The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1884-05-23
ST. NlI'S gVE.
From Temple Bal.

ASs 1SAV WAV O&4 4 UVW08SxAkp0 u6E r
"Aour Patty be vine enuff TO be Q
laady born! was the oftspoksn Thought
OF her father and mother-the one un-
der gardener the other Sx-laundry maid
at the "Great House."
And, sure enough, Patty, according
to the wiseacres, had for sometime been
IN . fair way TO have her head turned
by 80 many admirers.
A nod and . chuck under the chin
from the young Squire" and q "Waal,
I she beant noo!" from John Brown
the grizzled old earth stopper, a. he
saw her whisk across the court yard,
were perhaps the highest and lowest
ordinations of admiration directly ex.
pressed. But even "The Squire" him
self had been heard to say TO "My La
dy;n "Egad, Jane, that Holden girl is
devilish pretty!" And every farmer and
farmers boy, whip and groom, keeper
and poacher, within Zen miles of the
Great House, was worshipping, or had
worshipped to his cost at the shrine Of
Venus Sylvestris.
,ssH However,. Pattyswa "going slongn
eighteen, and her little heart seemed a.
sound as q bell; her cheek was round
and downy as q peach; her blue eyes
glanced clear and honest through the
dark lsshes, and her whole demeanor
defed the most curious Of gossips to say
she had thought other than to attend
upon her young mistress.
But innocent as she looked-inno.
cent as she really was-Patty, like most
Of the rest of womenkind, hugged to
her own heart her little secret; and
though scarce ten words had passed be.
tween them, she knew full we'll as he at
the time our story opens, Christmas,
IL, that William Halfacre Of Ever.
sley, "Gypsy Will, !" as they used to call
him, was her accepted lover.
Simple enough, and in this wise, had
IL come about.
One day in the August previous,
North Hants had challenged South
Hants to meet on the cricket field out
side Of the garden gates Of the Great
House; and Southampton and Lynhurst
Portsmouth, aud Winchester had mus.
tered against Bramshi11 and Basing.
stroke, the Vine and High Clere, to
try their respective worths. No day
was it then, as now, of white fan.
nels and straw hats, fancy club rib
bons, and silk waist handkerchiefs, oi
four balls an over, and lightning-paced
round-arm bowling, done by gen.
tlemanlike professional cricke6ks
who make their cool hundred, and
lounge into the marquee for cigarette
and q claret cup. No. In black tweed
broadcloth and white duck trousers
white frilled linen shirts, and tall blacl
hats, did our heroes of the close of the
asst century meet to "do each other te
death" with slow aud fest underhand
bowling. And what need of a marques
was there on that field where eacl
mighty linden of the avenue OIL one
side, or massive oak along the church
path, along the other side of the lawn
was in itself q tent for regiment
What need of claret cup when the "old
October" foamed in the Great House
silver tankards under q holly bower pre-,
sided over by the brewer thereof-the
old family butler?
And among the heroes of the Evil
lows" gathered round the group ol
oldsters gravely discussing in
the centre Of the field the merits of the
wickets-how many runs it should be in
to the ditch, how many. Qxar, &c., &c.
stood Gypsy Will, the fastest bowler and
hardest hitter in North Hants.
A second son of the favorite old ten
ant, the Squire had Q few years before
given him start on moorland farm
much too plodding q life for Will, who
soon exchanged it for an underkeeper.
ship; whereat the numberless affrays
with poachers kept excitement alive and
stimulated his manhood into energy.
"Play" was at last called; and Nortt
and South Hants bowled and batted
ran and folded, and when occasion
came for it, ate and drank as if life de
pended on it. The rector kept the
score, and cheered each good hit to the
echo; and the old Squire made his pad.
groom lift him out Of his low phaeton,
standing under the lime trees, and de-
posit him in big arm chair, with his
equity foot on cushion, little neare,
the play, and even forgot to curse HIN
for clumsy fool, 80 exciting was the
game.
At last the winning hit was made by
Gypsy Will. But the day was not ovel
yet, as ere the last cheers for the con
querers and conquered had died away
q fiddle and clarionet struck up coun.
try dance, in which it was somehow fat.
ed that Martha Holden and Will Hal.
facre should "cross hands and down the
middle"-a presage of what should fol.
low.
Suffice it for the present, that as Pat.
ty walked back to the house with hin
an hour after, as the drowsy shard-bee-
tie took the place of the bees in the lin.
dens overhead, and she stole look into
Wills face and thought of his manliness
and beauty, she loved him once and 70,
all, and he looked down on her and
loved in return.
But the lime-tree leaves began to turn
and flicker down on the lawn, the brack.
en- bronzed under the sun, the lost red.
heather blossom turned purple, mauve,
and then brown, the puppies came home
from walk, and cub hunting began
and still no sign from William.
November and the opening meet ol
the season brought its hoiseful ol
guests-its breakfast table set in the
great hall, gay with pink, green and
black coats, white breeches and boots
jangling on the stone floor-the hounds
frolicking round the huntsmen ON the
lawn, save only one, old "Harbinger,
the squire's pet, that was snoozing q
the old mans knees insideAand brought
for Patty its helter.skelter run with her
young mistress along the grass ride to
get before the rush Of horsemen to the
old summer house, where, encased in
sturdy velveteen, gun on arm and re-
triever at heel, stood Gypsy Will.
The sign came! A bow and blush
for "my young lady," blush, a bow, a
sudden dropping Of the eyes for Patty.
She was content! and repaid all three
with interest; butno word yet.
The hunt is up! The "dappled dar-
lings" are leaping madly through the
brown bracken, the glen re.echoing
their maddening melody. The last
faint note of the horn has died away in
to the dark bank of fir woods; but the
beauty of all around her is lost to Patty
in the memory of those brown eyes that
so lately drooped before her own.
Winters first snow brings her first
troubles for Patty. For some time
past she has noticed that the young