Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1892-02-03


30 what is the use of talking2 Wa
may just as well make the best Of II
and come right down and take what
1un there is going; so let's walk on to
Betty Plummer's and tell her we will
accept her invitation for tomorrow
night, and go right in for a good
time with the neighborhoDd Young
folks. / said at first L never would do
1t, bit then l did not expect to stay
here forever; now l begin to think we
may. But, let's draw the line at mar
rying, we will firt with the BOYS and
, have good time. Twill be some
thing to take up our time. GRANDPA
and grandma will like all but the flirt-
Ing; they will begin to have hopes of
US and think we are at last growing
sensible, and we can keep dark about
/ our real opinions of folks and things.
1 hope, though, they will not play
Kissing games. just think of having
grandpa's hired man kiss us! OF
course, he is invited"
Betty Plummer was quite overcome
by the sudden cordiality of Mabel
1inkham and her adopted sister, Mary
Peck, and for the rest of the day was
In quite flutter of excitement Over
the event.
Roland Holland and his friend, Jack
Staples, had chanced upon the Plum
mer farm for their halting place in
this neighborhood while sketching.
When they returned TO a late dinner
the voluble, gaY-hearted Betty chatter
ed of her morning callers, and with
country freedom soon had given the
young men a full history of neighser
Tinkham's oldest son who had I" wears
ago left the farm and gone to New
York as clerk, and lately became
what the country people called stock
gambler; had been rolling in money a
few years, and married a city girl; /;
later had lived in Europe few wears,
and then, just as all gamblers do sud
denly he began to lose. and all at once
! found himself at the bottom of the
heap and glad enough to send his two
girls to his old home, which had never
been good enough for them to visit
when they had lots o. money"
She told the young man that the girlf
were real nice, but couldn't do thing
| TO earn a dollar, and seemed actually
proud of it!
Then she talked of her valentine party,
and the young men having identified
Mabel Tinkham and Mary Peck as the
, two stylish young ladies of the morn
Ing episode, entered into Betty's plans,
and soon had given the quick-witted
country girl some hints about valentine
tricks. Betty was always ready for
good-natured joke and readily agreed
TO their suggestions.
In response to one of these she went
over to grandpa Tinkham's on the
evening of the thirteenth and told the
girls of these tricks. One was for the
girls to take an early morning walk on
the fourteenth and the first man they
met would surely be their future hus-
bandl Others were to be tried at the
house. One of these was 10 go out
into the dark, and standing on the
doorstep unwind ball of tw1ne for
few yards and holding the end of the
twine in one hand, with the other
throw the ball as far out into the dark
ness rs possible, then begin to wind
up the end in their hand, repeating
these lines:
"I wind this long line so very fine,
Hoping to find at the other end,
The love | would call my valentine,
The man I'd choose for lover and friend"
Then, unless one was a predestined
old maid, at the end of the line would
stand before the maiden her future
husband who would yield the line to
hat in, o,,I ta1- 81
first kiss and disappear in the dark
ness, and when the gates were propi-
tious she would meet this very man,
perhaps be introduced to him in the
most prosaic and orthodox manner
and surely some day he would come
to claim the hand of the maiden he had
kissed in the dark!
81 shall go for walk before to-
morrow morning, Mary; will you &c
too?" cried Mabel, gleefully.
"Indced | will not. You'll be SURE
to meet somebody's hired man driving
the cows to the spring for water" re-
piled Mary, scornfully.
Then she continued, Il will control
my impatience to see my hero until
evening. / shall throw the ball of
twine from our back doorstep, and let |
it roll down the slope into the garden,
and then gently draw my hero up TO
give me that sweet betrothal kiss, and
as it is hardly proper to accept any
thing from a stranger, l will return il |
at once" and Mary joined in the gen
eral laugh.
Betty went home and reported.
Al. alN yn,.tI
out for walk and for half mile met |
no one, not even q hired man driving |
cows TO water, nor a milkman going |
toward the village.
Suddenly, as she turned a corner, she
came face to face With the dark, nous
Tackled stranger she had seen few
mo nings ago posing so gracefully be-
side the stone wall as he lifted his hai
and passed around the corner.
Mabel was not 1nore romantic than
the ordinary girl, yet her heart
throbbed more rapidly, and the rich
color swayed back and forth in her
shapely checks, as she wondered ii
there could be anything in such hap
penings, and queried mentally over and
over again, ..who could he be, where
from. and with when was he staying
in that neighborhood, and would she
maybe sometime really meet and spe1E
with him?"
But it was time tc, return for break
fast, and, 10! he WAS returning, and
politely lifted his hat once more from
the close-cut, da k, carling locks.
Evening came, and Mabel and Mary
were much entertained by the society
into which they were for the first time
Hitherto they had held
aloof from the young
,Lo