The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1893-12-02

occasions that remembered Joys
awakened an active regret.
The frat Thanksgiving wasaomothing
of trial. Although the city markets
would furnish An abundance Of good
things, pumpkin-explain 1t as you
will--at which q well bred northern
Cow would give second glance, is not
to be had for love or money. Mrs. A.
could not dehase her art and could not
wholly ignore the character of the day.
Like most things Of the capital, her dim
ner was sort Of compromise. Most ex-
cellent it was, truly, and wholly salts
factory il they could nave forgotten the
past; but for the first time in her mar
ried life, upon such an occasion, the
browning glory and attraction OF her Ia
bic was wanting. They ate with graft
tude, but uuwouted solemnity. 1t was
almost like the pathetic bravery OF
Christmas games and song1 and the
weeping that followed, described by the
Laureate. No one voiced the thought
that haunted them all, but Mr.. A
dropped the apparently casual remark:
~ think, my dear, that next fall Iwil!
have some fruits and vegetables sent
from our old place"
In the following spring, moved by an
inerradicable Instinct, Mrs. Appleby in.
sisted on having Il litIleribbon OF ground
next the fence dug up, and here and
there she placed few such flowers as
held out faint promise Of surviving
tho shade. How it happened will never
be known, as she is perfectly certain
that she did not plant it; but among
the paIlid, consumptive-looking flowers
there appeared one day the cheerful, ia
miliar face OF an oldfriend. There; we're
tho two cotyledons and the seed bal
anced aloit in the well-rcmembered way.
The particular variety OF the Mclo pepo
to which it belonged was uncertain, but
il there mad been doubt rs to the spe-
cics, the prompt advent oil that veXa-
tious little pest, tho GGierlcd Phtatu,
better known as the Cucumber-bug,
would have settled it. His coming was
as mysterious as that OF the pumpkin.
Isuppose that if this had been germt-
mated in hower-pot on shipboard in
mid-ocean, he would have been on hand
as usual when the tiny leafet first lifted
the soil. He succumbed, however, to
an application OF thumb and finger, and
in spite OF all drawbacks the plant grew
until in its turn it became threat to
its SICILY nelghbors. Still Mrs. A. hest
tated, and we all know what that means.
"John," said she one day, don't you
believe we could raise it?" -.
''Raise it? You can't help raising u
unless you pull it up by the roots. 1t
will onvnr thn whole ward ="
.'But We might train it on the wall,
swell what do you want OF the ugly
thing?"
'Ugly! Why, the flowers are beauti-
full, and you would say SO too IL they
were not so common"
"I'm sure they are not very common
in Washington"
"And we might raiso-a few fOr-for
Thanksgiving"
80, nonsense; they would drop oil
before they were as big as goose'eggs."
"But we might some way fasten them
to tho fence"
John was not convinced, but the plant
was not disturbed. Fastened by cords,
it soon reached the top Of tho wood
shed and began recklessly to crawl out
on tho iron roof Evidently, when the
hot weather came it would be burned to
crisp. Meantime it was iuii OF bios
SONS, with some incipient fruits.
Finally, to humor his wife's whim,
Mr. Appleby sent for carpenter and
had q trellis put across the yard from
the shed to the dead wall oil an adjoin-
ing building Upon this the vine, with
considerable persuasion and string, was
diverted from its suicidal course. 1t
now began to develop numerous side
shoots, which hung gracefully trailing
in tho air. 1t soon filed the entire
trellls, and, whatever doubt still lin.
gerod as to its utility it was the unani-
nous verdict OF the family that as an
ornamental plant twas great success,
For long time it seemed destined to
be nothing more. When the fruits
reached the length OF two or three
inches, they would wither, shrivel and
drop of. Several eventually passed be.
yond this stage, seeming to have es-
capped the maIadies peculiar to the in
FAINT pumpkin. Some grew to the size
OF cocoanut. In the strenuous appli-
cation of that law to which all things
are subject, however, but one specimen
was destined to survive. There were
accidents, but probably even without
them it was impossible that the plant
could bring to maturity at so great
distance from its roots more than sim
gle fruit.
This one presently filled the Appieby
household with anxiety. With
healthy instinct the vine had crept in
and out among the Stats, thus securing
n firm hold. Perversely enough, this
had formed Hoop on the under side. 1t
was impossible to raise itup so that the
trellis would support it and hopeless to
leave it where it was. Its weight
dragged it lower and lower each day.
Each morning they dreaded to find its
scattered fragments on tho asphalt.
Mrs. Appleby finally solved the prob.
lem by crocheting n sort OF coarse net
in which it was suspended. Thus Sc.
cured against its own imnrovidenCe, it
gave itself up to the seduciious Of a
purely vegetable life. Its roots wero
indeed in the earth, but, alone among
its fellows, it was child OF the air. The
winds rocked its cradle; it drank the
dew and the rain; the sunshine fed and
it. Never was babe watched
with much greater interest and solici.
tude. The bee, the hawkmoth, and the
had peered into the
bright yellow chalice where it lay when
little more than dream. The Apple
by's had watched it from the time it
was knob and a flower, singly or in
groups; many times every day they
stood about observing every phase OF
its development. Neighbors had
looked with astonishmeut and envy
upon this magnificent towering and
foliage plant. Workmen upon neigh
boring roofs, recognizing its gpe.