Morris tribune., 1886-11-24
CYRILLA AIMS ROMANCE.
Dem orest's Monthly.

Dem orest's Monthly:
"Cyrilla Ann,
eyes, ma am"
"Them windows must be cleaned to
day, and this mornin', too; Pm fairly
ashamed OF en-; they're so dirty
kin scarcely see through 'em. They
had orter been done last week."
Cyrilla Ann sighed when she thought
OF all that had been done "last week, "
and the greater, much the greater
part, by her own poor little hands,
which still bore the marks OF
many cuts, burns, scratches and
bruises in testimony thereof. The
carpets, had been taken UP, shaken
and laid again; the dining room and
parlor stoves taken down carried to
the garret, walls washed, furniture
polls ned, clothes closets rid OF every
thing pertaining to cold weather and
filled with things pertaining to warm,
and with all the rest the regular work
of the house had gone on much the
same as usual-cooking, washing,
ironing, sweeping, dustlng, scruhbing,
&C., &C., &c.
Why; Cyrilla Ann had not laid her
head on her pillow q single night Of the
six before II or II o'clock although
that same head had to be off the pill
low at half past sharp every morn
ing.
> The parlor windows could MT have
been squeezed into last weeks doings,
no matter what Mrs. Feeze choose to
think and say about it. And now the
weather had turned so very cold. An
icy wave, maliciously left behind by
grutf old winter to vex his successor,
and which had been prophesied for
several days, had come at last in ear
nest, and Cyrilla Ann dreaded those
windows. They were long and wide,
and she would be obliged to stand on
the old-fashioned balcony-the house
was a corner one and fully exposed to
Ehe extremely windy spring winds-to
10 the outside of them.
; Poor girl! / can't imagine how she
got through all the work of the Feeze
household-which was one of those
eXacting ones which demand more la
Dor than many twice their size-for
she was q small body, and did not
look very strong. But it was easy to
tell by the expression of her mouth
when she closed it firmly, as she often
did, that what Cyrilla Ann lacked in
strength she madeup in grit, and when
she had determined to do thing she'd
do it or die in the attempt. Besides
this firm mouth, Cyrilla Ann had O.
pair Of soft, gray eyes. with long,
dark, arched eyebrows, q nose
well, somewhat puggy, but not
at all unattractively so, and dimple
in her round chin for which many a
would have parted with
untold gold. This dimple was the
source Of the greatest vexation to her
mistress, Mrs. Feeze. That estimable
woman had no dimples, nor soft, gray
eyes, nor long, silken lashes, nor arch
ed eyebrows, nor funny little pugnose.
Her eyes were a cold, light blue. Her
ashes were short and scanty, and size
1idn't have sign of an eyebrow when
she forgot to make them with cray
On. Her nose was long and thin. So
vas her chin. And her mouth was
0ne of those straight lipless ones
hat seldom, if ever, open, to
say anything pleasant. Cyrilla AIMS
limple was the last straw that broke |
he cameTs back with Mrs. Feeze. |
She could by trying hard, endure in
silence whatever other claims the girl |
lad to prettiness, but the dimple was
;oo much. "If was a gal and had |
itch a ridiculous hole as that in my
hin, I'd filIlt up with putty if l couldn't
et rid of it no other way" she'd say,
When she couldn't find anything to
cold about. And then Cyrilla Ann
Or the life of her couldn't help smil-
ng, and the dimple would grow deep
n than ever, and Mrs. Feeze would
urn away with toss of the head
md contemptuous sniff.
Cyrllla Ann was an orphan. Mrs.
Feeze had taken her from the asylum
1hen she was only ten years old. Her
'wn daughter having married and left
they do say she was very
lad to go-she took Cyrilla Ann "to
ii the place left vacant in her heart
nd home" But heaven save the
mark! If all orphan girls taken to fill
carts and homes have to work as
ard and get as little for it as Cyrila
mn, they'd much prefer, am certain,
0 be hired as servants at regular
ages.
"Well, to go back to the parlor win
ows. Have 'em done by the time |
ct home from markit. You've moth
lg else to do but scour the knives,
nd bring up coal, and sift the ashes,
nd scrub the kitchen, and bake pan
f biscuit" said Mrs. Feeze. And hav-
,g already donned cloak and bonnet,
he drew on her woolen mittens and
eparted.
"Tll 60 at them right away, and
1en they'll be off my mind" declared
yrllla Ann, as she heard the street
oor close. And in a moment more
pstairs she went, carrying a pail of
ater, some soft, white cloths and an
Id newspaper, and going into the
oomy parlor, began briskly at the
indow nearest the stoop.
Now it happened that the young
IAN who had set up for himself in the
zoe business across the way about a
onth before, was at this very mo-
ent polishing the outside of his shop
indow, and, CHANGING to look in the
rection OF the opposite corner, he
nmediately spied Cyrilla Ann. 1t ,
ems he could see through Mrs. Feeze's
1rlor window if Mrs. Feeze couldn't.
nd what does the young man do
1T turn the key in the shop door,
Ill ii out of the lock, drop it into !
s pocket, rush across the street and
, on that balcony, carrying with
m big, wet sponge and a big
y chamois. "It's too cold for
'u to come out here" he called
rough the glass, putting his face so
ose to it that it there had been no
lne there you would have sworn he t
as kissing the gray eyed maid. "Pn t
, the outside. l won't be a minute"
Cyrilla Ann blushed. She blushed q
ooh, no." she began. pa- i