The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1886-03-05
STELLA MAKES A hit
Her Striking Song, little Birdie
on the Tree"

If had been caught in such a situa-
ton by anybody but John Benton 1
should have been terribly annoyed.
There / was on the floor of the nursery,
with hair tumbled, my face red and
sticky with candy and a great rent
across the front breadth of my overskirt,
where it had been caught by nail a
few minutes before during a fierce
blind-man' s-buff scrimmage. My little
sister Alice was having birthday par
ty and of course had to assist in enter
tanning the guests. They were just
twelve, seven boys and five girls. Sup
per was over (every body was too ex-
cited to sit long at the table, and we
all retired to the nursery Mt the top of
the house, where there were no restric-
tions as to noise, and where the seven
boys exercised their shouting franchise
to the utmost, assisted in more sub
dued way by the five girls, the youngest
a wee little thing of four years, who
had insisted on sharing her stick of
candy with me.
When John Benton tapped at the
door l said Come in, carclessly,
supposing it was a servant
Il beg your pardon, Miss Latour
They said / should find you here. But
perhaps / have made some mistake"
mot at all, Mr.. Benton" said /, as
/ scrambled to my feet. eve are
pleased to see you. Sit down on-on
the piano stool. The chairs have been
taken into the other room. We have
been playing blind mans buff. -
~
on Mr.. Benton, taking an envelope
from his pocket and reading from the
gilt-edged card within: Miss Latour
requests the pleasure of your company
on Tuesday, December 20, at five
o'clock
looked reproachfully at my seven
year-old sister Alice. She had sent
one of her printed invitations, in
which the printer had neglected to in
sert the name alice" to John Ben
ton, and the great BOBBY has taken it
for granted that l was the Miss LatOur.
So he had come, without even sendslg
m acceptance to herald his approach,
in full dress, with a great expanse OF
white shirt-bosom, white necktie, and
yes, am sure of this hair crimped.
A nice contrast to my torn dress and
dishevelled hair!
'Well, l am glad you have come,
though / suppose this is not exactly
the kind of gathering you expected to
find, is it?''
/ did not care much what I said to
John Benton. Ever since l had met
him ut the Warren's ball three months
ago, when he insisted on dancing with
me three times in the course of the
evening, and trod on my toes each
time, my brothers all declared that he
was in love with me, but was too bash
full to tell me. l often met him, and
though | am sure 1 am not an awe.
inspiring parsonage, / could not helI
seeing that he was never at ease in my
presence. Not that he was backward
where men were concerned. My
brother took me to the Oil Exchange
one morning, and the first thing | saw
was John Benton, with his hat on the
back of his head, grasping brass rail
ing with one hand and shaking the
other, holding some papers, in the face
of a savage-looking man, and shouting
at the top of his voice in the most de-
tiant manner. Will said the savage
looking man was a bear, and that Mr.
Benton was a bull. Then Mr.. Benton
caught sight of me, and came and
suffered and stayed with me for ter
minutes. Will told me afterward that
in that ten minutes the market dropped
nearly a cent, and Mr.. Benton lost q
thousand dollars.
But it was evident that Mr.. Benton
was not thinking about the market as
he walked over to the piano-stool in
his dress-coat and white necktie, and
sat there, with one of the most sheep
ish smiles l ever saw on a young man S
tace.
Now, Lou, YOU must sit down on
the floor again, so that we can play
forfeits," said my tyrannical sister
Alice. "And you too, Mr.. Benton.
Come on"
John Benton blushed and looked al
me.
1--WE shall have to obey, am afraid,
Mr.. Benton, l said. but you can sit
on the piano-stool, if YOU prefer it.
"Oh, but l don't, Miss Latour. AL
low me to assist YOU toto sit down. -
And he actually tried to make a
courtly proceeding of depositing me on
the floor, as if it could be anything
but ridiculous, however il was effected.
Then he sat down himself, with little
Stella, the four-year-old mite, between
us, and the game of forfeits went on.
Most of the penalties were in the shape
of kisses, and felt nervous until my
turn came Alice nelu the 1Or1eltS over
the head of a particular friend of hers,
a girl of her own age, and it was the
duty of the latter to say what should be
required of the owner of the article.
There was my handkerchief! l am
ashamed to say that my heart beat
quickly when Alice repeated the famil-
lar nursery jargon: Heavy, heavy,
what hangs over, etc, and it fairly
jumped when Alice, with mischievous
glance at Mr.. Benton and myself,
stopped and whispered to her friend.
Then she went on with the question;
''What shall be done with the ownerP''
Clear-cut and distinct came the an
swer: "She shall kiss Mr.. Benton"
'sOh. it's LouA-it's LouV' shouted
Alice. and amid the tempest of laughter
Mr. Benton sat looking straight before
him with a crimson face. while he
fumbled at his white necktie until the
bow was under his left ear.
There was a silence, as every body ex.
cept Mr., Benton looked at me 70 see