Little Falls transcript., 1886-04-16
AFTER MANY DA US.

HI 81 Al Al LII NAM i la lGs
When Twas . young fellow lived or
father's farm, down.there in Connecti
! cut. You've seen the place. The
church was near the tavern, and be
hind the church was the parsonage
8 and there lived Dominic Wheeler and
y his daughter Dolly. On Saturdays
} after | had my supper, used to dress
myself. and tell my mother that
meant to call on Dominic Wheeler's
folks. Mother generally answered
that couldn't do better; that the
dominie's conversation was sure to be
improving. and that Dolly was not
"hity-tity, like some gals she could
mention" ,'M& ~.
Father would aou: "and pretty
title cottage, too" And armed with
parental approval, I would go to the
parsonage. r. ,~ '..&
" 1t was q good time to 30, for the ser.
anon had to be finished, as q general
thing, on that evening, and Dolly and
1had delightful long talks in those sol.
itary moments, and one evening ]
proposed to Dolly, and she accepted
me. The dominic gave us his blessing,
father and mother said they could not
have chosen q daughter-in-law to suit
them better, and all they asked was
that we should wait a little while.
MY daughter is not seventeen years
old yet," said the dominic. 'You
must not bo in a hurry to take her
from mes''
"Wait two years, and you will be
three and twenty, and I'll give you
the river farm and build you a house. u
said father.
Our course of true love seemed to
be running very smooth, indeed, and
lwould have staked my life and soul,
Il pretty heavy stake, on my constan-
cy. But, somehow, I think Satan
thoug ut we were too happy, and laid a
trap for me.
DIR. Robins widow, q managing
woman with big house, was in the
habit OF taking summer boarders, and
every year q lot OF city strangers
wondered about the place from June
t6'September.
When Dolly and I had been engaged
about q year and half, the widow
had thirty boarders in her house, and
Ike and Edwin and all the male help
slept in the barn.
There was one young lady there, a
Miss Sally Grey, so pretty that every
one who saw her was talking about it.
And was introduced to her. Some
women have q way Of making man
act against his better Judgment. She
was one Of them. did not mean to
hirt with her, but I did. I did not
mean to meet her in shady lanes, and
IN the quiet wood paths, but we met.
She knew 4 suppose Ike Robins had
told her) about my engagement, and
she teased me about being afraid OF
my sweetheart.
"such q good, prina little thing" :"
she would say. ''Is she dreadfuily
shocked at me? Does she think I am
hlrt? Does she pray for me in meet
felt angry, but yet was piqued
into proving myselffree to do as liked. .
At little evening party to which
we were asked I danced five dances
with her, and when, at last, my con-
science smote me, and I went to look
for Dolly, found she had gone home.
"She said her pa wanted her," said
Mrs. Robins, but tell you plainly,
James Gardener, I don't believe it;
and for my part don't see what peo-
pie can find to admire in that impu-
dent New York girl. If my %Tilly be-
haved like her I'd shut her up on
bread and water until she reformed"
hurried away, but the parsonage
was shut up when I got there, and I
spent an hour walking up and down
before the house, staring at the dark
windows.
next evening, and went over to the
parsonage very early, but Dolly was
not there.
"She's gone to spend the evening
somewhere" said the dominic, kindly.
II suppose she forgot to leave word
for you to come for her. She isn't
very we'll, either; a cold, I suppose. l
know Igenerally caught cold at q party
when was young and attended such
entertainments. hope she'll be care
tul. Her poor mother died of con-
sumption.
My heart gave q great leap:
thought Of Dolly i'll, dying, even
dead, and l went out into the Kitchen
TO ask the servant if Dolly left any
message for me.
"She said she wouldn't be home TO-
night answered Nora; sat least this
evening, mean, and she did not leave
word where she was gone"
Nora understood, I saw. I felt ter
ribly injured, and made up my mind
to revenge myself by spending the
evening with Sally Gray.
She was at home, the servant girl
said, and I found her waiting in the
parlor for me. Wehad it to ourselves.
Mrs. Robins never came in, nor any
of the other boarders; indeed, it was
now growing late in the season, and
they were almost all gone away. If l
never knew how TO hirt before, Sally
Gray taught me how that night, and
when I took leave of her was i'm
pudent enough to tell hsr I should
like to kiss her. ,. "
"Do it, ii you DESIRE" said she. p.
And then! Yes, kissed her; and as
/ did it the door opened, and we start
ed apart, and there stood Dolly She
had seen it all. ~. :
II left my bonnet here" she said,
"sMr. Isaac is going home with me, and