The Press., 1892-09-08

 usually called by all her friends and neighbors "Miss Pam"-a lady of uncer- tain age, but with many evidences of beauty of the New England type still lingering in her well cut features and well set shoulders, and, on the whole, yet fine looking, opened the door of her house and emerged, bringing with her little pile of rugs, lampmats and tidies and 8 small wickerwork furnitrKre beater.
 Her gray dress was covered by a large drilling apron, and on her head she wore blue silk handkerchief to keep the dust from her hair.
 As her foot touched the porch Q pom derous gray cat, with white feet and forehead and great, yellow eyes, sprang forward to greet her, uttering that mel ancholy and reproachful cry common to feline pets who think themselves injured by their human protectors. As she heard it Miss Pamela paused and con- trite expression appeared upon her face.
 ''Why Socrates" she said, as seriously as though she were addressing human being. "Why Socrates-Aunt Pam didn't mean to shut you out. But your milk is right there on the kitchen hearth in the blue saucer-go in." She opened the door, and as the cat dashed through shut it again.
 It was 8 pleasant old, house-that of Miss Pamela's-quaint as to roof and windows and hooded porch, with prim poplars standing on either side like sen- tinels on guard, with a gilded weather cock a-crow upon it's roof always pre- tending to tell which way the wind blew and always pointing to the wrong quar- ter. Strawberry shrub grew in Miss Pam's garden, and old man and crimson coquilicot and snowballs and wax ber- ries. Two old peahens walked soberly about the lawn, and a peacock spread his splendid tail in the sun and uttered his hideous shriek to call attention to it, and over the wall of the brick carriage house a strange, dark ivy crept-an ivy loved of the birds, who built their nests in it.
 An Alderney COW belonged to the es- tablishment, too, and solemn horse, warranted never even to wish to run away, and a highly vanished little ve- hicle with red cushions, in which Miss Pam drove out when she was so inclined, handling the reins herself. Miss Pam liked to do things for herself, though she was comparatively rich. Her fixed idea being that she could do anything better than any one else, homework particularly.
 Having shut Socrates into the house she carried her rugs to a space of grass to the west of the coachhouse and be- gan to beat them. Talking to herself meanwhile in a murmuring voice: ''I hope things aren't goin wrong,'' she said; 'I hope it's goin to be happy for Ed wina; but she didn't come in to tell me about the party last night, though left the door open and the light burning a-purpose. If she had anything good to tell she'd have come." She beat the largest of her rugs with vigor as she spoke:
 "Norman Driscoll certainly began to come here on Edwina's account" she went on. "'Twarn't on mine natrally. It's a match want for Edwina. He's real nice and his family is good; and she'd be real happy with him and he'd be happy with her, but them She beat lesser rug in melancholy fash ion to dead march time during pause, then with sigh she said:
 "But men is carried away with looks. Jacintha does cut Edwina out at par ties, in low neck and short sleeves, fur l looks." Then more hopeful rat-tat- l too echoed under the touch of the beater.
 'Every eye makes its own beauty" chn Tnf ia1 %l I say was the prettiest girl in Hingham. Dunno as anybody else thought me any more than ordinary"
 She paused to beat more vigorously. Two rugs hung on the lne before her. A quiet little Turkish affair, of softest | blended hues, and brilliant bit of 1 Brussels carpet, where crimson roses were glowing on white ground amid 1 greener leaves than nature ever painted 'Them two girls" she said as she sus- pended her labors and leaned against the trunk of tall cherry tree to rest-''them | two girls is as different as them two rugs. Jacintha is like this one," and she indicated the gaudy confection of red, green and white, which in her eyes was very beautiful. "Kind of takes you right off somehow. Edwina is like that" and she glanced at the Turkisi rug. q didn't see what beset Cousi. l Sarah to buy that for me Christina present at first, but it's growed on rn every day, and my! how it does lastl" l She gathered up her rugs and went into the house, and having placed them and washed her hands began to get breakfast, Socrates watching the process with deep interest, especially when some
 fish were put upon the frying pan, for like all cats he adored fish.
 (Which is it?" Aunt Pam .aid again. '1I do feel beset to know, and do hope l it's Edwin@."
 She was not sure whether she had not said this aloud, and felt startled when she saw a pretty, slender, but rather pale young girl standing on the farther l side of the stove.
 "Up already?'' she said, in some con- fusion. Aunt Pam wouldn't have called you. She felt you'd like to sleep little after the party"
 ''Oh, somehow 1 was restless, Aunt Pam," the girl answered. II don't I think I've slept at all-only little maps that seemed worse than nothing start ing out of them thinking was falling from some high place. Jacintha is sound asleep though, and smiling as though she was having pleasant dreams she turned her head away as she spoke.
 ''I never knew any one like Jacintha before,' she said, ''she's always pretty, awake or asleep, hot or cold, tired or angry, always beautiful, even when any one else would look plain-like girl in a novel. did not believe in such girls. but she is proof that they exist"
 Though Aunt Pam could not see her l niece's face she felt sure that she was