Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1894-04-27

| under covers very quickly. When had
thought diligently for an hour, l turned
over and said this to myself:
1.-The old fat beast! The idea Of her
marrying him! I'll propose myself to
her tomorrow morning. She has been
expecting it, I know. for long time. -
I didn't sleep very we'll and arose a
| little after Z o'clock 1t took me an
hour to dress myself, and having no ap-
petite for breakfast I only drank a cup
of strong coffee. 1 then walked nearly
a mile before I had decided what to
say and was barely satisfied with the
result. Edith was the sort of girl to
be particular about such things, and l
wanted to please her fancy.
Mrs. Burke came to the door and was
| just as much surprised to see me as I
thought she would be.
sit was very good of you to come so
soon," she said, land 1 didn It think you
knew it YETI
"Knew what?" said I.
She pulled me inside the hall and
looked at me, half smiling and half
fearful.
Didn't you come to-er-congratu-
late anybody?"
Then 1 sat down on the hatrack and
shook my head. I felt that it was all
over, and that old Browne had won, and
never in my life did I suffer so much
misery in SO small space of time.
'Then, said Mrs. Burke, 81 am glad
to be able to inform you myself. Edith
and Bob are engaged to be married.
arose and sat down again. I thought
of many things, but only one sentence
struggled through my lips.
'Does-does old Browne know about
it?'' [ asked.
''Oh, yes, but it won't interest him.
Before he went down town this morn
ing he told me that he would have to
give up his room on account Of the sun
shining in it too brightly in the morn
ing. I'm going to turn the whole house
now over to Edith. ''-R. B. Cramer in
Philadelphia Times.
Texan Hospitality.
1.-THE latchstring hangs out" ex-
pressed the hospitality Of the southern
frontier in the days before the war"
IT traveller rode up before the fence
that separated the log cabin from the
road, he was greeted by, "'Light, stran-
ger, light" Without this salutation
no one dismounted, but it was rarely
withheld. Mr.. Williams, in his book,
''Sam Houston" thus describes the i'm
pulse of hospitality, = hich made every
f,1x n fIo ,o711, cnff To-
ment OF Texas:
The traveller who rode up to the front
fence was instantly invited to alight.
His horse was staked out or hobbled to
feed on the prairie grass, and the Wis
itor sat down to exchange the news with
his host The coffee mill was set 60
ing, if there were any of the precious
grains in the house, and the hopper in
the hollow log to grinding the corn.
The venison OF bear meat was put on
the Goals, and the ash cake baked.
After the meal and the evening pipe,
the visitor stretched himself on buff
falo robe on the floor with the members
Of the family and slept the sleep Of
health and fatigue. In the morning the
response to any inquiry as to the charge
was, "You can pay me by coming
again"
The story that certain hospitable
settler used to waylay travellers on the
road and compel them to visit him at
the muzzle of double barreled shot
gun was only a humorous exaggeration
of the instinct for hospitality which
characterized the community. :
The visitor was living newspaper,
who brought the only news obtainable,
and was welcome relief to the monot-
ony and loneliness Of the Wilderness
Youth Companion. :