The Lebanon express. (Lebanon, Linn County, Or.) 1887-1898, 1890-12-05
LOTTIE DEANE'S MISTAKE.

lUl lit UtANt'S MlSlAkt.
Mr.. Ross Deane was thriving young
surveyor and auctioneer in a large
country town.
Que day Mrs. Ross Deane was mend
Ing her husbands Office coat aud sing
ing eherrily over her task. She was q
pretty little woman. with pink cheeks
and wavy fair hair and great blue eyes.
sunny and innocent in expression as a
little ehiId's. Ii her mouth was trilie
large. nobody ever noticed IL for adj
miring the scarlet lips aud white teeth
that CLEANED out when she smiled.
which was not seldom. for she was a
merry little body. as sparkling and
sunsiIiny as IL she'd never care ia the
world.
Aud really. when you come to think
about 1t, her cares were very few. aud
her pleasures many. Hadn't sire the
handsomest and dearest husband in the
world who pitted aud humored her to
her hearts content? IL is very queer
the fondness some women have for be-
ing peliefi. It's rather cat-like trait.
this liking TO lee purrsd aud eoddIed SO
much. Then she hal he sweetest love
of baby: but that was rather a part
nership eopcern--tiiere we're grand
parents aud auais iunufaerable, who
PM ia y claim lo ha!iY. In say nothing
of The little ones father; while her
handsome Ross was all Ter own indi-
yidual property.
IL least she thought be was. till she
very unwisriy undertook 10 mend that
ofliee coat uf his. She had pouneed
upon il thai morning. wien previous
to sbopping expedition. she had
penetrated to iiis office at the back of
the houSe-beug in want of more
meuey---ai,H ii;itl eonfiseatcd it directly.
| declaring that il was shame for any
| bosIy 10 wear such IA dilapidated ar
rangement. anil her husband shouldn't
do il another ,Iav. so therel
There was only one more pocket 10
| look after now. and then the tiresome
jnb would be done. Caroling a merry
little roundelay, size turned il in&de
out. The song died on her lips as a
tiny scented envelope dropped out and
iiutteretl TO the fuor. She stopped To
pick it mp. and. noticing the feminine
handwriting on the outside, opened it
| of course. but with an odd misgiyine
at her heart regarding the act. never
/ theiess.
Perhaps she had better not have
opened il. | won't undertake TO sas
| whether il was best or not; but | al
| WAYS believed that where Ignorance
was bliss it was exceedingly foolish to
become enlightened of your own free
| will. as this child WAS doing. for thi.
/ was what she read:
/ DEAR Mr. DEASE: OF course you will b.
at the masquerade to-morrow evening.
| won't tell you what character shall assume
but IL you were TO year pink domino with
white rose Ia your biittosi-isoie. and you wer'
20 meet another pins dufnlao with red rosa
BELLE
Bad enongh-or not-just as ons
chose TO take il. Mrs. Deane knew
well enough who wrote it--knew tina
the letter wasn't really haif SO bad a
1t sounded. Still il was proof that tbs
fi,rtation-which Mrs. Deaue bad here
tofore believed 10 itt. carried on chiefly
bv Miss Belle--was going altogether
too far TO be pleasant To the looker-or
when the looker-on happeued TO bs
the wife OF one of the parties
As long as Miss Belle Preston made
eyes at handsome Ross Deane. only Il
he carelessly battered IN return by him
and afterwards laughed at alike by botl
Mr.. and Mrs. Deane. it was very little
the latter cared about il. She calles
the girl goose to herself, was politely
cordial to her before folks. and neve
gave the matter another thought.
Miss Preston was goose. of course
but quite a pretty. winning little goos'
after all. She was rather lashing il
her ways-smcked cigarettes. taike,
slanU-both of which Mrs. Preston par
ticularly detested--and tried to ape th
, manners generally of the Inaseulin
half of creation. OF course she made
} failure of it, but men are remarkabl
r tolerant of bright, saucv, hiack-eyei
, failures of the Belle Preston kind; an
so they laughed Mt her little. bu
fiatter her great deal more. and no
! a few fell in love with her continually
But Mrs. Deane did not choose tina
: her husband should be caught in th
tolls of siren like this; aud she wa
properly indignant "A .n'liug that th
two were on familiar terms enough f0
{ notes to pass between them-and sue
. notes. too.
THE bold thing-to ask anothe
, woman's husband To come to the mas
{ querade to inert her-she ought to b
| ashamed of her>eli! muttered Mrs
Ross Deane angriiy. '.And he. tor
after pretending to me t;i;tt he tnouga
she was horrid-I hate himin and sh
SIafnDcO neT little lOOl. anu SuOS4uc
5 into fit of the suiks.
: But her nature was too healthy
:. permit Il long indulgence in feeling
of that kind; so. before long. she foun
n herself wondering what she would
q about it. Was she going to sit sti
I I and let this woman win away her hu
! band without an effort on her part
e prevent it? Not she She would 9
to this masquerade he. self. What 81
r would do there she hadn't fully dete
; mined upon. She would wear a pin
s domino and carry red rose in h,
T hand; and if Ross Deane s;sould happe
2 ! to mistake her for the fascinating NJ:
: Preston-why. how could she help i
' Any way, she knew she wouldn't II
t to help it. Let him blunder il he like
a she didn't care.
Her mind once made up, she look'
to see where the note was dated
;. was written the day before she -four
). it, so that the masquerade was TO
"a that very evening. No time was to
10 lost, evidently. if she wanted to atten
Ie They had received cards several da
before, but Ross had declared himst
5. averse to going. and Sc Mrs Deal
l. had thought no more about it. Ne
IS she saw his decision in different liz
He didn't want ME 10 go. she
4 INJURED to herself, ..and he thou
D. could make some excuse to
| this evening. so that / neeT