News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1884-10-16
His Little Rustic
BY ELLA WHEELER.

He was leaning over rail fence
wiping his warm brow with somewhat
soiled but very handsome handkerchief
when he discovered her.
She was kneeling in the grass little
way off, hunting for wild strawberries.
which she dropped into partially filled
Her sun-bonnet had fallen back, and
now revealed very flush face and tum-
bled mass of brown hair.
tin pail.
He thought her profile very pretty,
and her wrist, as it was disclosed below
her print sleeve, shapely and white. He
wished she would look up, as he was
growing curious concerning the color
of her eyes. He felt sure they were
brown.
Just at this moment whirr of wings
caused him to turn his eyes in another
direction, and he saw covey of wild
prairie hens just settling upon an angle
of the fence in near range. He lifted
his gun quickly to his shoulder, took
aim and fired.
The birds all few away unharmed.
But the girl in the grass gave little
shrek, and spraDg up SO hastily that
she tipped her pail of berries over, and
they all disappeared in the long, tan
yled grass.
ooh, how provoking ~ she cried, in
a tone of real vexation, as she looked
down at her empty pail.
"Allow me to help you pick them
up" said our hero, gallantly, as he
sprang over the fence with an easy
bound, and bent to his task as lightly as
if he had always picked berries from
tangled grass for livelihood, instead of
attending to the foreign business of one
of the largest commercial houses in the
world. He picked away in silence fol
fully five minutes without looking up.
1t was now the young lady's oppor-
tunity for inspection. She saw me-
dium sized, strongly built figure,
clothed in a hunting suit, evidently
new; head of closely cropped hair,
suspiciously near badness upon the
crown; a peculiarly pallid complexion,
a very handsome mustache, we'll waxed
and glossy, and, as he lifted them. just
then, two very liquid and languid blue
eyes.
Eyes, they are brown" he said, men
tally, as he met her glance. Aloud: 81
think your pail is quite as full as it was
before, Mademoiselle. I shall take
pleasure in assisting you to completely
fill it if you will allow"
And his smile and glance and the per-
feet modulation of his voice was as de-
Iightful to Lisle Ashley as it had been
to a score-nay, to a hundred-women
before her.
"I-I thank you," she stammered;
''but I have enough for tea now, and il
is late, and / must CO."
"But you have not enough for tea if ]
take tea with you," said our hero, with
the irresistible boldness, coupled with 9
respectful demeanor, which was one
of Richard Westbrook's more taking
qualities with the ladies.
IL mans manner, glance and tone
are only respectful and deferential,
nothing pleases woman more than q
certain amount of boldness in his words
and actions.
"You see," he continued, in answer tC
her look of surprise, ST am lost" ]
left party of friends this forenoon, and
wandered through the woods in search
of game until / am completely bewil-
dered. They have the lunch basket.
You are the first human being I have
seen in hours, and have dined on few
berries. / must have supper soon OIL
rerish. have DO idcs hcv far | am
from Benton station, where I was to
join my friends at o'clock. And now
it is s."
"Oh." said Lisle, looking very sym
pathetic indeed, "you are to be pitied.
You are five miles from Benton station,
and you must be hungry, 1 know. Well,
now, you may go home with met
is just half a mile from here. Aunt
Ruth will have supper ready, 1 know,
and you will be welcome. And the
hired man is going to Benton Falls this
evening. You can ride with him."
'But my train goes at T."
"Well, there is another at 9. And
Joel may go early enough to get ur
there for the 7 o'clock train. will heir
him with the COWS SO he can get off.
Richard glanced down at the slender
hands and wrists.
"You milk COWS? Impossible !" be
said.
"Oh, do not make business of IL >
Lisle answered calmly; "but I can do il
when occasion requires. 1 would moi
be thoroughly genuine country girl 4
I could not. Now, here is a fence tc
climb. Will yeu please go first and ther
help me over2"
81 thought country girls always
leaped the fence" said Richard, as he
sprang Lightly over and gave her his
hand.
''They can do it, but they do not al
ways display their agility on every occa.
sion" Lisle retorted, as she stepped tc
the ground at his side. 'There il