Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1894-02-15

"MY VALENTINE:-You will have
plenty of fine speeches and praises,
and, perhaps, of fun and fancy, from
others, so l shall not give you those
I, who have but one interest in you,
namely, that you should be the best
boy and the best man which it is pos
sible for you to become. If you are
selfish, if you are indolent, if you are
mean, you will never be happy in
your own society until you have sunk
so low that you don't know the differ
ence between goodness and badness.
But if you set out to be gentleman,
and man of honor, and faithful
worker, you will do good deeds and
live happy life, and be worthy the
everlasting esteem of
Your VALENTINE.
Nelly read it with rising color anda
little quiver about her mouth, which
Bertha understood; but she read it
with firm voice and a careful, delib-
crate accent.
There" she said, when she had fin
ished, Il shall burn up all the rest of
my valentines, and send only this one;
for it is what l mean, in earnest, and
as old Aunt Smoke says: Eff it don't
do no good, it can't do harm.
"To whom shall you send it dear?"
Bertha asked, gently, little subdued
by Nellies epistolary success.
Il hadn't made up my mind,
Nelly answered, thoughtfully; "they
all need it"
"Oh, send it to Jack" cried Kitty
Green. "He boards with us, and he
needs it-bad enough. If ever boy
was full of his pranks Jack is and if
ever boy tormented girls life out,
Jack does mine
A color clear and bright as flame
glowed on Nelly Hunts cheeks. Had
she had dark-eyed Jack in her mind
all the while? She only answered,
very quietly:
Il don't mind. l would just as lief
send it to Jack. That is, I'll send it to
him if you'll promise, on your sacred
honor, never in any way to let him
know who wrote it. y
"Oh, I will-true as live and
breathe, I'll never tell him, and never
let him guess, if I can help it"
"And all you girls?" Nelly asked,
with the pretty pink glow deepening
in her cheeks. "Will you all prom
ise
And they all promised, for there was
a sort of honest earnestness in Nelly's
nature to which they found it natural
to yield
So the valentine was directed in
Nelly's most neat and proper manner
to "Mr. Jack Green, and was dropped
into the postofice with the rest of the
valentines the girls had written that
day.
On the 18th the six girls were all
together at school, comparing notes
and exchanging condolences. But
Kitty Green drew Nelly aside, and
said, while they walked up and down
the hall together, their arms around
each other as girls will:
Il saw Jack get it, Nelly"
Nelly's pretty cheeks glowed and
her eyes shone like stars, but she
asked no questions. Indeed they were
scarcely necessary, for Kitty was eager
enough to tell her story.
He got it, don't you think, along
with half dozen others, and he read
them all before he came to this one. l
knew this, you know, by the shape of
the envelope. When he came to 1t
saw him read it all through, and then
saw him go back and read it again
1 heard him say to himself:
"'That's an honest letter from some
little saint.
Then he came up to me and held 1t
toward me, while pretended to be
very busy with my valentines. Then
he spoke:
"'Do you know that handwriting
Kit?
Il felt was an awful little liar, but
I had promised you. | stretched out
my hand for 1t and SAID, carelessly:
Why, amt it sue's?'
"Sue is his sister, you know. So ne
thought 1 did not know who 1t came
from, and he changed his mind and
put it into his pocket and went of.
When | teased him afterward to let
me see it he said:
"'No; there are some things fellow
would be cad to show.
$50 l saw it hit home, and well 1t
might. 1t was a tremendous letter,
Nelly"
And Kitty ended with a hug and