The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1886-08-13
SELECT STORY.
LOVE ON A TOBOGGAN.


no, marry my niece
can't | tell you, madam, will, if
car.
"She is engaged to my son Tom
"Shc is engaged to me, and | dom
icae II snap of my finger for your sor
| Tom
'Sir, your language is ungente
manly"
Nladam, so is yours
We were b,th at white heats Mrs
Jupp, the aunt and legal guardian of
my adored Julia, positively trembled
with rage, and looked round the room
as if in search of some weapon with
which to attack me. She was large
and stout, had a deep bass voice and
hideous, wiry curls, and wore glasses
of such an intense magnifJing power
that she seemed to be always garing
at one like hungry Gorgon (by the
way, what is Gorgon p, and could
drive men away from the vicinity of
her niece-my dear lullaby simply
favoring them with stony stare, as
fixed and awful as that of the Sphinx.
"Leave my house, sir, she said at last,
rising and pointing to the door, with a
very fine dramatic action. Anger is
more becoming to large, stout wo-
man than to a small one-unless she
gets red in the face.
81 will not 60 until you give me
some better reasons for the stand you
take in this matter"
81 have told you once she is en-
gag, d to my SON.
II don't believe it," | said boldly,
though perhaps rudely; but my lovely
Julia was reflected in a distant mirror,
smiling at me and shaking her head,
and l was reckless. Mrs. Jupp gasped
and if a magniied glance from her
glaring eyes could have killed me l
would have died on the spot.
"Mr. Edgerton, il my son were
here"
"Confound your SOM" said I. l
really used much stronger word, for
getting for the moment where | was.
l am not quite certain what hit me,
but think it was footstool, as l after
ward found a gilded claw-common to
that article of furniture-in my coat
pocket. A man servant, whom l had
often fed in other days, picked me up
and escorted me to the door, murmur-
ing sympathetically the while that "To
be sure, Mrs. Jupp was leetle uncer-
tain at times" Uncertain There is
nothing uncertain about her. | am
small man, and tremendous bump on
my forehead is conspicuous, nor is one
black eye becoming to any one; so
skunk down the street like criminal,
vowing vengeance against the old ty. |
rant in pNtticoats, who only wanted |
Julia to marry her son in order to keep
her in the family, for Julia was quite
an heiress, though of course that fact |
had no weight with me.
Business of some kind had brought |
Mrs. Jupp to st. Paul, and there she
took house and established herself |
with her lovely niece for the Winter.
In the first stages of my acquaintance
| was of much service to the lady and |
ran about and did her miserable er-
rands for her like born idiot. | also |
had every opportunity of falling in love
with her niece, and this l did as rapid
ly as possible and with such success
that in two months from their arrival |
| announced our engagement to her
aunt with the above described result,
though it must be understood that | |
have only given the termination of
my negotiations the preliminaries be-
ing tame and uninteresting, The next |
day l spent in my room trying expert
ments with raw beef as applied to a
black eye, and nursing various schemes
of vengeance and the lump on my
forehead at the same time.
The day following | ventured down
to my office, and from there sent an
note to my darling Julia
a note filled with despair, VOWS of
eternal love and appropriate quotations.
My note was returned by the grinning
ofiice-boy, who said the old lady had
opened it in his presence and read it
aloud, and told him to take it back to
that little fool meaning me-and
added that she would box his-the
said boy's-ears if he ever brought
another. During the day friend
called IN, and, after some stupid drivel
which almost drove me crazy, said,
apropos of nothing; "By the way, |
called on the Jupps last night, Old
lady says they leave here Saturday |
and are going to straight to Europe.
Didn't see the fair Julia; always |
thought you were little smitten there,
you know
Smitten Yes, by both of them,
II the fool only knew that he was sit.
ting, 30 to speak, on volcano he
might go away, He did go away at
last, but ! relieved my feelings by |
throwing the inkstand into the fire
place and kicking the waste basket all |
around the room. Leave Saturday.
Good heavens, and this was Friday |
| began to wonder if the water in the |
was very cold-supposing |
ona oould ont q hola in tho ioa-or Is