People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1893-06-16

painted to look like white men. She
hoped that he and paw and Sally BOWS
were happy They hain't yet got so
far as to put up niger preacher
in the place of Mr.. Symes, their rector,
but she understood that there was some
talk of running Hannibal Johnson,
Miss Dows' coachman, for county
Judge. next wear! No? She had not
heard that the connie himsrf had
thought Of running for the Office! He
might laugh at her as much as he
liked-he seemed to be in better spirits
than when she first saw him-only she
would like to know if it was ''no'th'n
style" to laugh coming home from
church? Of course if it res she would
have to adopt it with the Fifteenth
amendment. But just now, she no.
ticed the folks were staring at them
and Miss Sally Bows had turned round
to look! Nevertheless Miss Octavias
sallow cheek nearest the colonel-the
sunny side-had taken a faint bru-
nette's flush and the corners Of her
proud mouth were slightly lifted
But candidly, Miss Reed, don't you
think that you would prefer to have
old Hannibal, whom you know, as
county Judge, than stranger and a
northern man like mep"
Miss Reeds dark eyes glanced side
ways at the handsome face and elegant
figure beside her Something like a
saucy smile struggled to her thin lips.
There mightn't be much to choose,
connie"
81 admit it. We should both ac-
knowledge our mistress and be like wax
in your hands"
''Yo ought to make that poorly speech
to Sally Dows-she's generally mistress
around here. But" she added, sud-
denly fixing her eyes on him, chow
does it happen that yo' amt walking
with her instead of that Englishman?
Yo' know that it's as plain as day that
he took that land over there just to be
near her, when he was no longer agent"
But CORTLAND was always master Of
himself and quite at ease regarding
Miss Sally when not in that lady's pres
ence. you forget" he said. smiling
ly, that I'm still stranger and know
little of the local gossip; and, if did
know it, | am afraid we didn't bargain
to buy up with the land Mr.. Champney's
personal interest in the hndadg"
"Yo'd have had your hands full, for
| reckon she's poorly heavily mortgaged
in that fashion already" returned
Miss Reed, with more badindge than
spitefulness in the suggestion. And
Mr.. Champney was run poorly close by
a French cousin of hers when he was
here. Yo' haven't got any French
books to lend me, connie, have yo?
Paw says you read heap of French,
and find it mighty hard to keep up my
practice since | left the convent at St.
Louis, for paw don't know what sort
of books to order, and | reckon he
makes awful mistakes sometimes"
The conversation here turning upon
polite literature it appeared that Mss
Octavia's French reading, through a shy,
proud innocence and an imperfect
knowledge of the wicked subtleties of
the language, was somewhat broad and
unconventional, for a young lady.
CORTLAND promised to send her some
booksand even ventured to suggest some
American and English novels not in
tcnsely 'nO'th'n'" nor metaphysical
according to the accepted southern
beliefs. A new respect and plying in
terest in this sullen, solitary girl,
cramped by tradition and crushed rath-
er than enlightened by sad experiences,
came over him. He found himself talk
ing quite cOnfdentially to the lifted
head, ached eyebrows and aquiline
nose beside him, and even thinking
what a handsome high bred brother
she might have been to some one.
When they had reached the house, in
compliance with the familiar custom,
he sat down on one of the lower steps
of the veranda while she, shaking out
her skirt, took seat step or two
above him. This enabled him, after
the languid local fashion, to lean on his
elbow and gaze up into the eyes of the
young lady, while she with equal