Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1886-07-16

on Indifferent topics. At last Mrs. Lons
says, with apparent carelessness: Chow
does it happen that your mother and yoU
have not called on my niece7'
Sallie colOrs and hangs her head, un,
provided with an answer. "People say
she is Japanese, and l suppose they
feel shy" is the awkward excuse she
manages to get out presently.
''She is no more japanese than YOU
are, says Mrs. Long, looking at the blue
eyes before her with a laugh. "She
came from the South, and never was in
japan in her life"
"Oh," says Sallie, overcome with
terror at the idea of the false tales she
has been spreading.
"Your information throws some light
on the matter, but there is more in it
than that, " Mrs. Long says. "However,
that is very well for beginning. And
now go, giving her a good-natured lit
tie push, ''an1 the next time be sure
your wonderful stories have some foun-
dation in fact"
Meanwhile some darker and more disa-
greeable hints have reached Mr.. Conrad,
and he determines to trace them to their
source. 81 will have a settlement with
Black tomorrow" he says to himself,
having reached that point in his re-
searches. But Mr.. Black, having been
apprised that Mr.. Conrad wishes to see
him, wisely takes an early train the next
morning, and when wanted is not to be
found.
The unfortunate Brown is left to de-
fend himself as he may, a ID finally makes
a clean bre ist of it. Il did not mean
anything but bit of fun, " he says, peni-
teatly, seeing that Mr.. Conrad is really
reused.
Fun at the expense of a lady and a
stranger is hardly in good taste, Mr..
Brown, and | shall be obliged to you if
you will take as much pains to put the
matter straight before the pubic; it has
quite sufficiently disagreeable conse-
quences already for my wife, to say moth
ing of myself. To enable you to do so,
l will give you brief account of my
private history. accepted for two years
position as professor in a college in
Japan. After tie expiration of my
term l preferred to return to this coun-
try, and during visit to New Orleans
met and married my wife, who was a
Miss Penelope La Fargo, and has never
seen japan in her life, She has a French
ancestry, as her name shows"
81 beg a thousand pardons," said
poor Mr.. Brown, and retired much crest
fallen.
Mr.. Conrad returned home, and with
much laughter told the joke to his wife.
"Do get into the corner, Pen, and 1T
me fe. d you with the chopstIck"--play-
fully pushing her with a billiard cue (the
table now having arrived). "a chop
stick of this size is great convenience,
for can readily put one end into the
rice pot on the kitchen fire, and so give
you your dinner smoking hot"
After this Bromley devoted itself to
making amends for its past GOODNESS, and
Professor and Mrs. Conrad were over
whelmed with invitations and attentions.
every pleasant, sociable people," was
the favorable verdict, and Mrs Long de-
clare1 that such ''popu ar" relations were
quite nuisance. The japanese joke
was a good story, which the Conrads re-
served for their friends at distance, for
the Bromley people were little shy Of
references to the matter. They, how
ever, took much interest in Mr. Conrad's
experiences in that country, and by the
time he left, nearly every one, down to
little Jimmy Parker, was quite we'll in
formed on the subject. -LeigA North, in
HarpeI'S Bdzar.