Sullivan republican. [volume] (Laporte, Pa.) 1883-1896, 1895-03-22

Wildwood, coaxingly. ''Dear Cousin
Lesbia, Mr.. Wildwood is 80 anxious to
obtain it for his collection of anti que
publications.
"Oh, it isn't old enough to be OF
value as antique!' said Lesbia, who
was "honest enough"
"But he has set his heart on it,"
pursued Mrs. Wildwood, growing
more earnest, as she heard the rattle
of wheels in the distance, and beheld
through the tiny-paned window
| depot wagon, bringing to the scene
no other than Aunt Nabby herself.
'Do let me have it, Lesbia!"
And she placed the twenty-dollar
bill, coaxingly, in Lesbia's hand.
"Bnt shall be cheating you," said
Lesbia, looking at the bill in amaze
ment. "Do let me see Aunt Nabby
about it frst!"
"No. mol" said Mrs Wildwood, as
Aunt Nabby's voice was heard with
out, in high disputation with the
driver as to whether coin she had
given him in payment was genuine or
not. "Give it to me now! And here
is my sea!skin cape; you were inst ad.
miring it. I'll make you present OF
it. Lesbia-a wedding gift, dear"
"You are very kind" said Lesbia.
with radiant face. "And if you
really care for the dictionary"
And so it came to pass that the die
tionary was safe i'll Mrs. Matthew
Wellwood's possession, when Aunt
Nabby hustled in, full of the iniqui-
ties of drivers, the inconvenience Of
travelling, and the threatening twinges
of her annual rheumatism.
"Whatr' she cried, rs her eye
caught sight of the fat volume in her
niece's lap, "you've got the diction-
ary, after all But of course you'll
let mo have it, Sarah Ann?"
Certainly shall not!" said Mrs.
Wildwood. exultantly. "Mr. Well
wood has set his heart on possessing
it,"
"And I've Just sold it to her, add
ed Lesbia, as she assisted Aunt Nabby
to unite her bonnet strings.
The old lady heaved a deep sigh.
oval, 1t don't matter SO much,
said she. "The main thing was to
find the dictionary. And if fyou'll just
let me copy out the recipe for max
ing waffies, Sarah Ann, that's pinned
on the page W first of the WIS, you'll
see--. it'll be jest as good as if l had it
myself"
"The recipe for wafflesl" cried Mrs.
Wildwood. "Was that all you wanted
of it2"
"That was ALL" said Aunt Nabby,
briskly. "Samuel's wife, she was a
dreadful good hand at waffles, and she
never would give nobody the recipe.
But knew where she kept it, and !
was always tryin' to get at it. And if
you'll just let me copy it out"
Mrs. Wildwood grew pale. The
ceiling of the little, old-fashioned room
seemed to swim around her.
Was this the end of the dictionary
mystery? Had she entertained the
Grubb family for ten mortal days,
had her piano broken, her china
cracked, her nerves shattered for this
Had she paid twenty dollars, seal
skin cape and her travelling expenses
| to Poke Hollow all for recipe for
waffles?
The buzz of conversation went on
all the same, and Mrs. Wildwood re-
covered at her leisure. She returned
| to New York that afternoon, carrying
the old dictionary, although Lesbia
endeavored to induce her to remain,
by the promise of waffies for tea, made
after Aunt Hannah's famous recipe.
And when Mr.. Wildwood discovered
that there were no thousand-dollar
bonds, nor hundred-dollar bank-notes
hidden in the dictionary-nothing
but definitions, ink-blots, and one or
two cooking-recipes pinned to the
pages, he indulged in execration more
deep than loud.
''It's all that meddling old cats
fault" said he, referring, doubtless,
to Aunt Nabby. "And I'll never have
her in the house again !"
And he never did. But all that
didn't restore the twenty-dollar bill
and the sealskin cap. And innocent
Lesbia was the only one who reaped
benefit from tn, transaction. -Satur-
day Night.