Middletown transcript., 1894-07-21

ought to lose no time in changing your
Clothes"
Il have not anything to change, y
said the young girl, laughing. "Oh,
shall soon be dryP'
""Have you lost all your luggage?"
asked the lady, sympatheticaIly.
NO." said the young girl, II have
none to lose.' And she smiled little
mlschievously, as though she knew by
instinct that her companions sympa-
thy would at once degenerate into sus-
picionl
Il don't mean to say that have not
knapsack." she added, considerably.
II have walked a long distance-in
fact, from Z"
"And where did you leave your COM
panions?' asked the lady, with touch
of forgiveness in her voice.
II am without companions, just as
am without luggage" laughed the
girl.
And then she opened the piano and
struck few notes. There was some.
thing caressing in the way in which she
touched the keys. Whoever she was
she knew how to make sweet music;
sad music, too, full of that undefnable
longing, like the holding out of ones
arms to ones friends in the hopeless
distance.
The lady bending over the fire looked
up at the little girl. and forgot that she
had brought neither friends nor lug
gage with her. She hesitated for one
moment, and then she took the childish
face between her hands and kissed it.
"Thank you, dear, for your music, !"
she said gently.
"The piano is terribly out of tune" !"
said the little girl suddenly, and she ran
out of the room and came back carrying
her knapsack.
"What are you going to do?" asked
her companion.
II am going to tune the piano." the
little girl said, and she took tuning
hammer out of her knapsack and began
to work in real earnest. She evidently
knew what she was about, and pegged
away at the notes as though her Whole
life depended on the result.
The lady by the fire was lost in
amazemant- Who could she be?
Without luggage and without friends
and with a tuning hammer!
Meanwhile one of the gentlemen had
strolled into the salon, but hearing the
sound of tuning and being in secret
possession of nerves he fed, saying,
1.-THE tuner, by 1oveP'
A few minutes afterward Miss Blake,
whose nerves were no secret possession,
fastened into the salon, and in her
usual imperious fashion demanded in
slant silence.
81 lave just done," said the little
girl. 1.-The piano was so terribly out
of tune; could not resist the tempta-
tion.'
Miss Blake, who never listened to
what airy one said, took it for granted
that the little girl was the tuner, for
whom M. lie Proprietaire had promised
to send; and having bestowed on her
condescending nod, passed out into the
garden, where she told some of the
visitors that the piano had been tuned
at last, and that the tuner was a young
woman Of rather eccentric appearance.
"Really, it is quite abominable how
women thrust themselves into every
profession" she remarked, in her mas
culine voice. 1T is so unfeminine, so
unseeGly."
There was nothing of the feminine
about Miss Blake. Her horse-cloth
dress, her waistcoat and high collar,
and her bi!lycock hat were of the mas
culine genus. Even her nerves could
not be called feminine, since we learn
from two or three doctors taken off
their guard) that nerves are neither
feminine nor masculine, but common.
II should like TO see this tuner"
said one of the tennis players, leaning
against tree.
.Here she comes" said Miss Blake,
as the little girl was seen sauntering
into the garden.
The men put up their eyeglasses and
saw a little lady, with childish face
and soft brown hair, of strictly feml-
nine appear ance and bearing. The goat
came toward her and began nibbling at
her frock. She seemed to understand
the manner of goats, and played with
him to his hearts content. One OF the
tennis players, Oswald Everard by
name, strolled down to the bank where
she was having her frolic.
"Good afternoon" he said, raising
his cap. 81 hope the goat is not wor-
rying YOU. Poor little fellowl This is
his last day of play. He is to be killed
to morrow for table d'hote."
"Wbat a shamel'' she said. Fancy
n be killed and then grumbled aiF'
THAT is precisely what we do here" )"
he said. laughing. "We grumble at
everything We eat. And l own to being
one of the grumpiest--though the tady
in the hoise.cioth dress yonder follows
clo,e upon my heels"
..She was the lady who was annoyed
ut me because 1 tuned the piano. 4 Inc
little girl said. "Still 1t had to be done.
It was plainly my duty. l seemed 10
have come for that purpose.n
ut has been, confoundediy annoying
having it out of tune,n y he said. i've
had TO give up singing altogether. But
what a strange profession you have.
cbosenI Very unusual. isn't it?"
"Why. surely not" she answered,