Western appeal. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1885-18??, 1888-02-11
''HE.''
What the Telephone Revealed to
Aunt Sophronia.

AuuU SOpnTCQ1as
John King lived three miles out of the
town Of Stanton, in the country. He was a
bright young fellow, who owned a pro-
ductlve farm, with all the stock his acres
could feed, and pleasant old house; vet
ne found it hard to persuade pretty Martha
Carter to marry him. She liked him; he
had coaxed that confession from her own
rosy lips, but she was young, gay, very
fond Of society and the only Child Of o
widow; it was the old Tilt,
" Gamma leave my nanny YETI
and John King, who was ten times as much
in love with her as she with him, was
well-nigh distracted. AS his Aunt Sophro-
MIA, maiden lady who kept house for him,
said:
''He amt good for nothin'. 1 wish't he
was married an done whit, and was
safe back to Elnathau's. He don't remem-
Der nothin'. I send in to Stanton by him for
such things as is needtul to keep the house
agoiu', and he don't never fetch one of
them, without I set to and give him q writ
out list and pin it onto his coat. Nor he
don't care nothin' about the critters; Hiram
has to do the hull ont; and to leave costly
critters like them to hired help amt what
man had ought to do. Not but what Eli
is real reliable, but John don't take no
interest, not a mitep'
1t was all true John was good for no
sort OF work as long as Mary Carter turned
the cold shoulder to him; but after year
or persistent counting she began to show a
geutler Countenance to her devoted lover:
he began to hope.
About that time telephone company set
up its office at Stanton. and sent its spider
threads all abroad over the surrounding
country; and it struck John Stanton that
here was another way to make his home
attractive to Matty. By this invention he
could establish communication every hour
with the village, even oftener if it was
needed; so that she need not be so separated
from her mother as she had dreadeo-Mrs
Carter being wise enough to refuse home
with her son-in-laW.
So John had telephone put into the
''leepn'- room'' of the farmhouse, and
told Matte the very next Sunday night
that whenever she made up her mind to ac-
cept him he would place one in her moth
er's parlOr, so they could talk together
whenever they liked.
It was not SO much this expensive atten-
ton that softened the little beauty's heart
as the proof gave of Johns eagerness to
do every thing and any thing for her CON-
fort or pleasure, and, as she was more ambi-
tious aud selfish than affectionate, she be-
gan to feel that it was agreea bic to be a
queen.
However, this is not a love story. Matty
is only introduced to account for the tele-
phone. Now, about two miles beyond John
King there lived a family of Millers, con-
sisting Of two elderly men, Aaron and
Joseph Miller. and woman a little older
than either of them, as their housekeeper.
These men were farmers, but they had
had thrown dam across wild brook that
crossed their farm just where it dashed
through small deep valley, and. obtain
ing good water power, had built grist
and saw mill, which brought them in more
money than all the rest Of the farm.
Miss SOphronia Perkins, John Kings
aunt, whom we have already mentioned,
hated these neighbors thoroughly; what
reason or unreason there was for this feel
ing on her part, nobody knew; but there
was enough in the outward aspect Of the
men to account for a rational measure of
dislike in any woman; they were tall, stur-
dy fellows, dark Of skin, rough, surly and
dirty always stingy with their money, IN.
social in their manners, and the woman
who worked for them had an unsavory
reputation.
The Miller farm, lying far back from the
high-road behind black hemlock grove.
on plateau half way up certain rugged
hills, was the sort of place a novelist
would select for robbery or murder, so
adapted was the mise en- scene to suggest
such ideas, and so fit was the aspect of the
two Millers to their place of abode
But there are many just such men and
inst such desolate farm-houses in New
England, and no crime worse than greed
and selfshness enters their hearts or
homes.
The Miller brothers were proverballv
''near;" but no one except Sophronia Per-
kins ever imagined any harm OF them.
They were "curus actin creturs.n or
'smart at sixpences;" nothing worse was
laid to their charge.
When Aaron Miller heard that John
King had put in telephone, he saw d.
rectly the advantage the instrument would
be to them In their daily increasing bust
ness, and after due consideration with Joe
the Wire was extended to their mill, and
proved daily convenience; for they had
-four and feed store in Stanton which
Joseph attended to, going in early every
morning and driving back at night. Now
he could send out orders to Aaron as soon
at the station of grain for their grinding.
or transact directly any matter of bust
ness heretofore necessarily delayed till he
reached the farm at evening
After the telephone was put in at John
Kings, Miss Sophronia found it great
Iolace to her loneliness nightly enjoying
the few moments of daily gossip with her
friends in the village who happened to be
possessed of an instrument. In fact, it
was to her like new toy to solitary
child, and when the line was extended to
Millers' Mills, and she learned their call,
she used her listener for the unworthy
purpose Of listening to her neighbors' az
fairs.
own that this was neither an honest
nor an honorable proceeding on sophro
MAS part. onot mean to apologize for
it but, as the papers say, there were EEK