Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1890-02-22
ONE VALENTINES DAY.
BY KEzIAH SHELDON.

The early days of February came
sunny and smiling; the birds that had
passed their Northern winter in the warm
branches of the fir and spruce trees of
the woods, were hopping lightly from
the silvery blossomed pussy willows to
the fringed and tasseled hazel and alder
shrubs, now and then trilling forth from
their tiny Threats purest spring like songs
of joy.
Adown the hazel bordered country road
came two rosy girls clad in navy blue
walking suits, with here and there in
their costumes dash of red; their bright
faces and wind tossed hair crowned with
iaunty crimson yarns with dark blue
tassels.
Their steps were elastic with health
and youths undoubting hopefulness;
they gave the finishing touch of life that
made the scene perfect one to two
young men who were sitting, unobserved
by them, in sunny corner where two
walls met, sketching the stretch of grew
roadway with its shrub befringed edges
and fluttering birds.
'By Jovel Be quick and sketch them,
Jack, it is the one thing needed to make
the theme perfect. There, they have
paused, and how unconsciously graceful
they are posingl Not often do you get
such an accidental touch as this, and the
picture will be the envy at the Annual
Exhibition"
Rapidly the sketching went on, and
later the girls resumed their steady tramp,
tramp, keeping perfect step, and passing
the two young men who looked as inno-
cent as only the guilty cant If they had
not sketched the girls, they naturally
would have shown some consciousness of
their approach.
Now, it was the girls who gave almost
& start of surprise as they suddenly dis
covered the artist and his friend.
"What handsome stylish young men /
Did you office the moustache of the dark
haired one2 What natural wave it had,
not that horrid waxy curl at the ends that
makes you feel that it must have
Just come fresh from the BARRIERS tongs, y
said Mabel Tinkham, who was some
thing of an artist in her taste
as regarded masculine beauty. Being
herself rich hued blonde, it was
but natural that she should have been
attracted by the dark, style of Roland
Holland.
''No, l did not notice the dark one as
being other than common looking man,
but the brown bearded man-what fig
ure ne had! And a perfect facet" and
Mary Peck, with a graceful movement of
her arm put up her hand to her hair, to
assure herself that the wind had not
blown it "every which way" Greatly,
are we blown quite into frights, Mabel?
| wonder who those fellows are, and where
they came from? One was sketching and
the other leaning on the wall and look
ing; or do you suppose he was posing?
Wouldn't he make a splendid Portrait"
"He? No, he couldn't hold candle
to the dark one. wish we could know
them, but what is the use of talking
such nonsense; you and | shall never
know such as he out in this wilderness
[ wonder if pa will ever get his business
Strengthened out, so that we can once more
have comfortable home in the city2
For one, am heartily tired of living out
here in the country, shut out from all
society. l don't see why men who know
enough to do business on change dom
know enough not to get 'Aeeced, as pa
calls it. Oh, dear, what made him fail
all at once, and send us out here to
grandfather
81 don't know, | am sure buying
long and selling short and buying short
and selling long, and being rich few
years, and then suddenly 'as poor as Jobs
turkey, is conundrum | cannot under
stand. But began to feel that when pa
and his clique was rich, then somebody
was Aeeced and made poor; we didn' t
know who it was, that was all, and we
just enjoyed it. Now pa talks about our
being 'ieeced,' and l suppose somebody
is fourishing on the fleeing Just as we
did; and never dreaming that out here
in the woods we, the fleeced, are drag
aing along miscrably; shut out from all
the things We used to have. How long
have we worn these suitss Mine is act
ually sprouting a fringe around the bot
tom. sort of growing its spring foliage as
me might say. wonder if we can have
lome new ones this springs"
! II don't know. We have actually
worn them three years; they were the
/ ast we had before we came here two