The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1900-11-10
inner five and twenty years ago,

inner five and twenty years ago,
said mother.
"When our Swiss trip was over
and we were settled at home again, ]
induced mother to invite Uncle James
and Miss Stubs to pay us visit at
the same time. She said it was an
absurd arrangement, and would lead
to nothing, but she sent the invita-
tions nevertheless. Father and moth
er always let me do as I like and have
the things I want, because I am the
only daughter. Girls with shoal of
sisters don't get nearly as much of
their own way as I do. People al
ways think more of al odd cup and
saucer than they do of whole tea
set and yet I sometimes think it
must be jollier to be one of a tea-set,
after all.
"'You are too fond of acting as an
amateur Providence, Madge, mother
faiig ffaig oaeett thylt ! don't mind -helnine- Won
Mother always says this once
about the kind things she has done in
the past and will do every day in the
future and she seems to think this
expression protects her from the we'll
founded charge of over-indulgence.
$50 Uncle James and Miss Stubs
came to stay with us. My uncle ar
rived first. and as he sat with mother
and me in the morning room, he ask
ed, is any one else staying with you,
Jane?'
Only Miss Stubbs,' replied
mother, and she arrives this after
noon. We met her at Lucerne, you
know.
"'Oh some girl that Madge took
great fancy to, isn't she?'
" I took great fancy to her. 1
answered but she ism a girl. She
is quite elderly
What a nuisance ! said uncle,
in his sharp manner. L hate old
women, and old maids especially
You won't hate her, James,
said mother, soothingly. She is so
quiet and unobtrusive that you'll
hardly know she is in the house
Then she smiled sly1v at me, and
felt my matrimonial plans foredoom-
ed to failure.
At that moment Miss Stubs ar
rived and mother and I ran out in the
hall to meet her. She looked as fad
ed and washed out as ever, and as I
followed her and mother into the
morning room l sighed over the futil-
ity of my well-meant scheme.
Let me introduce my brother to
you, mother began. James, this
is But before she could finish her
sentence Uncle James jumped up and
seized Miss Stubs by both hands,
crying: why, Annie you don't
mean to say that it's you, come back
to me after all these years?' And
there was look on his face that the
tenderest pork chops or the safest in
vestments had never been able to call
forth.
and trembling all over. And it is
really you, James? never dreamed
that 1 should see you again
"'This is the Annie Lorimer that
1 used to tell you about, Jane, ex-
planned Uncle James, turning to
mother, but still keeping Miss Stubs
hand in his, but why on earth did
Won call her Miss Stubs? p
miss Stubs answered for mother.
They only knew me as Miss Stubbs,
James. When father came into that
estate which proved such a disap-
pointment to him he had to give up
the name Of Lorimer and take that of
Stubbs, and I suppose I never NEIL
toned that my name had once been
Lorimer.'
Gas we all sat at tea together I
meditated deeply on the romantic sit
uation, and thought how sad it must
be to be parted from a fine, hand
some man, such as Miss Stubs had
described to me, and from a golden
haired fairy such as uncle used to talk
about to mother, and then to meet
twenty-five years afterward when
transformed into a fat old bachelor
and faded old maid But my cup of
amazement was full when 1 heard
Uncle James say:
What have you been doing to
keep yourself so young, Annie?'
You hardly look day older than
when I last saw you 7
"And Miss Stubs replied You
also are scarcely altered bit, James.
1 should have known you anywhere.
"This fairly knocked me over. 1t
is absurd to say that Love is blind.
Love sees not only beauties and vir-
tues no one else sees, but what it has
once seen it sees always. 1t is funny
and interesting
"The next day I said to Miss
Stubs: What ever made you say
Uncle James was tall when you de-
scribed him to me?'
because he is tall. Don't you
think your uncle is very fine man,
my zeal
"I don't know; he always SEEM
ed rather short to me, somehow /
stammered, awkwardly.
"Miss Stubs smiled. To you,
yes; but you are so exceptionally
tall, you know.
Whereby learned that height is,
after all, only question of proper
ton.
"On the day that Uncle James ask
ed me in a sharp, masterful way,
What possessed you, Madge, when
you told me that Annie was old /?
Why, she is no more old than I am.
"I felt confused. She seemed
rather old to me, somehow l stam-
mered.
"My uncle smiled. Yes, yes /; but
you are so absurdly young, you
know
WHEREBY 1 learned that age also
|