Maryland independent. [volume] (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1874-current, 1889-12-13
A WEDDING PRESENT.
BY HELEN FORREST GRAVES.

"Carrets, SOu1g man, if you ploaseP'
said Mrs Cackle
"What sort of carpets, ma'aml Mo
quette? WIlton3 We have some very de-
sirable importations of royal velvet
mo, brussels The cheapest thing
you have in brussels that is any way de-
cent"
Mrs. Cacke sat up on The eighth floor
CT NEEDLE S Minturn's great storc, her
silken hounces ripping around her am
PIE form, the bird-of paradise plume on
her hat nodding, as if to give extra sig
niticance to every word she spoke. Her
tan kid gloves gli'tening with many
buttons, were distended with rings; her
lace scarf was fastened with a gaudy
diamond-set bar, and her plump visa ge
bore the traces of pearl powder and
cream of roses, laid on with no sparing
hand.
Beside her sat her dear particular
friend, Miss Rosna RatTord, who al
ways played the part of Damon to her
Pythias, and invariably went shopping
with her.
"You see, Rosina," said Mrs. Cackle,
who was one Of the kind that talk very
loul in public places, and indulge in
all sorts of details, ''its for wedding
present Lemuel gave me check for
a hundred dollars, and told me to buy a
nice parlor carpet for his cousin, who is
to be marli,d next month"
'Mr. Cackle is always SO generous"
smiled M IS Rlfford, whose new set of
false teeth made her smiles very smiling
indeed. "a hundred dollars did you
say, dearl That will buy very nice
one, indeedl r
1T would. z said Mrs. CacKIe, TIT
was goose enough to buy it. But
don't mean to. Cackle's only a man,
and men never do understand things.
What do these ous-in the wilderness
people understand about carpets2 And
what do they want of the best gradel
No, young man, don't want any of
the dollar-and "a quarter lines. That's
too high. Haven't you any thing for
about dollar, or ninety cents. 1t
needn't be the very finest quality, tell
you. If l spend fifty dollars on it,
turning oaca more to Miss Rufford,
eth be all that is necessary, and the
extra sum I'll invest in a new satin gown
for myself. Ha, ha, hal Cackle is so
very close with his check book that
now AMI then l have to circumvent
him"
"You are so witty, DEAR" Uttered
Mss Rufforj.
Nothing under dollar and twelve
cents" shrilly repeated Miss Cackle.
a. the salesman came back again. II
couI' os: 81 p'gSg. 'j'iss. hat. Have
you no unstable ratterns-nothing
that nobody else will buy1 The people
that ! want this caip,t for are dread
fully old-fashioned, and never will
know the difference"
Oh, my dear. you are too funuyr
said Mis-, Rufford, behind her fan.
"We have one," hesitated the young
clerk-"a scarlet ground, with i'm
mense olive green pineapples all over
it. We haven't sold a yard off it.
Everybody seems afraid of it, and l
don't really think"
''Let me see it" said Mrs. Cackle,
promptly.
The porter presently wheeled up
roll on hand barrow; the
clerk unfolded its hideous glaring pro-
portions where, against a scarlet
ground, some monster vegetable en- :
twined itself among impossible scrolls.
"You see, ma'am. it is quite unsaIa-
ble," said the clerk. ''lIr. Meddle
was talking of donating it to the recep-
tion room of the Blink and Doddle
Orphan Asylum, at
''lt is little peculiar" said Mrs.
Cackle, eying it through her lorgnette.
"Quite-ahem what should call an
art carpet"
"oh, my dear Louisal" gigglod Miss
RuffOrd.
"But very striking" said Mrs.
Cackle.
"Quite SO, ma am" said the clerk,
spasmodically behind his
pocket handkerchief
"What viii you let me take it for1"
said Mrs. Cackle, in a business-like
way.
Eighty cents, ma'am," said the
clerk.
"Say seventy fve," spoke the custo-
mer.
ave couldn't, indeed, ms'am. 1t
cost us more than that to import it,"
"Tll take thirty yards" said Mrs.
Cackle "Let me see" calculating on |
the fat tan-colored fingers where the
rings bulged out so obtrusively), |
''naught's naught eight times naught's
that will come to twenty -four dollars,
won't it, young manl"