Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1885-08-20

o1syt lhHllluI nOd. Hnlcu ne rcturned N tha
shape Of respectful salute, hat in air an
best Sunday manners So that .-enia
passed.
Again they met, and she stopped TO speak
with him, saying few light nothings; Will
he was all difidence and ''yesn and mo. .
She shot q smile and went ON, laughing IN
her sleeve, no doubt, at his sheepishness.
And yet his look-his clear, honorable eyes
ought TO have touched her somewhere; but I
suppose it was not in her to know that deep,
pure love-love that was like q sensitive
plant-made this brave, manly fellow shy as
girl when she was near Frivolous and
Frenchified as she wns Vanity could no.
read his behavior Alright; yet possibly his
character was printing itself ON her mind all
the time, especially as the hour OF inter-
probation drew nearer Anyhow, she amused
herself with him; and amusement must have
been a rare thing in her dreary life at Tum-
bledown Farm.
So Vanity and Willie met frequently: he
talking about weather, scenery, news any
trife, while his heart was full of passion; she.
all glance and smile, letting off flights of ar
rowy pleasantries barbed with mock tender
ness, little suggestive sayings, laughs tipped
with a sigh-all meant to insinuate ~ am
dying for your but quite capable, you OBJ
serve, of being explained as meaning nothing
at all. And so in these bits of talk snatched
in that sunset lane, Vanity caused Willie to
fall more desperately in love with her every
day; though as yet he had not dared to
breathe to her word about his feelings. In
one way she set bounds to his passion: her
freedom, her frivolity-which harsh tongue
might call looseness-troubled him. and made
him thoughtful at times. He would have
liked little more reserve, a touch of maiden
modesty which he missed But he was in
love, and of course explained her faults as
perfections in plain clothes 500.
What was Miss Nancy Steele doing all this
timei Biting her finger-nails, l suspect;
tightening her lips, tossing her naughty head,
clinching her fist, but not giving up the
game for lost, not if her name was Nancy
Steele That Willie was cooling toward her
she could not but discover; no barometer so
sensitive to changes Of atmosphere as wo-
| mans instinct to changes in the man she
loves But Nancy was a long headed girl,
and knew that there may be many turns of
the lane before the last turn of all Other
girls would have flown into passion, quar-
relied with their lover, and wound up the af-
fair with tears, reproaches and split. Not
Nancy! She may have fumed and sobbed,
but this was in secret; and as to quarreling,
| she would pick her time for that like wiss
woman. However, she got scent of Willie's
evening walks, and thought she might take a
walk herself now and then.
By this artful conduct on the part of Miss
Nancy Willie was put in fix When they
met she smiled and chatted as usual never
reproving his coldness even by glance. See
her cleverness! By her cool, judcious conduct
instead of loosening hold on Willie she rather
made her grasp firmer. Had she broken the
ice the young man in his straightforward way
would have acknowledged the change in his
feelings, and Nancy must have set him free
from an obligation which, so far, was moral
only, not legal But by giving him the first
move, so to speak, she embarrassed him be-
yond measure. She still smiled and threw
sunshine over her face whenever they met;
and high-minded, tender-hearted Willie rea-
soned with himself that he was in honor
bound to signify that he loved somebody
else .....
l have always been of opinion that, for
motherless girl Of 20, Nancy showed remark
able discretion; and, remember, it was all
for the boys good; for any sensible father
would have been pleased to see his son Nancy'S
husband. Who could say that of dressy,
fashy Vanity Hardware? And which of the
rivals won-the dark-eyed beauty ON the hill
side, or the shrewd, managing lass belowl
| Can you guess9 Iguessed at the time-and
| was wrong.
Doctor" said Willie to me one evening,
II feel like schemer. I have been rather
sweet upon Nancy Steele for a long time.