Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1884-11-07
.here rhen Followed two o. thrse

there. Then followed two or three
others of general similar nature. They
all related to matters of very simple
character and were not especially diff
ferent from ,aany others that had left
the establishment during the last
month or two; but the two made very
slow progress. Old Johns usual
fluency seemed to have quite deserted
him; he hemmed and hawed, and
stammered, and altered, and repeated
and made very bad business of a
very simple and ordinary matter.
'Well, that's ali for now" he said,
after long pause had followed the
completion of the last answer of all.
"Or, no he went on, as Miss Grant
turned aside to uncover her machine,
''there'll be just one more yet. Now,
are you ready2 My dear madam ;
dear madam; have you got that down3
My dear madam
This is for a lady, apparently, "
said Miss Grant, looking up with an
amused mile.
Yes, it is, replied old John. my
dear madam, / hope pou will not be
not be disagreeably surprised if
Poor old fellow! how he stumbled
and blundered. How much he said,
and unsaia, and resaid before he had
even got fairly ander way! How he
biushed, and idgeted, and perspired
until in his desperation he was force
TO boldly take the bull by the horns
and finally say his say in two Or three
swift, compact sentences that were out
of his mouth almost before he knew
it.
yours devotedly, John Boxtoe.
There!' cried old John, hopping his
brow with a gesture half of relief and
half of oxpectation.
Name and address, please?" said
Miss Grant, in her usual neat and
business-like way.
Sure enough, sure enough" he
rejoinad, with another wave of en-
barrassment surgipg over his already
crimson face. This is for Miss
Katherine Grant"
For me, is it2' she asked, in the
most simple and unsuspecting man
ner in the world. well, then, Just
let me run through it and see what it
is all about. And, as she ran over
her hiereglyphics, a bright spot began
to burn in each cheek, and something
like smile began to play around her
mouth, and something like tear be :
gan to start in each eye. What she
was reading was a proposal of mar
riage. With admirable presence of
mind she turned to her typewriter
She would pay him in his own coin.
MY dear sir, she murmured, and be
gan to run her fingers over the keys
of the instrument. But there was nc
sheet ia place, and she was obliged tc
look around for pen and paper. my
dear SIR" she repeated again, and
dipped her pen into the ink. But il
was useless quite, for she had wet the
handle of the penholder itself. "My
dear sir" she said once more casting
about for final resource.
Old John began to laugh heartily.
You ale writing to gentleman
apparently" he said. IF l am the
gentleman, a verbal answer will do a!
well as any other Gomez"
And then she gave him her reply
in regulation fashion.
lICy NOIC NltAlll q
Mr., Instep, who knew how these
things were managed, saw then
through it. He had been upon the
point of providing goodly company
for the occasion from his own widt
circle of acquaintance, but old John
put his foot down on that at the be
ginning. They wouldn t go much Oh
style, lac said, and in consequence the
house itself and the trade at large sc
nearly monopoiized the attendance
that an odor Of leather may be saio
to have permented the entire affair
Perhaps to this arrangement more
than TO anything else was due the
preseNce of MIR, George Bailey; he
was no doubt the most conspicuou!
ornament of the evening. And the
next morning when he resumed his
seat behind the great sheet of French
glass his handsome face wore per
tubered and wistful expression thai
was not often there. The morning
was wet and gloomy, and he stood
looking out disconsolately upon the
muddy crossing and the falling rain
Upon the opposite corner a little CIR
was just giving a penny to bline
organ grinder
All" signs Bailey as he looks tha
way, eff | were only younger, or
had half his money!"