Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1891-02-28

Sllas was q waltln' for me, so what
does Lydia do but just push
ahead, and when she was good in
the entry, Silas saw her wide bonnet,
and he walked up as grand IS you
please and asked for her company,
never KNOWN his mistake till she says
with q little shipper, why, of course,
with pleasure And there he was with
her hangin' on his arm, and the boys a
laughin' fit to kill.
i was close enough to see and hear
it all, and / was so mad and mortified L
could have cried. Some one stepped
up to my side as though he was goin' to
speak to me, and as we passed through
the door, and out on the steps, saw 1t
was 'bashful James Richards, as we
always called him. There wasn't q
better young man in the country, but
he was so bashful that he would turn
red as piney if any girl spoke to him.
You see, he had wanted my company a
long time, but hadn't dared to ask me,
and though he saw Silas was out of
the way for that night, it took him
so long to get his courage up,
that we were out of doors before
he managed in a very quakery voice to
offer to escort me home. Now, was so
mortified by the way things had gone,
that I would have said yes right on the
spot, but then I heard Julia Simons
smoker right behind me. I never
could bear that girl, and I thought
I would show her could be as
independent as Miss Anybody, if l
did have to go home alone, so 1 an
swered quite crushingly, No. sir! Not
after get out on the steps, He was
that scared he never heard the first part
of my answer, and thought said wait
until get off the steps, so when we
reached the walk he took my arm be-
fore could say a word, and Julia snick-
cred again. [ was bound to show Miss
Julia that 1 didn't care, so laughed
and chatted my Iivliest, and James
bashfulness wore off little, an if l
hadn't a. been so mad about Julia cap
turing Silas in that ridiculous fashion,
I'd "a been quite happy.
"Ah, mel what a little thing will
change a persons whole life sometimes.
"The boys leased Silas numerically
about his mistake, and he never did
speak to poor Lydia again. He was
awfully jealous, and was hopping mad
when he heard James had taken me home
and never came near me for week, to
punish me- When he did come, my dan
der was up, and the upshot of it was,
we broke friendship then and there.
Maybe we would have made up, but
your uncle James, when he once got
started, didn't let any grass grow under
his feet, and after he had come to see
me awhile, I wondered what could
have seen in that silly Silas Melton.
Father and mother liked James, too,
and he came to see me, as regular as
clock work, three times week for over
four years.
Dear mel" cried Ada, did it take
him that long to propose?"
He never did propose" answered
Aunt Maheltabei, with merry tinkle
in her eye.
why. Aunt Hetty, you didn't ask
him to marry you, did you?" Asked
Maude in surprise. How did you come
to marry him, if he never asked you
to?"
Listen and you will find out. He
kept coming week after week, and year
after year, but never a word of love-
making out of him. Bless your hearts
knew all the time he was in love with
me, but you never seed such bashful
man. Mother at last told me I must
kind of help him out, and let him see
he had nothing to fear; so showed him
how many quilts had pieced, and told
him about the pretty gray colt father
promised to give me when 1 was mar
ried, but the more I limited, and the
easier 1 made it for him, the more scared
he was, and the less he said. So it
went on until nearly Christmas.
Christmas came on Saturday that
year, and two of my cronies, Mary
Jones and Sallie Hodge, were to be
married on that dav. On the Sunday
night before Christmas, which was the
10Th of December, James was at our
house on his regular Sunday visit. We
always sat in the family sitting-room,
and father and mother, my big brother
Fred. and the younger boys and girls,
stayed there, too, until half-past eight,
which was our regular bedtime. At
ten, James always went away, for our
folks were very strict. This particular
Sunday night we were all sitting around
the big fire. place-my little sister
Frances in James lap, and little Henry
leaning over his shoulder, for he always
liked to play with the children. We
were all talking about the weddings that
were to come off that week, when
wicked Fred, who delighted to tease
me, spoke up suddenly: I say, sis,
why don't you and Jim get married the
same time with the others it would be
jolly fuu.'
%Now, if he had said that to me when
we were alone I would have boxed his
ears. and that would have been the end
of it, but it sort of frustrated me when
James was there to hear, and him so
easy plagued, but l says as easy and
careless-like as I could to turn the
matter off-'Oh, I'll never get married
the tail end of the week, Christmas or
no Christmas
"Be married on Sunday, then," said
Fred, tantalizin'ly.
No, nor on Sunday either said /,
IL