St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1898-09-03
HIS COUNTRY HOME.

7 have come to get the key which un
oerstand Mr.. Amrs left here when he movet
away. said the young man.
| oh, yes" said the old lady. "Step righi
IN and Ill get it for yon.s
A large cat made friendly advances, and
was settled in his lap BY the time the Ole
lady came back. She sank ponderously init
| her chair and looked at the young man with
| kindly scrutiny
Are you Mr.. John Arnold, the new
| owner of Mr.. Ames' house,"
Yes. The unhappy owner. should hav.
said few days ago. but now have changed
my mind"
changed your mind"
well, Ill tell you about it" he said
leaning back comfortably in his chair md
stroking the purring cat.
Il took the mortgage On the place with.
out having the slightest idea that it would
ever come into my possession. That waa
five years ago. For some time Ames has
been getting behind on his interest, and
did not look after him as ! ought, SO I was
rather surprised and not little disgusted
when ! found last week that was the owner
OF the place, and that Ames had moved
0i0 uUk ICIuS"UtI LuuCu dOOuI II
except that there was 4 small house on
far from ealable. So there / was with
. white elephant on my hands and no earth
~ use for him."
The old lady smiled.
"Well, in a day or two had brilliant
idea. | was sick in the winter, don't feel
real good now, and the doctor, every time
II hsvn all I - 4
moro. My boarding place Is only I'VE
minutes from the law Office where /
work, and when one is tired be doesn' t
feel like walking, or even riding the
bicycle. just for the exercise So it occurred
to me to come out here to live. Get my
own supper and breakfast, you know. and
putter around in garden. can 60 into
town on the electric cars till the roads get
settled enough to ride my wheel"
At noon he went to his old boarding
place, where he was TO continue to take his
dinners. He had lived with Mr.. and Mrs.
Austin for = number Of years, and Mrs.
Austin felt 4 mothcrly solicitudc for him.
She almost overwhelmed him with questions
a. to whether he slept well, and If he had
breakfast enough, and wasn't he very tired,
and didn't he think be had better stay in
town that night. and was the house properly
aired before he went into it.
For the first week Arnold himself was
little doubtful about his experiment, and
Mn. Austin's fears and questions rather
annoyed him, but ut the end of that time
be began to get used to his new life, and be
became more cheerful than be had been for
months.
By the time the grass began to turn
green he could no. have been persuaded 10
return to his old way of living. Ills house
seemed more attractive as time went on.
He tidied the yard, trimmed the rose bushes
and grape vines, and by the middle of April
he began, with great enthusiasm, TO spade
up a garden patch.
Mrs. Austin sighed and shook her head
until June came. Then, as she saw no pros
pect of getting him back, and as she was
lonesome evenings, she took school teach
rr to board. She was q very pretty girl,
Grace Howard by name, and she was quite
laxative. Mrs. Anstin's dinner table was
! very pleasant meeting place.
Arnold was not used to girls, but it seemed
to him that Grace Howard must be different
from most girls, he felt 30 friendly toward
her, and she seemed such congenial spirit.
He told her all about hH house, his garden,
md Of the long rambles he took on Sundays.
She listened with interest to all he told her !
IF his rural experiences.
The summer went by, and Arnold became
more and more enamorcd OF his country |
nome. The Littlefelds were constant
'ource of pleasure to him, and the two house
holds were very neizhborly.
Then one night, just on the edge Of win
er, a new idea came to him. .'Eow much
,leasanter it would be if Grace were here"
lie thought. aud he sat in reverie for .
ong time. After that be kept thinking Of