Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1898-12-15
How Polly Proposed.

Hi. Iii! All right! Now We sha Il I
be long!" said the gray parrot.
regret TO say that the irrepressible
young man that brings the daily milk
is the tutor OF my parrot in the latest
up-to-date slang OF the day.
| am an old sea captain AT least,
not old, perhaps the word slipped out
unawares. | am on the right side OF
90, anyhow but being in receipt of a
pension and small private Income to
boot. | have cast anchor in my present
abode in the expectation OF weather
ing many a winters storm yet.
Being without known relation in
tie world i willingly fell in with the
suggestion that ! should pick up my
moorings alongside my old friend and
messmate, Capt. Travers, late K. n,
who, having left one of his legs on the
west coast OF Africa while capturing
a SLAYER, was pensioned OFF All an even
earlier age than myself, and now lived
with his siSter-a most comfortable
party, fat, fair, and 40, or Whereabouts
in the adjoining house TO mine in
the neighborhood of London. We had
always got on well together, our tastes
and dispositions were similar, and We
had often met during our naval ca
reers. His sister l had not previously
been acquainted with, but, being in
many respects like her brother, We
we're soon firm friends.
Capt. Travers and myself had each
A fayorite parrot-his the common
African gray, with a red-tipped tail,
and mine the purer variety, without
trace OF color, but otherwise similar.
| had not long settled down in my
new quarters, and got everything
shipshape, or what seemed SO to me-
very important difference, as |
know today-when, almost uncon-
sciously at first, began to feel what
lonely old bachelor / was and what a
set-off TO all my other belongings the
figure OF Miss Rachael Trayers would
be by my ttreside. But just here the
curse Of my life began to make itself
felt. Inherent shyness in the presence
OF the opposite sex had logged my
footsteps from my earliest recollec-
tons. Give me gale OF wind in the
bay OF Biscay, tornado in the trop-
les, 20 hours duty on deck, wet
through to the skin, and Capt. Manley,
late OF the P. and o. service, will
thank you for it, and consider life
well worth living; but as dispenser
of delicate attentions to the fair sex,
intensely as he inwardly admires their
pretty ways, Capt Manley does not,
no. he certainly does not, show up to
advantage.
Although fond of pets generally, l
have an antipathy to cats, especially
at night. | am nos aware that our
neighborhood was particularly bene-
fetal in It's aspect or other qualiiica-
lions 10 feline constitution, but
know that until was inhuman enough
10 start an air-gun cannonade on my
numerous nocturnal visitors. | was
frequently unable 10 get a respectable
nights rest. One Internal black and
wA.,e Tom defied my finest efforts. II
average eats have nine lives, / am
sure this one must have had 10, and
began TO wonder what sort OF I'M
canny being this was that had no OBJ
lection 10 letting my bullets pass
apparently through It's body without
suffering any inconvenience. But
after all Ii must have been my bad
craftsmanship, for one afternoon /
saw my enemy quietly walking up the
low fence that divided my back gar
den from Capt. Travers'.
The opportunity was too good to be