The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1891-05-08
JOHNNIE AND TEENIE.
Story OF a Little Coquette and
How She Was Conquered


in the delicate flaments of genuine
Texas idyl
/ had heard of my heroine long before
I saw her, as undisputed belle of the
whole Dry Fork country, where she
held regal state, like the cruel princess
in the fairy tale. sending away sultor
after suitor and champion after cham
pion despoiled, not of his head but of
his heart and with several inches taken
off the stature of his conceit
The family name was Drake; Teenie
was affectionately known among her
admirers as the duck" the ranch was
the duck pond" and whenever an
other unfortunate went down to wor-
ship 1T her shrine, he was facetiously
referred to as having gone ducll-hunt-
ing.
She was as rule engaged to three or
four of the best-looliing and most prom
ising young sheepmcn of the region,
and carried things in general with
high hand All this had predisposed
me to think slightly of the girl as
poor, shallow creature, trifling with
and rejecting men who Were too good
for her only to crafty her vanity and
love Of conquest
But perhaps the thing that prejudiced
me most against her was her failure to
fall a victim to the charms OF Johnnie
Sherwood
Johnnie and / are great friends |
met him at balls, where he was the best
dancer: at round-ups, where he was the
finest rider and roper. and he campcdwlth
our party many a night. handsome,
blaclz-eyed boy of twenty -four. jnst six
feet with fine, square shoulders and
yycll-lxnit figure, beautiful black hair,
curling flat against his round, coInely
head. glowing eyes, satiny check, fresh
and warm; a nice, wcll-cut chin. with
dimple set a little t. one side Of 1t: a
good mouth, with a youthful Inustache
above il. and the finest white teeth pos
sible.
Face and figure were quite handsome
ordinarily; but when the eyes shonc.
the diaple dccpcncd, and the
white teeth flashed n the bubbliug.
mellow. spontaneous laugh that came
so naturally from the fine deep chest.
You hastily laid aside al Judgment and
surrendered your heart.
never heard 50 captivating laugh
There was virtue, there was picty IN
It 1t was swecte- than reason, better
than wisdom. You E,l- d sense Of per-
sonal and afTectionate gratitude to him.
as though he had made you a special
gift of il
And these two were sweethearts
once: indeed, Johnnie had been en-
gagged to Tecnic, .'all 10y himself"
when no one else was. and the matter
was regarded As quite serious
There was, as might have been eX-
pcctCd b, tween two such break
Il
were indulced IN. 1t the hottest of
the quarrel, sraarting beneath 4 sense
of injustice. tinGling at renenbrances
OF the aifrOnts she Lad put upon him,
johnnie came one day upon a maverick
and made so innocent 4 thing as year
ling calf the vehicle of his resentment.
1t was a delicate bit OF cowboy repair
tee, an example of pure Texas wit, to
catch it up and brand it all over its
helpless bovine side in great, sprawEng
letters: DUCK"
When the carering bonnot present
ed itself before Teenie's indignant eyes
she waXed very wroth indeed, and told
her big brothers, but on the ready offer
to wipe up the ground with the au-
thor she weakened, and advised the
whole family that they treat him with
silent contcmpt-which they were do
ing when l went there
When / came TO spend a week at the
Three Cedars ranch and see her daily
with her mother and her little broth
ers and sisters. / found her quite differ
ent from what | had imagined, and
was constrained to like the girl despite
my disapproval of some of her meth
DDS. She was good daughter n kind
sister, and the blithest, most irrepreSs-
IDLY joyous creature, with frank, en-
gaging boyishness of manner that /
never found in any other girl, and i
soon came to the conclusion that II she
was vain and tickle it was the fault of
the foolish men who hung about her
and ministered to her vanity.
She rode finely. and was as passion
ately fond of it as l.
She appeared unaware of the six or
eight years difference in our ages, the
wide dissimilarity of our history, train
ing, environments, and probable aims
and ambitions, and made of me a regu-
lar chuIa and confidante, seeming to think
it no fault of mine that had been city
born and bred; that 1t heart, and given
fair show, l was ''as good a man" as
herself
used to talk to Teenie q good deal
about Johnnie, dwelling warmly on his
good qualities and his winning ways.
She was always ready to argue with
me on the subject, protesting TO find
him the most hideous and disagreeablc
of mortals. When / ceased she would
60 on at some length herself, applying
to him all her small feminine epithets
OF derogation, sneering especially 1T his
conccit-
Perhaps more masculine bat might
have been deceived by the appearance
OF frank sincerity with which She
''slanCed' him, but. as Sister Peacock
says. / an 4 female myself. ard viii at
the proper time acknowledge it; and it
convinced me-if it convinced me of
anything-that Tcenie was no more in
different TO Johnnie than ne was 10 her:
that. indeed, she carried .ls sore a heart
as he did.
Let S go and get some OF those res
direction plants you want. Miss Alice"
she said - me one day. Il know where
IT grow By the bU5hcI. over on the Es-
condido arroyo, near the Pecos.n
Two OF her slaves were about the
house n the. tine. They Immediately
rushed ont, saddled our ponies, and
huI:lLly pctitioned TO be allowed to go
along bat she refused with the utmost
asper-ty AID we went alone.
Il just desPise EN- all, sometimes"
said she, as We cantered westward II
like TO play EN- awhile, just for fun,
but when they get SO they hang around
all the time there's no more fun in 'em.
Now, amt this heap nicer, just US
girls, than to have lot of fool fellows
taggin' along in the way?"
l assured her it was and we rode
ahead, whistiing and singing by turns,
for very ightness of heart.
She began whistling an air and !
struck in with the alto. She stopped
dissatisfied with my performances NO.