The Banner-Democrat. [volume] (Lake Providence, East Carroll Parish, La.) 1892-current, 1894-12-22
AN APPLE PIE ROMANCE.
The Old Way to a Mans He art
Through His Stomach.

The Old Way to Mans He art
Through His Stomach.
"Heigh-ho! / wish something would
happen. Something good, / mean. 1t
seems as if something ought to happen
on such q pleasant day, and sort o
feel It in my bones that it will"
Miss Barbara Brown sighed little, |
as she looked out of her sunny west |
window on a mellow September day, |
and listened to partridge whistling
Bob White" in neighboring corn
field.
Miss Brown had often wished for a
romance of her own, but had never
had one, though she was thirty odd.
She was tall and slender, with rather
long face, thin, yellow hair, very
smooth and straight. and a small mole
on her chin, which she imagined peo-
pie were always looking at.
Perhaps her sigh was for the missing
romance; at any rate she sighed again
as she glanced across the neat paling
fence to where Mr.. Peter Peril
man was busy gathering his Northern
Spy apples Mr.. Perriman was
bachelor who lived with his widowed
sister, Mrs. Tibbins, and her daughter,
Mary Ann, or May Annie, as she in
sisted on being called. The one
crumpled rose leaf in Perriman's lot
was the style of cooking done by his
sister and niece, whom he credited,
deep in the recesses of his own mind,
with having as little faculty for the
culinary art as a pig has for playing
checkers.
eff they would only give me plain
bread an meat, with potatoes, an
bit of pie to top off with, I'd be per-
fectly content" he groaned inwardly,
as he dispatched the mussy fricassees,
sloppy hasbes and 'made-over' dishes,
and the fearfully and wonderfully con-
cocted buildings of his sisters produc-
ton. But he made no audible COM
ments, for Peter possessed the virtue
of eating what was set before him
without grumbling. Perhaps it would
have been better had he done so, and
disabused his sister of the firmly
grounded conviction that Peter would
scorn the everyday fare which would
have been amply satisfactory to May
Annie and herself.
eff he would only be contented with
plain, wholesome vittles, it would be
far better for him and much less
trouble to u.s." she would sigh, as she
stirred and mixed, and seasoned, at
the elaborate messes, which tried the
soul of Peter and injured ais digestion,
as well as kept herself and daughter
in the kitchen for the best part OF the
day. But, as already stated, Peter
Perriman was not grumbling man.
Neither was he 'ladies' man." IL
fact, he had always been exceedingly
shy of the women folks" and while
Miss Barbara Brown had for years beer
in the habit of visiting and receiving
visits from the Tibbinses with neigh
borly freedom, she had never had TIT
pleasure of exchanging as many as
dozen words with Mr.. Perriman in hel
life. He had troubled himself yer.
little about her indeed, except as t.
the best means of keeping out OF he
way when she called on his sister.
To-day, however, Mr.. Perriman foun'
himself in a rather unusual mood
Whether the mellowness of the apple
he was gathering communicated itsel
to his feelings, or whether his obdurat
bachelor heart was softened by tn
gentle September sunshine is a matte
of uncertainty. At all events, afte
casting several chances at Miss Brown
window he remarked to himself:
.That woman looks kind of lon'
some like, setting there all by hersel
But no wonder; staying shut up in tn
house, darning or sewing on day lik
this. instead of being outdoors gait
ering apples.
..Come to think of it. she hasn't go
any apples to gather. just like
woman" he grumbled. Not an q
pie tree about the place; nothing but
lot of old gooseberry and curral
bushes, by way of Fruit Maybe 81
couldn't help it, though, seeing she
ali alone. There now, maybe I'm
boobv, but believe in my heart
90 take her mess or so OF these ne
apples"
Mr.. Perriman took large tin pr
with which he had been gathering a
pies, heaped it high with the 70
frnit, carried it to Miss Browns doc
and presented his fragrant offerir
with few hasty and not very apr
pirate words.
.And something did happen,
bre athed, ecstatically. Il just felt
If i. would, though never dreamed
anything like this"
..And now know what I'm going
do to show my appreciation. I'll ma
the loveliest pie know how and Sc
It over. don't believe that poor NJ
ever gets taste of pie-any that's
to eat. Mrs Tibbins says she
Nav Annie never have any luck WI
their pies, so they don't often ma
,em. And men folks are mostly SO 10
of pie, too"
Miss Brown was one of those won
who have a natural faculty and lc
for cooking, and If she exceiied
any one branch of the art it was II
of pastry. And the pie which she G.
structed out of portion OF those
nles and sent over to Mrs. Tib6ins '