The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1892-03-25

dow without being insulted!"
The old gentleman cleared his throat,
wiped his mouth with the offending
handkerchief, smiled gently, raised his
hand to his eas and said in a soft, mild
voice: "Hey! please speak little louder.
I'm quite deaf
Thereupon Jack, as is customary with
people who are unaccustomed to talking
with the deaf, roared loudly and rapidly,
prefacing his former inquiry with 81
say" conscious that he was making a
spectacle of himself, and that IN all
probability the whole neighborhood
heard him.
Still the old gentleman shook his
head despairingly and said: "Come into
the house. My daughter will make me
understand; you talk too rapidly and
loudly"
Just as he said it door opened softly
and girls voice, trembling with laugh
ter, said: "What is it, father? Does the
gentleman want something's
81 think he does, Bertha, but cannot
| understand what"
After one glance at the girls face Jack
''sized himself up as an ass, as he would
| have expressed it, and he knew she had
overheard the whole interview. He
| really had not the courage to tell her
outright that her father was accused Of
| flirting with his Aunt Sophia, or else he
was lunatic, and that neither he nor
his aunt approved of his conduct.
The girl let him founder and get red
in the face for about ten minutes, enjoy
ing the situation as only mischievous
| girl can, but he managed to convey his
| meaning.
Then she said: ~ understand you
perfectly, and can perhaps explain it
I satisfactorily to both you and your aunt
Father keeps weather record, and he
has as long as can remember. He takes
observations three times a day-at in
the afternoon, at in the evening and
early in the morning, probably before
your aunt gets up" Here two ire
pressible dimples broke out and limited
that laughter was not far behind. Jack,
who had recovered his equanimity, ad-
mired them immensely, but he was not
to be diverted from his purpose, SO he
said judicially:
"But why does he use handker-
chief.'
'sFor the very simple reason that If
there is a light wind stirring he cannot
tell it's direction any other way
"Well, why does he stare SO at my
! aunt as she sits at her Window"
| II think it is not at her but'-here she
! paused long enough to make impressive
what should follow-'sat the smoke
stack from the furnace. The smoke that
comes from it makes first rate weather
| vane."
This explanation was made so demure-
" and with such evident enjoyment at
the righteousness of the situation that
Jack was slightly provoked at her and
said rather sharply:
'sWell, you must admit that it looks
queer to fellow not accustomed to it. !"
Give no doubt it does" she replied
with a smile, "but we have always
lived here, and father has always taken
observations just in this way, and every
body knows his peculiarities, SO of course
it awakens no comment"
As Jack had no reply ready, she said:
'Please make my apologies to yonr
aunt for any annoyance she may have
felt" and as the comical side came up
permost again she broke into laugh
and said: ''sPoor old father! The idea
of him being accused Of fiirting" Jack
Joined in the laugh, and the innocent
cause of all the trouble and fun sat star
ing out of the window as mild and placid
as though no such charge lay at his door.
AS yet he did not even know the reason
of the visit of the erstwhile angry but
now smiling young man.
Jack apologized humbly, but he had
no idea of letting the story get out on
him, so he tried in an elegant manner,
which turned out fiat failure, to init
mate to the girl that it should be a secret
between themselves, as he said:
81 hope you will mott mean, ali, er-
but you WON'T
"Won't tell it on you," she said, with
unfeeling bluntness. Gather would be
avenged rather more than the case calls
for if the students should get hold of
the story" Then taking pity on him
she said sweetly, 81 will never mention
it again of course, and will not even tell
father"
Jack asked her to call on his aunt,
which she promised to do, and he took
his departure to explain to Miss Sophia
that she had only made the same blum
der that many another woman had done
Jumped at a conclusion too readily.
/ Jack visited his aunt with great regu-
larity, but spent the major portion Of
his time at the weather prophets across
the way, SO that the neighbors concluded
he was taking postgraduate course in
meteorological something. -Rochester
Times.
Indians Buy Meat for the Brand.
A dealer down on the desert on his
last trip to the city for supplies found a
new brand of canned meat which bore q
high colored designation of two lions
rampant, in token that it was of the