The Sunday tatler and Jersey City express. (Jersey City, N.J.) 1883-1886, 1885-05-10
JESSIE'S PARLOR.

golden apples, here and there a rudy
sswindfall, half hidden in the long grass,
and at the foot Of one of the most richly
laden trees young girl, half-asleep, with
an ill-used book flung to one side,
and the INDECENT white arms thrown above
her pretty, dark head.
.'Jessie !"
She made a sleepy little movement, indi-
cative of annoyance at being interrupted
in the middle of her siesta.
'sJessie, / say =
Miss Jessie slowly rose and picked up
her book. she was a tall, slight girl, of
about eighteen years of age, with rather
pale face, and grey eyes, tringed with long
black lashes. These eyes were her great
est charm. A little white gate divided the
orchard from the garden, and Jessie pass
ed through it with exasperating slowness.
ssWas there ever such.a girl r thought
her sister, her elder by twenty years, at
least-the daughter of her fathers first
wife.
1 Caroline had loved her young step
mother, and when she died had tried to
take mothers place to the tiny dark-eyed
baby she left behind but Jessie had
proved very troublesome charge:
w ell. SdlQ cCoo1Cs 4AtOAAOS30tAfOAJg
looking at Carline standing in the doorway,
with her sleeves tucked up, and her stout
arms covered with flour. ''What is it Car
oline 2"
ssCome and move your rubbish out of
the front ROOM"
sWhat for?" asked Jessie, in undis-
guised establishment.
ssBecause fathers going to let it to a
vounp fellow from London"
Jessie looked indignant. Her parlor,
with the piano in it, to be let out to some
horrid man, and all her pretty belongings
banished to her little bedroom. Oh it was
too bad.
sCarrie." she said, show could you adj
wise father to do such thing? L never
thought we should have to take in dodgers;
I'd rather run away.
sWhere tor" asked the rather matter-of-
fact Caroline.
Jessie hit her lips, and went indoors to
remove her books and needle-work from
the little parlor that had been regarded as
her especial sanctum ever since she had
entered her teens. 1t never occurred to
Miss Jessie that money was rather scarce
with her father just now, and that the
lodger would bring grist to the mill She
regarded the whole thing as conspiracy
to make her uncomfortable.
They might have consulted her, she
thought, forgetting that she never troubled
herself in any way with the affairs of the
household. How she wished she could
have her piano carried upstairs; but that
was impossible. 1t was the chief orna-
ment of the room, and her father, she
knew, would not allow her to take it
away.
81 shall hate him; know / SHALL" she
told herself, thinking of the ledger.
And for the first two or three days she
kept carefully out of the way, and Mr..
Leith remained unconscious of the fact
that he was beneath the same roof with a
pretty girl. But he made the discovery
one afternoon. When wandering through
the orchard, with his hands behind his
back, he came suddenly upon slight, glrl-
ish figure, in brown holland, wide chat
shading her eyes from the sun. Wonder
full eyes they were so large and dark, and
utterly bewitching She was gone like
fash: but her image fingered Mr. Leith's
memory. He was not talkatiye man; but
he began to-cultiyate Caroline Maybrick's
acquaintance, and soon found that the girl
in the brown holland dress was her sister.
He grew SO friendly that Caroline yentured
to ask him to take tea with them in the
kitchen ons afternoon. The farmer was
willing; but Jessie objected most strongly,
and threatened not to come into tea at
all.
Besides, she said, "what does gentle
man want in farmhouse kitchen r
However, Mr.. Lelth seemed very much
at home there, and delighted Caroline and
her father by his bright flashes of wit. He
did his best to please that afternoon; but
was was it only for the benefit of the far
mer and his der daughter, or did his eyes
wander in the direction of Jessie's trim fig
ure? He could not understand why it was
that the girl always avoided him, If she
had wished to excite his interest she could
not have devised a better way. Her re-
serve piqued his curiosity, and he found
her pretty face coming between him and
his dusty old books.
Once he went for long walk, and re-
turning home in the twilight, heard her at
the piano, and paused to listen; but she
caught sight of his figure outside the win
dow, and the music ceased in an instant.
When he entered the room he found it
empty: but little bow of ribbon lay on
the carpet Mr.. Leith whistled, walked to
the door, closed it carefully. and picked up
the ribbon bow with shame-faced look.
and actually kissed it, Then, with fingers
that trembled in an unaccountable way,
he folded it up and placed it IN his pocket
book
'sYour sister is shy" he observed to Carr
oline, later on.
SIT isn't that" responded Caroline, with
q laugh; "but she hasn't got over being
turned out of her room. 1t was hers, you
know, before you came, and she hated the
idea of father taking ledger"
H., ,+l, How HI
lightened, and next evening, as Jessie was
eating an apple in the orchard, the enemy
bore down on her before she could beat a
retreat. 'sMiss Jessie, he said, taking off
his hat. ssyou must not run away. want
to speak to you.
.sWhat is it? ?" she asked coldly, throw
ing her apple over the hedge
She had no longer any appetite for it.
81 want to apologize for having uncon-
sciously taken possession of your parlor.
1t makes me feel like an interloper."
ssWho told you it was my parlor?" asked
Jessie, trying to steel her heart against
him; but thinking all the time what a
handsome man he was, with his blue eyes,
and tawny beard.
s.Never mind who told me" said George
Leith. I know 1 have unconsciously de-
prived you of your piano ever since have
been here, and want you to forgive me- "
ut is who ought to ask forgiveness, ("
returned Jessie. II have often stolen IN 10
have an hour with my piano, when you
were out"
She smiled and colored as she spoke, un-
able to resist the winning sweetness Of his
voice and manner.
They stood and watched the moon above
the tree-tops, talking pleasantly, until Caro-
line came to the door, and called her sis
ter. =,
.yvhere on earth have you been, Jessie p