The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1896-08-22
neither of us was content to assign to

neither of us was content to assign to-
gether. Mine, the sender claimed, was
q presentment Of the features Of Miss
Alicia F~eatherbone, and this, with the
verbal description Of her mental at
tributes, was so bewildering a revela-
ton of feminine t~ranscendence that
could by no means feel that Mr.. Rachel
was worthy of her.
Arthur R~agelsburg Rachel, Vivette's
pet correspondent, had what she APP
provingly called a stunning head"
and, though l had my reason for not
being jealous, yet her barcfaced w.nr-
ship of this pseudo Adonis aroused me
to retaliation, and / embarked in a
reckless eulogy of Miss ~Featherbone.
Before long we We're in a fair way to
quarrel owe the misalliance. l say
quarrel With Vivette-one is too much
interested in tempting the bewitching
smile that fiickers in her eyes, that
catches her lips, when the current of
humor swirls, and if her mood falls
into a demure quietude, that registers
the minimum degree Of vitesse II
SiStent with her temperament; and,
though I have seen her serious, it has
never been my provoking, assure you.
But what was l saying? We played
at Cross purposes, for the novelty OF
the thing-What would we not do for s.
new sensation9 and, with Rachel as Il
war cry. she swirled into a fantastic
scYtie upon my pretended jealousy.
l fell fairly i'll Of the name of Rachel.
which she flung at me edgeWlsc
through the open door, as she left INC,
and twittered through the keyhole be-
fore she entered. She sang, ""Thou art
my Rachel, believe me'-"promise
thou ne'er will deceive me'-with sup
erlative variations. She named the cat
Rachel, and she bribed the waitress to
ask every morning: "NVill you have
Rachel and eggs or beefsteak?' She
name with a huge watchman's rattle.
She wrote Rachel on the mirror with
soap.
1 bore it all mcekly, being more
amused than l pretended. 1t is one of
our rules that you mustn't return pie
in the same way; but | was i~ndefatisa-
bic to my visible alteration OF Miss
F%eatherbone's portrait. and her name,
lending itself to symbolical representa-
ton. 1 adorned my hat with chicken
lCIlllcIS n1u WlS1luOACS LIA
the tokens before her rival.
After several days Of the farce,
Virettc proposed a return to the city.
l vas awaiting this and had my traps
set and baited with Rachet's address.
We were in town forthwith, and ut
our luncheon at the cafe, Vivette
around a * rrer Of a table in a wicked
little bonnet Of her own fabrication,
,,,o,,o.,,-rol +1,> ~,nNynrcotiOn in an
overt attempt to excite my curiosity.
"Where is Chester street, she asked.
Two hundred and eleven Chester
street was the alleged residence of MI.
Rachel.
"It's out by the Conservatory Of
Music" l replied, "a small house on.
the corner opposite the cemetery"
why, how do you know" said
Vivette.
"I've known Arthur Rachel all ny
life," 1 said.
you're a horrid thing-you anu your
don't believe you"
"She is not DID," I exclaimed. "She
is only nineteen, has the complexion Of
an infant and can speak French. l
hope she has better manners tnan
yours. l SHALL call and see this after
noon."
GO along! 1 shall be busy myself"
said Viyette, out of the side of her
mouth.
"Where are you goipg?" I asked.
"Confess you're jealous" she pouted.
"Indced, I am" l said, and Vivette
was herself again. She gave me q
comfortable demonstration, and left
me, saying: Farewell! I shall see
you at dinner time"
l was so sure of it that I had it or
dered prepared at 211 Chester street,
which, it is time to confess, had long
been a property of mine-a haunt In
the old days when 1 was beginning to
make my reputation in the Romance
association, and had many an out-of-
the-way rendezvous. St..
l must confess, too, that l had spent
several hours in an ineffectual search
for Miss Featherbone, who had, II
seemed, sent me a false address-and
though l shouldn't have minded de,
scrihing the visit to Vivette II 1t had
been successful, vet l felt very young
ut the prospect of telling her how l
had bcen swindled. though 1 had no
suspicion of her hand in the game.
i SOl 10 luN ll(bllSC ANSAO wv S0oAt AOsS
as I pulled up the front shades and
gave my instructions to Jacob, l saw q
familiar little figure coming up the
walk and curiously accommodating the
porch for the number.
Jacob met her at the door, and from
nv coisn, 1 heard an elaborate colloquy
in the hall. After a few moments he
came to me and said:
kITA a,~S< l0 f1,n lo1v VrOn'rQ QXnQof-
ing at all, sir. She wants to see Mr..
Rachel. all right, and made out she
wanted to sell him some scented soap.
sir. But here's the name, sir; and
what sball 1 Say?"
And Jacob handed me q caro- on
which was engraved:
MISS TEATHERBONE,
oil Chester Street.
And Vivette, dimpling gaily, with her
hat u bit atilt, entered and compl1-
mented the partie carree, giving me
four kisses; one for herself and one for
Miss Featherbone to me, and two from
the same vivacious pair for Arthur
Rugelsburg Rachet.-The Lark.
A Sketch of Charles Lamb.
"As his frame, so was his genius. 1t
was as fit for thought as could be, and
equally as unfit for action; and this
rendered him melancholy, %apprehens-
i've, humorous and willing to make the
best of everything, as it was, both
from tenderness of heart and abhor-
renee of alteration. His understand
ing WIS too great to admit IN absurd