Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1886-06-30
1ales aud Sketfhes.
JessIE's PARLoR..

An orchard, the branches heavy with
golden apples. here and there rudy
and at the foot Of the most richly laden
trees young girl. half-asleep, with an ILL
used book flung carelessly down. and ia
dolent white arms thrown above her pref
ty dark head.
Jessie! -
She made sleepy little movement. in
dicative of annoyance at being interrupt
ed in the middle of her s;esta.
Jessie, sayr'
Miss Jessie rose slowly. and picked up
her book. She was tall. straight girl,
of about eighteen years of age, with q
rather pale lace, and gray eyes, fringed
with long, black lashes. These eyes were
her greatest charm. A little white gate
divided the orchard from the garden. and
Jessie passed through it with exasperat
ing slowness.
"Was there ever such girl !" thought
her sister, her elder by twenty years, al
least--the daughter of her fathers frs
wife.
Caroline had loved her young step
mother. and when she died had tried tt
| take a mothers place to the tiny, dark
eyed baby she left behind but Jessie had
proved very troublesome charge.
WELL" said JESSIE" interrogatively
looking at Caroline standing in the door
way, with her sleeves tucked up, and her
stout arms covered with flour. "What i:
it Gardiner"
Come and move your rubbish out Of
the front ROOM"
What for?" asked Jessie, in undis
guised establishment.
because fathers going to let it to q
young fellow from London"
Jessie looked indignant. Her parlol
with the piano in it, to be let to some hor
rid man, and all her pretty belongings to
be banished to her little bedroom. Oh
it was too bad
Carrie" she said. ''how could you ad
wise father to do such thingp | never
thought we should have to take in lodg
ers I'd rather run away"
Where to ?" asked the rather matter.
of fact Caroline.
Jessie bit her lips, and went indoors to
remove her books and needlework from
the little parlGr that had been regarded as
entered her teens. 1t never occurred to
Miss Jessie that money was rather scarce
with her father just now, and that the
ledger would bring grist to the mill
She regarded the whole thing as con-
spiracy to make her unc> mf0rtable.
| They might have consulted her, she
thought, forgetting that she never
troubled herself in any way with the a.
fairs of the household. How she wished
she could have her piano carried up stairs
but that was impossible. 1t was the CHEZ
ornament OF the room, and her father she
knew, would not allow her to take i,
away.
Il shall hate him; know shall, "she
told herself, thinking of the ledger.
For the first two or three days she kept
carefully out of his way, and MIR. Leth
remained unconscious of the fact that he
was under the same root with a pretty
girl But he made the discovery one af-
terDoon. When wandering through the
orchard, with his hands behind his back
he came suddenly upon slight, girlish
figure, in brown holland, wide hat shad-
ing her eyes from the sun. Wonderful
eyes they were-so large and dark, and
utterly bewitching. She was gone like a
flash. but her image fingered in Mr..
Leith's memory.
He was not very laxative man, but he
began to cultivate Caroline Maybrick's ac-
quaintance, and soon found that the girl
in the brown holland dress was her sister.
He grew so friendly that Caroline ven
tured to ask him to take tea with them in
the kitchen one afternoon. The farmer
was quite willing, but Jessie objected
most strongly, and threatened not to come
in to tea at all.
BESIDE" she said, "what does gen
tleman want in a farmhouse kitchenP"
However, Mr.. Leith seemed very much
at home there, and delighted Caroline
and her father by his bright flashes of
wit. He did his best to please that after
noon, but was it only for the benefit of
the farmer and his elder daughter, or did
his eyes wander in the direction of Jessie's
slim figurep He could not understand
why it was that the girl always avoided
him. II she had wished to arouse his in
terest she could not have devised better
way. Her reserve piqued his curiosity
and he found her pretty lace coming be-
tween him and the rusty old pages of his
books.
Once he went for long walk and re-
turning home in the twilight, heard her at
the piano. and paused to listen; but she
caught sight of his figure outside the win
dow. and the music ceased in an instant.
When he entered the room he found it
empty, but little bow of ribbon lay on
the carpet. Mr.. Leith whistled, walked
to the door, closed it carefully, and then
picked up the ribbon bow with shame.
faced look. and actually kissed it. Then,
with fingers that trembled in most I'M
accountable way, he placed it in his pock-
it-book.
Your sister is shy he observed to
Caroline, later on.
at isn't that" with laugh, "but she
hasn't got over being turned out of her
room. 1t was hers, you know, before you
came. and she hated the idea of father
taking a lodger."
oh" said Mr.. Leith, considerably en-
lightened and next evening. as Jessie
was eating an apple in the orchard, the
enemy bore down on her before she could
beat retreat.
Miss jessie" he said, taking off his
hat, You must not run away. want to
speak to you"
"What is it?' asked Jessie coldly.
throwing her apple over the hedge.
She had no longer any appetite for it.
81 want to apologize for having uncon-
sciouslv taken possession of your little
parlor It makes me feel like an inter-