The Van Buren press., 1898-02-26

BY Lealse z. Van Norman.


T-EeglE and I we're friends Ne Lad
always been friends siuee-usi-
since We wore dresses together. Thai
was when / MAS FIVE ard she mas faur.
We were. from that time. always To-
peiher. Like brother aud tister. fDo
aasf More than this. For brothers
ard sisters are not always elose friends.
We were ebamE. She went eaer9w here
wenf and did everything ] did, ands
as we grew up 70 boYbooo and giflboods
we were inseparable. Even When had
attained the dignity II long pants !
preferred her society to that q ny
male friends. for there was nothing
soft about Tessie, except, perhaps. her
eyes. and they were beautiful, soft
hazel.
She yag strong and athletic but u
slender build, could drive. row and
swim as well - / could; and bad
complexion well Drowned by long and
intimate acquaintance With Godis sun
light a brave gin, too. remember
well how once she swan across q quar-
Ter Of 5 mile u ehoppg river to pet he
doctor Tor hat grumpy Old Sarah Tore.
the lighthouse keepers wife. She loved
the cross Old woman. she said. although
no one else saw anything Ia her 10 love.
Then Tess went 70 boarding school
md came back ii the end Of three years
with q little Of that horrible tan
that's what her proper sister Laura
called it-QoHe out Of her checks, ahd
Just The faiBfest trace Of city manners
about her; but At heart The same dear
Old Tess a. ever.
Now, although my girl friend aud
had known each other 70 long and -
intimately, yet we bad never fallen IN
love with each other. | am positive Of
Ibis. because when got soft On Jennie
Bingham and ia'ished all my money on
flowers for Der. Tess only laughed.
Then there WAS he time fell head over
heels IN love with dashing Cora Sands.
Why, then ! had II bad got 10 the
stage where you moon around street
Formers aud carve her name On old
siumps and gate posts. ! even wrote
mg name and hers together on the mar
rage page u the old family Bible, just
10 see how II would look. aud then
rubbed II out IN guilty haste. Even then
didn't Tessie get up the lawn party aud
maneuger so that Cora and | were part
ners for the whole evening Aud then,
there was the Jack Manners episode
Jack quite lost his head over Tess, and
asked her father II be could marry her.
think be even proposed elopement 20
Tessie. Bat she didn't love Jack, she
said, and 80 wouldn't hear Of bis vast
ing any time or money on her. And
didn't feel bit jealous. ! am sure !
didn't. So you see ms quite plain that
we had not given the mischieyous lit
lie god Cupid any work TO do for Us.
but now ! was 20 aud Tessie 10, aud
somehow, as I took Tie shapely little
hand she offered me 10 welcome her
back, after those three years AT school,
somehow II came 10 me suddenly that
Tess was q beautiful girl, aud that her
eyes were bewitching, And there. came
into nay heart a strange, uncomfortable
feeling Installation, jealousy
what was M II certainly WIS not
pleasant. Suppose some one should
take il into his head TO fall in love with
Tessie aud marry herr Confound him,
But then, what was that to me2 ] was
not In love with her. OF course not.
We were only friends. Aud yet in
ftinctiyely dislikcd this fellow who
might make love TO my girl chum
The summer wish particularly TO
tell you or the one following Tcssie's
return from school, our folks aud her
folks decided to spend The hot season
~ "A little mountain hamlet with an UNI
pfououncable name mixture OF
French aud lndian-3O miles or 20 TO
the north Of Lake Superior. We had al.
ready spent one season there aud knew
Of a good boarding house where they
gaya you enough 10 eat, and were 700
unsophisticated 10 charge ruinous
price. II WINS a uc-horsc sort Of q place,
containing about q dozen families,
mostly French Canadian habitants.
primitive US Noah. Two or ihrce hay
seed Yankees came there in The logging
season and spent the summer in Du-
luth The population numbered about
100 persons. The town was perchcd
right on The side Of a. l,l00-foot. high
hill. Dover mountain, they called H..
Directly back 81 this hill-in fact. al
most q continuation of 1t rose tall.
pointed mountain about 5000 feet hlph.
which the French hnhunuis called
Ducrc's Spine. This cmincncc. as We'll
ns The bin on which the little village lny.
as though IL had been dropped there.
was very ihiclly wooded, Justa little
fpuce close about The houses had been
cleared NJ trees, while for miles around
eNtcndcd the dense virgin forest, most
90 whose heavy growth Of pine. cedar.
chrsinu oak and hickory, besides "a
rank underground of sumo and scrub
eak. lad never been dcsecrated by the
sJD1mln'a as.
ihe folks were 90 90 mp 10 this Wild
ltifeai carly ~ the summer, aud WA