousinly admiration in very de
monstrative manner.
"But why didn't you write you were
coming? And how did You know | was
here, Cousin John ?" she demanded with
a glance, which was meant to be coquet-
fish and irresistible.
"You see-ah Miss Verena-"
Miss ?" echoed Verena, reproachful-
ly.
II mean COUSIN" stammered John.
III came to see another. Oh, here
she is nowp
And there was jamie in her cheap
black dress and hat, just come from
church.
And Cousin John was shaking hands
with her, looking down into her eyes
and talking to her, not at all embar-
raised; for Miss Verena Gillette's
handsome cousin, who had just inherl-
ted fortune. proved to be JAMES 10y
er, to whom she had been promised
for nearly two years.
Hurry, jamie, and get your things,
ne was saying, "for I'm going to take
Won home for your Christmas dinner.