Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1885-07-23
TOM JONES.


shaggy haired fellow of 20 years. He
worked hard on the Chandler farm,
in Kentucky, about fifty miles from
the Ohio, near the little town of W
-. His fellow aborers, whose great
delight was to crack coarse jokes, spit
tobacco juice, and go a sparkling" on
Sundays in store clothes" and high.
heeled boots, thought Tom was "un-
commonly dull" They only liked
him because he was good natured,
willing-it was thought blindly-
taking the hardest row 10 hoe or the
meanest team to drive a-field, but he
never shared their fun or joined in the
loud mirth which followed Charley
Meeks' sallies of wit. He did not
dance, neither did he drink whisky or
court the girls" He spent his even-
ings, Sundays, and rainy days alone,
reading the books which the cid
school teacher lent him, but the boys
thought he read only because he was
too dull to tell jokes or too timid to
talk to the girls. 1t is true they all
remembered how one day Charley
had made course joke about Mary
Chambers parentage, Tom had very
unexpectedly thrown cold water on
the resulting merriment by declaring,
in language that was no less forcible
for being grammatical, that Il ever
again he heard Charley Meeks or any
one else speak of Mary Chandler in
anything but respectful terms, he
would so chastise the offender that
earth would ne to him hotter than
hades Brit they looked upon that
only as a proof of Toms inability to
appreciate a good joke and his igAor-
suce of the uses of womankind.
And Mary was favorite, too, III
Ihat neighborhood. All loved her,
and even the witty Charley would
have done anything she asked, even
to the extent of keeping his tongue
for half an hour at time. But no
one knew exactly who she was. From
her most tender childhood she had
lived atJohn Chambers house, borne
mis- name, and been treated as his
daughter; but the old man had never
confded to anyone the secret OF her
birth, and. more he had met all the
queries in this regard with such stern
intimation that it was nobody's busl-
ness that no one had for longtime
made any attempt to discover the
now almost dead secret.
Mary was pretty. A wealth OF
waving hair fell like molten gold on
her shaBely shoulders, and her blue
eyes, rosy lips. sparkling teeth, and
delicate complexion were supple
mented with a graceful form and
sunny disposition that forced the adj
mIration and won the affection of all
who knew her. Sho was but II, mod
est and retiring as she was happy
and industrious, and no young fel'
low in a circuit of twenty miles but
would gladly have Joined his lot tc
hers. But she encouraged no lovers
She talked to Tom perhaps more free
" than to anyone else. They had
gone TO school together and no more
assiduous. devotion was ever shown tc
mortal beng than Tom had given tC
Mary. No one thought it love affair
What a jackass Tom is to be al ways
talking 'rithmetic and what not tC
Mary Chsndler," the boys would say,
IF she would give me chance;
think I'd sing another tuye, eh2 Blu
nc amt got no gumption. " Tom has
devoted himself without reserve t
Mary's pleasure. To know her wish
was to crafty it. His first efforts II
the stady of books had been dedicated
TO her. His greatest ambition wa:
TO win her approval; bis life's purpos'
to make her happy. Yethe had no
thought of love in those school boy
Jays. He was only sure shat Mary
was the perfection Of wemanhood
and that whatever she approved wa
necessarily good. Happy, adolescen
passion! Like the brightest Of flow
ers, it adorns the spring time OF life
It's withered petals perfume our lates
memories on earth, and preserv
everlasting faith in our hearts.
Toms early love was of that stat
wart growth that outllved his boyis
fancies and took permanent place I
the aspirations of his manhood. II
resolved to be truly great that b
might be worthy of Mary Chandler
affection; to win position, wealth, an
influence that she migRt be proud
him, and he determined whatev'
Il Il l.. - w-x4l