Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1886-07-14
From the Boston Traveller
10 7 .
BY t. NJ. T.

Lot was pretty girl. At Ii she
lived in q little backwoods town in
Maine; at 20 she was managers
wife; and at 25, her husband being on
thegovernor's staff, she was belle of the
Amoskeag Veterans ball. To tell how
all this came about is what I have to
do with Lot.
When [ first saw Lot she was on the
ice skating. Even then she displayed
a remarkable aptitude in the chief tai
ent she possessed. She would skim
over the ice, cut pigeons wings and do
the outer circle as well as an expert,
and when one who could not skate so
fast came in her way she would give
him a pushl All! yes, Lot was push
ing, that most necessary adjunct now
adays for success. And then at the
masquerades in the little town hall /!
Lot appeared one night as the evening
star, in a gaslight green tarletan
spangled over with silver, with silver
stars on her black stockings and slip
pers and a jaunty wee cap on her
head. All. me, how pretty she looked
and graceful-so graceful as--well, the
young lady who gives "Money
Musk" How must | describe her?
Somewhat tallish was Lot, and slen-
der, with round, plump little waist,
and brown eyes and golden brown
hair which ran riot in curls on her
forehead. Her eyebrows were pen
clled, and her round face was fair, with
pink cheeks. All, yes. Lot was pretty.
just the kind OF a girl to grace bright
company, and-just the kind of girl
Tod help her! to marry some young
farmer. But don't pity Lot. She
didn't marry q farmer, you see; but
she might have. With her small, ten
der muscles and her delicate physique,
she might have entangled herself with
rough, sturdy plowman, and MIXED
COWS and fed pigs till her joints were
all stiff, the pretty form that God
gave her bent low, and rheumatism
and apathy set in. But she didn't, as
have told you before. Lot was
pushing.
At last she thought she had
enough. | was half in love with
Lot myself; that is. as much as
she would allow me to be. So when
she started off I followed on; that is
why [ can describe ali her doings so
accurately. She went to g. manufact-
urlng town in New Hampshire, and
soon got q situation in the print
works to run q pantograph machine.
She was quick and alert, and in a few
days had mastered the work. It was
pretty to see her running the machine
over the pattern-at least the young
engravers seemed to think so-and [
noticed the bosses fingered longer over
her machine than the Others.
And then at noontime OF q stormy
day when Lot took her dinner, I
would hurry back to join her before
the bell rang. Some of the others
used to hurry back too.
RBut [ soon saw that Lot seemed
uneasy, as if all did not suit her. She
would loiter by the picture store win
dows and gaze longingly at the prints
and the one oil painting then there;
she seemed to be reaching out
for something else. 1t all ended
in Lot taking lessons in paint
ng. To crowd a painting lesson
into the short hour for dinner seemed
to me little too pushing; but Lot
well, you know, have said Lot was
pushing. However, she got on amaz-
1ngly we'll with her painting. She
sketched IN the evening with charcoal
any object or person in the room, bnd
sometimes the cat and the dog; and
then-do not tell it II think she did
q little bit at it on Sundays
How things would have gone at this
rate | cannot say, but, happily for
Lot, the manager came round one day
and spied her, and spoke a few words.
After that he came oftener into the
room where she worked. The upshot
OF it all was, he asked her to be his
wife. She told me the first. All along
/ had known that | could not have
Lot. had seen that she wouldn't
be satisfied with sewing on buttons
and babies-that she wanted to be
something in herself. And? Well,
when it came, did feel it badly, but
| had made up my mind to stand by
Lott
Very suddenly the manager decided
to go Europe. He had come from En-
gland but year Or two before; why
he should go back so soon they won
dered, for his engagement to Lot had
just been announced, and was the talk
OF the town. l tried to prevent Lot
from hearing what was said, but some
how she got hold of it-that he had
gone for good-and never had intended
to marry her. Shewas very sensitive,
was Lot. But she kept a stiff upper
lip, and think no one ever suspected
how she suffered. I knew. Her color
came deeper than ever; her eyes lust
shone like two stars, and the way she
worked that machine humming softly
to keep up her spirits I remember
the pattern she was tracing-the seed