Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1895-09-04

oId1ls 1namorara, ana naraly nstu ne gOU
there when female form, clad in
black and deeply veiled, stepped from
the darkness under the trees and stood
dimly revealed.
''Are you ready, darling?" whispered
John.
eyes, % was the whispered response,
'but I thought you said you woulc
come in carriage. -
"You must have misunderstood me,
sweetheart" P" replied John, "for / don t
remember saying how J. would come
Let me assist you to mount. -
81 don't know whether 1 can ride or
not, feel so queer and foolish. :"
That is natural under the circum-
stances. You are nervous, dear, and will
soon be all right. We must hurry, for |
have hired the ferryman to wait for
me-
In minute later the two were flying
down the road. Soon the sound of car
riage wheels came to their ears. For a
few minutes John said nothing, but it
was not long before he was convinced
that some one was following him.
"Don't be frightened, DEAR" he said
in loud whisper, "but let US ride
faster. F"
"Why?''
II think we are pursued, and if not I
do not care to have the carriage behind
us overtake US.
The lady caught her breath, and in a
rnn1,on.1f fhayy ofyfor,
along the level river road to the landing
place of the ferry.
The carriage still kept within hearing
distance, but did not seem to gain on
them. Presently they came to the ferry,
and hastily tying the horses John lifted
the lady daEn and stole a kiss from
under her veil as he did so. The ferry
man was waiting, but it seemed to the
flying lovers that he would never be
ready to cast off.
''Make haste" said John to him un-
der his breath. "We are followed, and
our pursuers are drawing near"
The stupid boatman made desperate
effort to hurry, and in SO doing unship-
ped one of his oars and it flew from his
hand and was lost in the dark waters of
the river.
Just then the furiously driven car
riage drove up and a gentleman jumped
out, without seeming to observe the
three at the boat side.
"Hellop' cried the newcomer in
stentorian voice. "Where in blazes are
you, you lazy luhber?'
"Here be, sir, if you are meanin
me-" answered the boatman
As the newcomers voice rang out
there were two exelamations in unison
from the ladies, and each tore her veil
from her face, just as the moon broke
through a rift in the clouds, and there
was such tableau as is rarely seen
anywhere. At the side of the boat stood
John Brown and Mrs. Jones, while near
the carriage stood General Brown and
Jeanette
For a space the length of which none
of the parties present have ever tried to
compute these four stood as if trans
fixed, while the boatman looked with
wondering eyes from one to the other.
The general was the first to recover
himself.
John-madam, he said, twill you
please explain yonrselves?"
To this very reasonable request
neither replied.
''It seems" resumed the general,
after a solemn pause, ''that some mis-
take has occurred -
Mamma, were you. going to elope,
too?" inquired Jeanette, whose mind
had gone from cause to effect and back
again, and aided by woman S intuition
began to divine i'll dim way what had
happened.
Then explanations followed, and it
was discovered that there had been two
elopements planned for the night instead
of the one we know Of
"We're discovered, "said the general,
gravely, after the matter had been fully
explained. "Shall we go on like fools
or go back like sensible people and get
married each to the woman of his
choice, like men and women and Chris
tians ought to?"
That is all. They went back and
were married, and the writer hereof
sets it down as his own conviction that
they have lived happily ever since. And
SO the feud ended. memphis CONNER
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