Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1884-01-25
APROpOs or LEAp. YEAR.


APROPOS or LEAP. YEAR.
said to the Countess, apropos of leap
year, | wonder our countrywomen over there
don't take advantage of the privilege there
are 80 many more women than men, the poor
things are driven to dire extremities.
An indefuable expression ,hone in the
beautiful eyes Of my lucky countrywoman.
| never knew but the one case, she re.
piled. 1t was as you say, of dire extremity.
| will tell you the story. She was friend of
| mine who lived out west in America with her
mother and two sisters. Blanche was the el.
| dest Matilda the next, and then came Betty,
my friend They we're rather pressed once
| in a while for money--the poor father had
| died before he meant to, aud had left mort
| gage on the place, which, Of course, theJ had
no hope to pay off. They just drifted along,
saved all they could, and scrmp,d aud con
| trivod like all the good neighbors in their vi
| cinity; did their own baking and making,
washing and ironing; and there were the
cows, you sec, for mIk and butter, though
the churning sometimes was so contrary one
| got sadly out Of heart with it. I've heard
| Betty say she's pumped and pumped till she
| knew there was witch some where, and
when she'd whispered a little invocation to
tine hidden fairy, the chunks within the churn
would suddenly melt together, aud it would
be done in no time. And just the same way
with tho bleaching; Betty declared the fair
les had something to do with whitening the
linen, which they used as a sort Of dancing
cloth at night She, poor child, you will per
| ceive, had her head full of all SORTS Of non b.
sense where she learned it, the good Lord
| knows. She trained many bean stalk with
| the shy hope that IT would make q ladder to
the skies, and never saw monstrous yellow
pumpkin but she thought of its capability for
a coach and four
1t was midway in one beautiful year in
| Betty's life when there came to the place a
magnificent gentleman, whom we will call
Jones. He was a Colonel of some sort, and
was straight from the mining region where
he had accumulated handsome fortune. He
was well.favored in form and feature, and it
was the most natural thing in the world that
all the feminine population should so wild
over this matrimonial prize. Betty's sisters
| were well out of their teens, and it had long
since been determined that marriage was the
only solution to the pecunary problem which
| puzzled the household more and moro every
year.
Blanche aud Matilda were universally rec
| ognized a. the bellies OF the place. rs, besides
their ACKNOWLEDGED beauty, they could lay
claims to superior accom- plishments. The
good mamma had thought 1t an excellent in
vestmcnt of capital TO give her jewels an e1
ira setting, and had hired poor Frenchman
from the neighboring village to give her el-
dest daughters lessons of various kinds He
was compelled to be rather versatile, as his
pupils had different tastes, and was some
times driven to bis wits end to mprovs,
new accomplishments for his exactipg pat
rons. He bewailed his lot bitterly to Betty
who was sent down after him to the yillag,
with their one rickety horse and vehicle
| d.. IL a. -, l..
child like way, and so the days went on, ant
the poor Frenchman, whom we will call Mon
-ieur Achile Victor, became more than eve
in demand, AS an entertainment was TO b,
given in honor of Colonel jones' the ricl
mining sppcuaor. Betty was sent TO ant
fro to purchase fin,ry for the ball. and on he
way she brought and took back Mousieu
| Victor. Betty was of that comfortable ag
that she was considered too young to be com
PEELED to the proprietlts of a woman, and to-
old to fall into the hurries and fears of
child. Monsieur Victor was so thin aud darl
aud hairy, so old in his ways and precise il
his habits, that the family only looked upo
him as q useful commodity, and they kne'
nothing of those ebultions Of wrath, of sol
row, OF sentiment aud feeling, which too
/ | place in the old carry-all with only Betty 70
! an auditor. The Professor himself doubles
g at tunes ignored the presence of the child
, and when he had used her for his safety
! valve to the extent Of pIungng her into tear
of commiseraton and strong expressions G
sympathy in his behalf, he would suddenl
recollect himself, and put out his fire an
that of the tender Betty by the one little SCI
tence "Soyez tranquille, mon enfant ~
These fits of fury became so frequent abor
the time of the ball, aud his remarks upo
the gallant Colonel were so personal and ST
we're, that Betty, with the naIyetd Of a chilC
said to him one day;
as it that thou art Jealous OF Colonel Jones
Hast thou, then, fallen foolishly in love wit
one of my sisters, Monsieur Victor =
The Professor looked down upon the pre-
FOUNDER of these impertinent questions, an
burst into a fit of laughter, in which Beti
Joined, so glad was she TO see in his face th
denial to her inquiries
II care not that for them" he said, snaI
ping his fingers contemptuously NOR fC
any one in the whole world save thyself, Ii
tie one"
Betty drove on then, fully at ease in h
little mind, for she had a simple, trustful n
ture
And so the harvest-moou grew bigger al
rounder, and the night of the ball it glove
with wonderful brilliancy, so that Betty cou
almost read her story-book outside in Il
garden, and holding it close to her nose-f
big as her eyes were, their sight was nothil
to boast of, she was amazed to find someboC
close TO the skirts of her dress without
ever having seen him approach, There stor
a tall gentleman, with gold chain over
long white waistcoat, pantalOons of me
lovely fawn, a linen duster, broad brimm
hat of finest Panama straw, and when
took of his driving gloves, there was &c
on his little finger that blazed with all 1
colors in the fire. works on the Fourth of J
n y. Betty knew at once it was Colonel joni
aud hastened to get him bit of rope to me
some of his broken gearing.
$50 your visitors have gone to the bal
he said looking more at Betty than the ro
he was twisting, ''and have left you at hol
!. to tidy up. I've heard story like that son
- where, only the little girl was left sitting I
N. cinders. What the deuce was the story CO
ed, now ?"
'Cinderlla," said Betty, with lively
= terest "and the fairy godmother comes a
turns the rats into horses and the pumpl
into a coach"
Az "Oh yes. I've got it," broke in the
ge- ,p. onel "aud of goes Cindy to the ball, c
out her sisters, aud carries off the prize h
elf. 1 always liked that story. I've deu'
good mind to act the part of the Prince u
self"
! "Do, do" cried Betty, "and choose one
III my sisters at the ball they'll be awfully {
appointed if you DON'T they've set IL
hearts On it, and you couldn't fud prettieT
ru- nicer ladies any where in the world"
II haven't the least doubt of it, he sa
but that wouldn't be like the story.
,y. ,,natvit anoil tha atorv vou know / waa