Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1896-01-16

meetingz breakfast " luncheon parties
occupied he daylight, for the l..lguid
West Indians can forget the heat when
in pursuiE of pleasure, and eFcry even
ing either dinner or some impromptu
gathering was arranged, and the whole
Of her acquaintance 4.ere as if leagued
together to pat every facility IN the way
of Captain Fane's courtship Of Fanny
Crofton. For that he was serious III his
intentions no one seemed TO doubt. Did
not his whole behavior that day when
he invited large party to tea on board
ship betray him, when he almost ig
nored Mrs Sandilands' presence and
asked Fanny to preside over the large
teapot: Although reckoning merely by
hours and days, it was only a very short
time that they had been acquainted ;
still, as fruits ripen quickly under the
tropical sun, it did not appear unac-
countable that, with all the strength of
circumstance and opportunity aiding, the
bud Of love should have grown beau
teous flower before the time arrived for
the Firefy to depart
During these few days. if Captain
Fame felt as if he were breathing an
enchanted atmosphere, Fanny herself
was no less under the influence of the
magic spell But being a circumspect
little damsel, and being also under the
salutary necessity of going through her
ordinary routine of home duties. as
well as having to give more than a
passing thought to her clothing, she did
not suffer her heart to get the better of
her head and when sounded upon the
subject of her admirer by her bosom
friend, Lofty Sandilands, emphatically
declared that Captain Fame had never
once actually said anything to warrant
the superstition that he really cared for
her. only Fanny could not deny that
if such We're the case, and the hand
some mariner made her a formal offer
of marriage, he would not be refused
But, " she took care to add. cit ism t
at all likely that he or anybody else
would propose to a girl when he'd only
known her not quite five days /"
The gala time of St. Vitus culminat-
ed i'll ball at government house, and
it was confidently expected that the dec
laration would be made that night
The ship was to sail on the following
morning, and if matters were not set
tied by them the friendly gossips of St.
Vitus would be unanimous in declaring
the Firetiy S captain recreant deceiver,
and Fan, as she iror ed out the frills and
furbelows of her white frock, and ar
ranged the little details of her simple
toilet, could not help feeling as if this
night was to prove an epoch in her ex-
istence and that however things might
turn out life would never be quite the
same again.
Never in all her life had Fanny
looked more radiantly beautiful than
on that fateful evening. Even Miss Has
lett, though her head was aching from
the thunder which she felt certain was
in the air, was reused into an express
sion of approval as her niece wished her
good night. promising to creep quietly
into the house in the small hours of the
morning. Fanny was generally depend
ent upon some friend for chaperonage
and "a seat in carriage, but upon the
occasion of el rtainments at govern
ment house M Haslett thought it in
cumbent upon him to put in an appear
ance and was now ready to escort his
pretty niece. He would not, however,
sacrifice his comfort and his night S
rest to the extent of remaining to the
end Of the ball, but this was of little
consequence to anybody so long as he
did not insist upon dragging Fanny
away with him at AN early hour.
Saving that the rooms are far more
airy and the dancers, or at any rate
those of the female sex, have twice as
much energy i'll this respect as their
sisters in the mother country, notwith-
standing their general languor Of dispo-
sition, a ball in the West Indies is very
much the same as an assembly 81 other
parts Of the world The tree ferns and
boughs of hamboyant do not serve to
impart specially tropical aspect, ac-
customed as our eyes now are to the
profuse decoration of palms and exotics
which aesthetics and florists have made
the fashion. Where the chief difference
lies is i'll the cream ices, which are
pDOAiiAAAetbAR III AAAO W Cot 1It(ltS, dIU, TO
MS, superior to such sublunary matters,
the balmy atmosphere, so unlike the
chilly evenings of most of our summer
weather, and the wondrous brilliancv
of the stars, beneath which such sweet
heart endangering nothings may be
murmured as partners promenade or
linger in alcoves of the wide, covered
galleries that run round the houses.
1.-The F'ireflies, y as Lofty Sandilands
designated the naval officers, We're. of
course, very welcome importation,
and their nice white mess jackets proved
more popular among the tickle young
ladies than the conventional dress suits
of their better known partners, who had
not yet yielded to the laxity in fashion
which permits the substitution of a
broad silk band instead of waisteoat.
Needless to say, Fanny's card was full
before she had been ten minutes in the
room; but. as if the genius of propriety
needed propitiating, the name of Cap