Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1885-04-23
"OUR LITTLE SISTER"

"Let her come to the farm" said old
Mr.. Ennis. ''She'll enjoy the bluebells
and the orchards, and the white clover
blossomlng along the roadside. 1t will
be great deal cheaper than Newport,
and more sensible than Cape May"
''Oh, papa, do let me go!' said Ru-
by, clasuiug her pink fingers ecstatical-
ly together. Mamma says yes.
A year ago Mr.. and Mrs. Alden Arch
er would have considered this sort of
ching rs nothing more nor. less than
banishment.
The Misses Archer had never been
anywhere else, than at Saratoga, Long
Branch, and Atlantic City. But times
were altered now. The financial
pressure" whatever that might be, had
acted very unplcasantly on the atmos-
phere of the Archer household.
Euphelia, the eldest daughter, had
just discovered that Mr.. Fontenoy Fa-
vrier, to whom she had engaged her
self, was not next heir to an English
baronetcy, at all but defaulting clerk
from Threadnecdlc street, with half-a-
dozen detectives after him; and, Alicia,
the second blossom of the family-tree,
had been unceremoniously deserted by
Mr.. Dallas, of the Polo Club.
s'IfSa girl--aw-hasn't got money,
you know-aw," said Mr.. Dallas,
"there's no use-aw-in keeping up
the thing. We ain like wavens, now
adays, to be fed by--aw-the prophets.
We must-aw--have cash"
''But, mamma, pleaded Ruby, 'you
said was to come out this winter"
..Child, don t be absurd" said Mrs.
Archer. Il said you should be intro
duced into society if Euphy and Allie
were married, but they're not; and l
can't 90 into ball rooms at the head of
a regiment of daughters. What would
people sayF'
at isn't my fault that they are not
married." pouted Ruby; land l am so
tired of the nursery. Mamma, can't l
go to Atlantic City with youP"
.'Certainly notn' said Mrs. Archer.
.sAnd mind, Rubina, if anyone asks you
how old YOU are, you must say six
teen."
.'Why?" cried Ruby, with open
brown eyes of ;tstonishment But l
was seventeen last birthday!'
.'There ) no sense in Your growing
up so tast"' pronounced Mrs, Archer
irritably.
"How can help it? said Ruby, al
most rc;tiy 20 CIV. 'Ican't put astone
on my ,.ea;t. eau r.
sThcfn are the .tiris to consider, said
Mrs. Archer. sorrowtUlly.
elbow are they to be bettered by my
telling lies about my age?' retorted
Ruby.
And then her mother told her to hold
her tongue, and not speak again until
she was spoken to.
So that old Uncle Ennis's offer was
truly welcome when it came, and mer-
ry little Ruby was like lamb let loose
upon the hills that sloped down to the
blue tides of the majestic Connecticut
River
She tore her dimpled brown fingers
with blackberry-briars; she ritied
bird 's-nests for addition to her collec-
ton of eggs; she romped like a child,
and whistled like boy, until all of a
sudden she was recalled to the facts of
real life.
She had come in from the blackberry
woods all sun-browned and happy, her
muslin flounces half torn away, her
cherry lips stained with the purple dyes
of the fruit, to find Uncle Ennis poring
intently over a couple of letters.
''Well little one,' said he, what do
you thinkP Here are two surprises for
your
''Two, uncle?" she cried.
Zone to picnic-party at the Great
Gorge"
s'Oh, can I gop" exclaimed Ruby,
jumping up from her bowl of bread
and-milk. jerome Franklin told me
that"
'.Hold on, lassie-hold onp' said
Uncle Ennis. ''The other is proposal
Of marriage. Mr.. Dubarry wants my
sanction, and all that sort of thing"
..Mr. Dubarry, indeedr' said Ruby,
turning very red. "a stufy old pro-
fessor who doesn't know anything ex-
cept about the ruins of Pompeii and
Herculaneum"
"You don't like him, petP"
'sNo, indeed, don'tr'
s'Then," said Uncle Ennis indulgerft-
ly, "there's an end of the whole thing.
Only when my little girl begins to re-
ceive offers Of marriage, it gives me a
queer sort of feeling"
Ruby ate her bowl of brcad-and-m milk
silently.
''Iwish they wouldn' t, 'said she.
'Some day you'll wish they would, y
said the old gentleman.
And he laughed SO heartily at his
joke that Ruby could not but laugh
also.
''But one thing you must mind, my
little lass" he added more gravely-
'.let that Jerome Franklin alone"
ss'Vhy Uncle Ennise"'~ said Ruby
earnestly. aaa as1sraS
..Hes wild fellow" said MIR. En-