Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1895-12-12
A PAIR OF TWINS.
Eccentricities of Maiden Ladies Who
Amused an Eastern Town.

ECCentf1C1t1e9 OF MAIDEN Ladies w NO
Amused an Eastern Town.
The curious streak Of obstinacy which
crops out in many New England fami-
lies, especially in small places, where
the range of ideas and occupations is
small, has been brought into promi-
nence through the tales Of a gifted
group Of story writer's, notably by Miss
Mary e. Wilkins People living in
other parts of the country often think
her stories must be exaggerations, but
jewellers in New England towns can
parallel most of them from their own
knowledge.
In one Massachusetts village there
dwelt not many years ago two maiden
ladies, called, though they were over
forty years of age, 1.-THE Hatfield girls. F"
Beside this youthful appellation, they
retained a youthful taste for gay col
ors. AS they were twins, very tall,
very lean, always wearing skirts con-
spicuously short to avoid dust, and hat
brims unusually wide to avoid injuring
their eyes, they would have been rath-
not chosen to dress, school girl fash
ion, in clothes exactly alike to the
slightest detail
They were always together, and 1t
was one of the characteristic sights of
the village to see the Hatfield girls
plodding through the snow to the post
office in their green-and-red plaid
gowns, black-braided coats and big,
brown, fuzzy felt hats with great pea
green bows. Their muffs, mittens, tip
pets, wristers, barege wells, even their
rubber boots, were duplicates of each
other. In fact the sisters were as alb
solutely alike as the twin paper dolls
which little girls cut from piece. of
paper folded double.
In summer it was the same. They
foated by to church in duplicate blue
muslins, Or watered their flower beds
in the early morning in indistinguisha-
BILE hideous purple wrappers.
Suddenly, the village was stirred by
an exciting event; the Hatfield girls
had quarreled! They quarreled be-
cause Mary Abby, who overheard a
small boy making jokes at their ex-
pense, suggested to Ann Eliza that per-
haps it would be as we'll if henceforth
they dressed just a little differently.
Ann Eliza received the suggestion as
the cruelest Of insults; but she said
hotly that, after that, she wouldn't
for a kingdom wear dress off the same
piece as Mary Abby's.
Sure enough, the sisters ceased to
dress alike. Furthermore, they did not
dress tremendously. They were to-
gether as much as ever-but If Mary
Abby wore pink, Ann Eliza had on scar
let; if she wore green, Ann Eliza wore
blue; if it were yellow, she decked
herself in magenta; if it were brown
or gray, she tried to get shade Of the
same color that would make her sisters
appear dingy and faded.
1t was a war of colors waged furi-
ously for week, bitterly for month,
spitefully for a year; then persever-
ingly, resolutely, obstinately, for one
-two-three- four-fve years; from
five to ten; ten to twelve; twelve to thir-
teen.
Neither sister would give in, for af.
ter a brief exhibition of colors Mary
Abby had tried to fight her offended
twin with her own weapons, and to
array herself in hues too violent to be
overwhelmed. They were as gay as
parrakeets, the two poor bitter old
twins, and the interested village had
quite given up expectation of change
when at length a change came.
One morning the Hatfield girls" side
black, entered the postoffice amid a
crowd of staring villagers, and called
for their mail. They were in mourn.
ing evidently-but nobody could think
who had died. At length the postmis
tress ventured to inquire.
EYES," said Ann Eliza, soberly,
smoothing down her new cape, eve are
in mourning. 1t want strictly neces-
sary, presume, but we thought it best.
It's Cousin Johns wife out in Mon
tana. We've never seen her, but we
hear she was a very worthy woman,
and credit to the family"
And whether or not the Ha tfeld girls
mourned deeply for the unknown wife
of Cousin John, it is certain that for
the remaining years of their lives their
clothes were black, and were cut alike,
and the village guessed that they had
found way to end their warfare, with
out acknowledging surrender, or pro-
claiming peace.
A Novel Raft.