The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1890-06-26
The dining.room. .,that you'd like to be

the dining.room, "that you'd like to be
a missionary"
| confessed TO having had in my
younger days a vague aspiration in that
! direction.
"oh, think il would be beautiful"
said the girl, ''Jason's been tellin' me
about an island he's been to; they were
shipwrecked there; that's why he was
gone so long, an the people are all
heather. ] told Jason it was shame
somebody didn't go out there an teach
EN-, DO you s'pose a sailors wife would
have any chance to do that sort of work,
ma'aml You know sometimes the ships
stop there for water"
Before i could answer her, John
called to me from his sanctum, and the
subject dill not come up again, but
guessing the trend of AIMS thoughts, I
began to school myself to the thought of
losing her.
A day or two later, however, the girl
came back from Owl Rock alone.
"He's gone, ma'am," she announced,
gravely.
"Gone!" I cried, "Why, Ann, I
thought you We're going to marry him."
Ann shook her head. "No, m; I
can't. He's too worldly minded. He
smokes, an always when he's ashore he
wants to wear-starched buzsoms.
''But what Of that, Ann, if you love
him." l said,
AIMS chin began to CULVER; it was a
pretty, sensitive chin. "That's Just it,
ma'am; love him too WE'LL" she said,
brokenly. ~ don't dare. Pm afraid he'd
be stumblin' block to me-"
There was nothing more to be said.
Jason had sailed that afternoon; aud
there the matter rested.
We had expected to go back to town
in the fall, but John became so infatuated
with this "calm retreat" that we decided
ITO take the house for another year, and
to our supreme satisfaction Ann agreed
to remain with us.
Meanwhile Cousin Helen had made us
another visit, aud Ann, though she still
grieyed that any one so good and lovable
las Miss Helen should be guilty of wear
ling flounces, became again her ardent
admirer. In fact, so great was Helen's
influence over her that she eventually
prevailed upon her to wear white apron
and q linen collar. The improvement
made in her appearance by these simple
adjuncts was delight to the eye, and
though at first she wore them, evidently
under protest, regarding them still as
"vanities of the world" her love for
Helen finally conquered all scruples, and
the apron and collar came to be regarded
as an indispensable part of her toilette.
| Jason had gone on ten months
cruise, and as the time drew near for the
ships return, Ann grew restless and alb
sent-minded. She went oftener to Owl
Rock, aud more than once she became so
absorbed in watching the far-otf sails as
to forget when five o'clock came. Some.
times she would wander back to the
rock after tea, and SIT there during the
twilight.
| This went on for several weeks, and
then one morning she blushingly in
formed me that Jason was home again.
'.But you ought not to let him keep
on coming to see you, Ann" said, ''if
you are not going to marry him"
"But perhaps can do him some good,
ma'am," said the girl, gravely. 'He
hasn't any folks of his own, you know,
to help him"
Poor deluded Ann. A week or two
later, with much hesitation and embar-
rassment, she succeeded in telling me
that she had renewed her promise to
Jason.
"And you are really going to marry
him, Anna" exclaimed, sorry chiefly on
my own account.
swell, you see, ma'am, he's agreed to
give up smokin', an'-an'-"
| ';And starched bosoms9" I ventured to
add, hoping to help her out.
"WelI, no'm," said Anu, in waver-
ing voice. "Maybe I've been too yieldin',
but seem I've taken to wearin' starched
collars, it don't seem more'n fair for for
me to give in to his wearin' starched
buzoms."
Consequently few weeks later we lost
our faithful Ann.-Harper's Bazar.