The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1889-02-06
their native element. until Miss Julia in

despair of reaching q satisfactory settle'
ment under her mothers wing, had the
good sense to leave the home coop and
do little cackling for herself, or IN
other words, to make dear friend o
Summer visit, and by this means she
succeeded in hooking very presentaDle
fish.
True he was not whale, either tinan-
cially or socially, but a good enough
young man with whom Julia was as deS-
perately in love, as she had been with
ten or a dozen more eligible predeces'
sors, who might have come to the pro-
posing point had not Miss Clutterby been
so anxious to say YES"
Mrs. Clutterby was delighted. Any
one who had good taste and sound sense
enough to love her Julia commended
himself to her without further qualitica-
tons, and if she had any misgivings in
regard to wealth and station she hid
them skillfully under tremendous
f1uffing and bridllng over the wedding
arrangement which she calculated with
a view to bringing in the greatest posi-
BILE returns for the least expenditure.
Like the proverbial ostrich which
hides its head in the sand, Mrs. Clutter
by imagined that no one but herself
would know this, but society is lynx
eyed, and the air was thick with sly
hints and knowing remarks as the time
drew near. =,
"Going to the Clutterby wedding, old
chapple9' and Captain Parmalee clapped
q fellow exquisite on the shoulder.
SAW, yes, Cap, doocid unpleasant,
don cher know, but the truth is, l came
within an inch of getting in the bride
groom's place meself, old boy. Thought
the old lady had me hooked sure, and
out of gratitude, you know, Cap"
and he winked suggestively.
$50 your wedding present will be a
sort of thank offering, ehl' laughed the
Captain. "What is it to be?"
"'Pon my soul, I don't know. Some
sort O. silver trumpery, l suppose.
Dreadful boah anyhow
"Miss Julia limited pretty strongly
toward French clock" said the Cap
tain.
"Just the thing, Cap. I've got gilt
Wattlewap that l drew in lottery. It's
snowy enough on the outside, but it
couldn't run day to save the nation.
Wouldn't it be good one for all the
fellahs to take clocks" aud the facetlous
young men poked each other in the ribs
with their elbows.
"Isn't it shame those Clutterbys have
sighted the Greens and the Cottrells in
giving out their invitationsS" said Miss
Blanch Newcombe. "Such old friends
and neighbors, and just because they are
poor and not crushingly stylish"
"And the Oglesbys who have just
come to town and scarcely know the
Clutterbys by sight have cards" "lejoined
the friend to whom she was speaking.
81 declare it's disgusting to see such a
barefaced begging for presents
"It would serve them right if we all
sent regrets and bangle board" re-
piled Miss Blanche.
"But confess to a curiosity to see
how the affair goes off," hastily replied
the friend.
There is q peculiar fascination about
wedding which does not pertain to any
other form of entertainment, and how
ever presuming or uninteresting the
parties may be, people will 60 from
motives of curiosity if no other. So the
Clutterby parlors were we'll filled on tho
wedding morning with curlously
assorted crowd, out of which perhaps
halt q dozen cared rye straw whether
Miss Julia's matrimonial bark anchored
in safe harbor or in divorce court.
"Oh, you dear, sweet thing, how per.
fectly lovely you do look this morning."
gushed Miss Blanche after the ceremony.
fand what charming company you
have" her eyes lighting on the four
Misses Allen ranged in mathematical
precision against the wall; they had
dubbed together, contrary to all pre-
cedent, and sent pair CT antique vases,
costly but intensely ugly, to Mrs.
Clutterby's horror and Julia's wrath; in
deed, they might have sat directly in
front of her in their primmest row and
she could not have smiled, she was so
thoroughly angry.
"And so lovely of you to remember
me with that charming-,m-er-er."
Miss Julia's memory gave her the slip,
and she could not have told for her life
whether Miss Blanche mad given her a
china poodle dog or house and lot.
"Have you seen the wedding presents,
Miss Blanches" and Mrs. Clutterby
swooped down to the rescue with cluck
and a flutter as Miss Julia's face was
turning q most uncomfortable red.
"Such beautiful gifts. had no idea
my daughsar had so many friends of
taste and generosity"
There were rows on rows of vases In
various sizes and shapes of ugliness, pie
knives, fish knives and other silverware
in odd patterns, enough to stock coun.
try jewelry store. and, conspicuous
among them, eight clocks of painfully
uniform style, the only things in the
whole collection which did not match
at all, and though Mrs. Clutterby's heart
was sinking with disappointment. she
kept up rattling fire of admiration for
the benefit of other guests who were
looking them over, and whose gifts were
included IN the display. The only
sensible and thoughtful gift in the lot
was an assortment of table linen, pres
ent from a maiden aunt whom Mrs.
Clutterby had been too stylish to invite.
Not poor relation precisely, but a very
eccentric and old-fashioned one, and the
line eff exclusion had been sharply drawn
when her name was proposed.
The bridegroom ambled about on his
wife's arm perfect sample Of nonenity,
as the majority of bridegrooms are upon
such occasions, and very red and un-
comfortable one in this case.
Fifty-nine times he remarked that the
day was delightfully."- cool one, though