Smyrna times. [volume] (Smyrna, Del.) 1854-1987, 1894-01-31

A few evenings later we saw a girl
with about as pretty face and figure
as you could imagine, watering some
flowers in the little front window gar
den. We held our breaths, almost, as
she was so exceedingly pretty, and our
united gaze caused her to blush and
draw behind the curtain from out of
range of our too apparent admiration.
THE house now possessed a real
charm for all of us, but, alas it was a
great change in our behavior toward
one another. The chums that were,
were chums no longer. Each one
would make some excuse to pass that
window, where now the object of our
admiration was generally engaged in
some kind of needlework which woman
seem everlastingly doing and never
done with. Our evenings were no
longer spent together. l think we
used to go sneaking round the house
to try to get look at her shadow on
the blind At least, I'll be candid
enough to say l did.
"Things became more and more
strained until one evening, by the
merest chance, we happened to be all
together in the room; We sat in grim
silence for a while, when suddenly
Tubly BrOwn-yOu remember Tubly,
don't you, Jim? great, but good-na-
tured chap, always first to make up to
a fellow even when you knew he was
in the right of quarrel-well, Tubly
burst out laughing and slapped me on
the back with his pondeIOus hand. I
asked him surlily what the matter was,
and for an answer he only chuckled
the more, and finally blurted out:
Look here, you fellows, what's the
good of our falling out about chit of
a girl with whom none of us are even
acquainted? Dash it all ! We've been
chums fer three years, and Pm ready
to give up any little advantage l have
in that quarter for the sake of auld
lang syne.
This allusion to his advantage
rather nettled the remainder of US, of
course. None of us could see it, and
Hare said he thought he had more of a
pull than any one. One thing led to
another, until we began telling how
many smiles and mods had been cast in
our direction, each man trying to out
do the other in exaggeration. Finally,
l said:
Well, it is plain that since she is
equally charming to us all, she must
be an outrageous little firt. What
shall we do, boys, to pay her off for
foOling us?'
oh, by the way broke in Frost, L
heard for the first time, to-day, that
she is married.
"A chorus of Obs and Nos great
piece Of information, and particulars
were asked for and given. It turned
! out that her husband was bookkeeper
in wholesale house downtown; he
went to his office early and did not re-
turn until late at night, so that we
never saw him.
Worse and more of it l'said Tubly.
She deserves good lesson
Each of us knew in our hearts than
our yarns about her smiles and nod
were fibs, but each thought she might
have encouraged the other, and Jealous
madness seemed to seize us, with its
usual desire for revenge. Then and
there we cOncOcted a scheme to hu-
initiate that pretty, innocent little
woman.
I'VE all met the next day, which
was Sunday, and watched the house
from a short distance After a while
we saw Mrs. Bemis, as we discovered
her name TO be, and her husband, come
out prepared to take walk together.
Now was our chance. We carefully
noted the direction they took and
marched off in the opposite one, so that
by the time we got around the block
on which the college stood we would
meet them face to face. We went
single file, allowing good distance be-
tween US, and rounded the corner. 1
was first, and as passed the pair I
raised my hat with a great flourish, say
ing at the same time:
How do you do, Mrs. Bemis?"
She naturally looked confused, and
L, glancing behind, saw the husband
apparently asking who 1 was, and how
she knew me.
Hardly had he time for any further
questions before Tubly came along and
with a swing, dotted his hat, repeating
my inquiry. Soon after Frost and
Hare repeated the operation, greatly
to their delight and poor little Mrs.
Bemis' discontinue. We all then fol-
lowed, keeping them plainly in view
from the shrubhery in the college
grounds, and saw that our plot had
succeeded. Mr.. Bemis seemed very
much excited, and apparently would
not listen to any explanation OF his
wife's. I'll guarantee that they never
put in more miserable afternoon in
their lives.
None of us saw our divinity for
some days after this, and when we did
we felt conscience-stricken, she looked
so pale and sad. Well, to make a long
story short, we all of us noticed that
Bemis was constantly in the neighbor-
hood of his home during the day. He
was evidently watching his innocent
wife, and soon lost his position in the
store, for he could not nav Droner at