Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1890-09-29
A Lady From the Country.

sun. and Mrs. Rufford, seated on her
front porch with the cat in her lap,
bordering on many things. She was
a plump-faced, specialized little old
lady, with blue eyes and pretty,
"kissable" mouth, like a grown up
Guilds and she had dimple in every
joint of her hands.
A daughter-in-law said Mrs. Ruff
ford. Oh, how | should like to see
her Or them, perhaps, | ought to
say, for there're two of EN-
Stuff and nonsense said Mehita-
BILE, the hired h,lp, coming to the door
with a shining milk pan in her hand,
which she was vigorously polishing
with towel of homespun linen. Rich
ard amt Mormon. as ever / heerd
on?
L don't mean that, Mehitable, said
the old lady with dignity. [ mean
that there are two young ladies that
Richard can scarcely decide between,
as yet, so great are their attraction.
Humphl said Mehitable. He'll
have to make up his mind, l guess,
some O. these days.
Yes, / know, said Mrs. Rufford.
But all the same, l should so like just
to get peep at them. Quite unbe-
known either to them or Richard, you
know. Mehitable, she added, | think
l shall go to the city tomorrow.
Mehitable nearly dropped the shin
ing tin pan in her CONSERVATION.
1 don't see, nohow, that can go
with you, she said. It's churning
day, and I'm expectin them bees to
swarm every hour, and Betsey Gale
is coming in the afternoon to do up
them Morella cherries on shares.
L shall not require your services as
a companion, Mehitable, said the old
lady, Strengthening herself up so de-
cidedly that the cat fell headlong into
the tuft of southern wood that grew
| by the door stone. | have long want
ed some bits of bright colored silk
and ribbon to finish my crazy quilt.
and 1 need a new chally gown for ev-
cry day wear. These girls, l am told,
are employed in Motley & Kinks big
store. All L have to do is to go there
and look we'll about me, and l shall
soon be able to make an estimate of
their characters.
Humph! said Mehitable. You
don't nothin' about city ways, Mrs.
Rufford. l guess you'd better wait
until Thursday, and let me go along,
too!
By no means, said Mrs. Rufford,
primly.
And then Mehitable knew that the
little old lady had made up her mind.
She'll sartin sure get lost or run
over, or something, thought Mehita-
BILE. But she will have her own way.
Richard was Mrs. Rufford's only
son; the one darling of her old age.
He was bookkeeper in big Broad
way concern and came home Saturday
nights to walk to church with his moth
er on Sunday mornings. And ever
since he first began to shave, Mrs.
Rufford had been secretly building
castles in the air about the s'not i'm
possible" daughter-n- law that was in
store for her.
She ought to be very pretty, said
the old lady to herself, for Richard is
so tall and good looking. She ought
to be we'll educated, for Richard takes
so much to his books She ought 10
be good, for Richard has had class
in Sunday school ever since he
was sixteen, and she ought to love
him dearly, because he deserves it if
ever man did. But, oh dear, what
shall [ do; when there is some one
that Richard loves better than he |
does me.
Mrs. Rufford dressed herself in her
neat black and white plaid silk and |
poke bonnet trimmed with black jet
ted roses, and went to the city. 1t
was a sultry day, the air scintillating |
with intense heat and heavy with
thunderous gloom. The streets were
crowded with people doing their last
shopping before they fed to Newport,
Saratoga and the mountains, and
poor, little Mrs. Rufford, unused to
metropolitan customs, soon lost her |
head and wilted down like one of her
own field daisies, beheaded by the |
mowers scythe. Among the crowd |
of fair sales ladies at Motley & Kinks
she could see no one whom she could
identify as Richards beloved. Had
she but known it, they were having
their vacation, but of this she was
unaware. The young person at the
glove counter was certainly powdered
and painted; even her unsophisticat-
ed eye could perceive that. She hop
ed it was not the young person in
charge of the glove counter. And
the girl behind the chally counter took
no notice at all of her until she had |
served three other customers.
/ do not like to be kept waiting,
said the little old lady, turning stiffiy
away. / shall make my purchases
elsewhere.
Please yourself, ma'am, and you'll
please me, said the girl, and then the
other sales-ladies giggled. and Mrs.
Rufford walked off in high dudgeon
deciding not to buy a dress at all.