Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1899-12-21

Tim was In No. As room, iWhere 1T
spent every evening talking 20 men VI
his own ilk, emitting the common 'cour'e'
sizes Of clubmen. - :.
No. a is a unique, constitution ION the Is
land of Nantucket. 1t derives its name
from the fire engine which is it's special
charge. 1t is an old hand,engineland has
Ind it's nose nut out of joint blythe new
steamer which the town in,a fit ofsprodi-
gality purchased recently. eohef people
say 1t Is more ornamenta"thallt useIui,
and it certainly does look pretySwhen IT
goes through the old lanes.
No. A is still in commission, Just the
same, and, while it may beta little old
fashioned, IL there is ever lire, which
Is rare, the combination of No. 4 and No.
As men is hard to beat.
But there Is good deal more to No.
than that. 1t has risen to point
| where it yields great social and political
| inheritance. Candidates for Office like
to call No. As men their friends. 1t is
| far from being Sunday school, and the
common run of the clergy'would probably
not feel much at ease in the society of
Its members.
But this story does not deal with No.
4s affairs SO much as with one Of its
| members.
His companions noticed that Tim was
unusually silent this evening.
Billy Newcomb, who had happened to
be rabbit shooting upon Coatue when
Tim had taken ON his cargo, had been
keenly Interested in the adventure.
While oilers were seeking solicitously
for the cluse Of Tins silence he was
biding his time. All they had got out Of
Tim had expressed about as much as a
crows crak, but Billy got rise.
I'll tel you what's the matter with
Tim. Hes In love-"
"Neverp one declared. "Tim's the last
one"
"Well, II bet you it Is so, for 1 seen
him with that Hayward girl, scallopin,
today. s. now!"
SNOW, jest want to know" said an
other. ''Vell, well, IL it's so, I'm glad O.
1t. It's Ugh time, Tim, an l wish you
we'll"
Others Wished Tim well, too, so thor
oughly arl increasingly that he had no
time to eplain, if he had had words to
explain imself, which may we'll be
doubted.
He returned home to his mother early
that nigh, and the next thing he went
to see Pests instead of going to No. 4.
He was cceived with warmth that
brought tie blood to his face and kept it
there for ne rest of the evening.
The conversation was mainly devoted
to the pas season and the prospects of
the next nd the probable market quo
tations onscallops when Lent came.
1t was My when Tim started to 60
that he approached the subject of his Wis
it with tepidation that was plainly Wis
ible to Pests, as it might have been to
any one.
II wond,r," he began-that is, I was
thinkin sCrter-that Is, whether you'd
ever DANCED. Don't want to seem inqus-
tive, you know, only kinder thought I'd
like to know"
"Why, res. Tim, l can dance, an like
to- what's more"
well, I'm glad-that is, ! might be lie
only Tins arms, in a series of ges-
lures not modelled after the Delsarte sys-
tenn, were vainly trying to help him ex-
press himself. "You see," he continued,
I'VE No. 4 boys have n series O. dances
every winter-that is. assemblies, we call
'em-an l kinder thought you might sort
or like to go?"
When he had at last sailed through his
1iihcultins uf epeaoh. Tim was standing
on one leg, and there was perapisation M
MS brow.
"Why, yes; certainly I'd like to go.
You're real kind"
Tim quickly turned, opened the kitchen
door and departed without even saying
good night.
Tim was himself again when he went
to No. 4 the next evening He showed no
ut the gibes which were aimed
ut him, and they finally ceased He only
said, "You jest wait till the dances be-
GIN"
This they did, and there was not SOL
cmn face in the hall when he entered 1t
the following week with Persis by the
hand.
1t was happy winter for Tim, almost
the happiest he had ever known, and it
was not until summer came that he found
n fly In his ointment. There had been no
expressed understanding between the
pair, but then understandings are not al
ways put in words. 1t was only when
Tim and Persis misunderstood each other
that they approached the subject of their
relations with each other.
1t happened when the summer season
had begun. Tim had appeared in new,
trim surrey, and business was good, and
the world looked sweet and lovely to him.
But, however the extremely virtuous
may feel about it, jealousy is no respecter
Of persons. When Tim passed the Sea
View House, he always stretched his
neck and looked for Persis. Persis gem
orally saw him and waved and smiled
The city people smiled, too, and thought
it was so pleasant to see n happy pair of
lovers, even in humble life"
But there were times when Persis did
not see Tim. They were not many, to
be sure, but enough to crush the life out
of him. That Persis could ever be seen
laughing and joking with stranger and
not see him when he passed killed his
heart, summoned all the baseness in his
soul to the surface and ut last made
him the sepulcher Of a once happy ma
tup.
1t was MI done In minute. lie did
not often see Persis, but once in the mid
die of the summer he met her when his
resentment was hot within him.
See here, Persis," he bcgan-and
sncech came easy and without hesitation
to me you're sometimes pretty
close to them city fcllers. An what do