The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1894-09-03
MISS NAN.

eyes and long lashes, pale complexion,
light brown hair, with here and there a
strand of gray, not pretty, but attractive
looking, simple in manner, speech and
dress-that was Miss Nan. x
That she was an old maid was beyond
dispute. Her most intimate friend would
not have denied it if he could. Though
for the matter of that he could not, be-
longing, as he did, to the feline species
and not being blessed with the power of
speech. She was turned 35 if she was a
day, and the most hopeful of that social
scourge known as matchmakers had long
since scratched her name off their list of
possibilities.
Miss Nan lived in her own cottage, and
the lawn in front of it was the neatest in
Tifin, as the little parlor inside was the
tidiest The three cats that monopolized
the hearth rug in the parlor of evenings
were as sleek as could be and exceptional
1y well behaved for cats. The furniture
was Of quaint pattern, but the easy
chairs were comfortable in the extreme
and if the little earthenware teapot was
half as good brewer as it was a singer
= don't blame her for INDUCING in its con-
tents rather freely.
That Miss Nan had good heart and
kind one l can vouch for, and so could
many barefooted urchin and many an
overworkcd factory girl There was no
Sunday school teacher in Tif1in as beloved
by her scholars, and they all knew the
flavor of her famous cookies. was not
surprised to hear one day that Miss Nan
had had biS of romance in her life, so
long ago that the younger generation had
- =
had long since forgotten it.
There had been @ certain handsome
young man who had courted her in the
old days, and not unsuccessfully. He had
been practicing law for three or four years,
and his prospects were unusually bright.
He was genial in his way, but proud to
fault. He had never been lady's man,
and despite the fact that many jaunty
caps had been set for him he had almost
been set down for young bachelor con-
firmed in his waywardness until he met
Miss Nan at church festival From that
evening the predictions toppled over like
cardhouses, for, though she did not appar-
entity reciprocate at first, he was a deter
mined wooer, with youth, good looks and
winning tongue to back him. So at last
she melted--of course she did, for what
else was that woman's heart of hers Gre
ated?-and the gossips began to wonder
when the day would be set and to surmise
among themselves that it had been set
and was still a secret. But whether it
really had or had not been Silas Grantley
knew and Miss Nan knew, but the gos-
sips never did find out.
OF the fundamentally inclined young
ladies who had set their caps for Silas
Grantley before the fateful church festi-
val none had set them SO artfully, so
hopefully as Lizzie Minks. She was
pretty bit of woman 0ong since the
wife OF henpecked husband), with spar
king black eyes, sharp features and
tight little figure that she was wont to
deck out with the gayest ribbons imagi-
nable. She had Spanish blood in her veins
and was proud, of it, and proud of her
temper too. Though Silas had never paid
her any serious attention, she had APP
peared attractive to him until he met
Miss Nan. If it had not been for that,
there is no telling what might not have
happened. Miss Minks was not a young
lady to sub1Qit to such total eclipse
calmly, and tho truth was that she never
had any intention of submitting to it at
all. One day about the time that the Cos
sips had settled it satisfactorily among
themselves that the day had finally been
set," she came to the conclusion that mat
tiers had progressed far enough and made
an afternoon call on her successful rival
She left her pretty airs and graces at
home with her gay ribbons that morning
and was sad enough figure when her
hostess ushered her into the parlor-the
same little parlor though Miss Mans
mother was living then, and it was bright
er to her than it was in after years. Lizzie
Minks told her story well and wept bitter
tears over it too. She told how Silas had
wooed her and won her and had promised
to marry her, and how the day had been
named, and how he had kept up the cruel
deception even after he had met Miss Nan
herself, and how heartlessly he had final
ly thrown her over and laughed at her
Then when she saw that the girl at her
side appeared sorely troubled she became
remorseful and vowed that she ought not
to have told her. Then she grew hyster-
ical and rallied against all men and de-
splsed herself for an idiot to have ever
trusted one of them. Her auditor was very
quiet through it all, but Lizzie Minks
knew that her shaft had been straight
one and went home ,exulting. After she
had gone, Miss Nan did what many an
other girl in her place would have done.
She had hard Cry. She did not tell her
mother. She could not have told any one
She hated to think that even Lizzie Minks
knew the man she loved in such an altered
light. But the mere fact of thinking of
BIN softened her, and she hoped-aye, in
ile loyalty of her heart, she trusted that
Silas had been misunderstood. There
should be no misunderstanding between
them She determined to tell him that
evening, when he called, all that she had
heard But tangled through, her trouble
was a sore feeling of disappointment that
Silas could have even carelessly tri6ed with
another woman, and feeling, too, of I'M
conscious jealousy in the thought that
he had prolonged the farce after he had
begun the wcoing of herself 1t was a
feeling akin to resentment against him, in
Justice to her own worth
When he entered tbs parlor few hours
later, he knew at once that something
was wrong, and Miss Nan did not leave
him long in doubt. She told him the
whole story, only Withholding the name
of her informant. She kept back her tears.
500, and the effort made her voice hard.