Griggs courier. (Cooperstown, Griggs Co., Dak. [N.D.]) 1885-1902, 1900-05-17
IN ST = y = TltlfEff
), tkkl
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
: The Yellow Tomatoes :

les and blue eyes. Her name was i'er-
tina Henderson, which was Il difficult
name for Dominicus to remember.
But it was not at all hard for him to
remember the dear little girl with
freckles. She wore tiny black tassels
at the top of her shoes. and white
aprons. rutlled and led upon the shout
ders with large, airy-looking bows, and
the ends OF her smooth braids were
tied with ribbons now the color OF the
violet and now the color of the rose.
Dominicus said to himself that in
Amsterdam he had never known any
little girl so frec]lled and so dear.
81 wish she would look at me-
thought little Dominicus Van Brunt
But he thought it in Dutch. although
when he spoke aloud h managed to
make himself understood in English.
1t must be confessed that little Amer
lean children are too egotistical TO be
polite. Thinking as hey DO that they
arc nodded on the right pattern, they
are inclined to regard all children diff
ferins from them as curiosities They
considered the round faced Dutch boy,
with his shy ways and deferential man
ner to the teacher, a strange little fish
indccd. And no one in all the school
was more amused than the dainty
Bertha, who looked at him covertly out
Of her gray-blue eyes. However, she
did not laugh at him. So DominicuS.
who did not know that she was amused.
and who perceted only her aspect OF
gravity thought her kinder than the
rest and was grateful. If only She
would have spoken to him, or looked
at him as if she were his friend. he
would have had nothing more to ask
he could even have been patient with
that terrible English language which
everyone around him was jabbering.
He determined to do something to
call the attention OF his freckled
hearts-own to himself and one day he
hurried into the schoolroom the first
minute the doors were opened and laid
three pear-shaped yellow tomat oes on
her desk. The scholars came. saw til"
pretty vegetables and had little trouble
in deciding from what source the trib-
ute came For who else in a fashion
able suburb would have yellow to-
matoes. except the son OF the Dutch
gardener? The school indulged in uli-
restrained gigsling. but bertha, in
stead OF anticipating. shot defiance
from her gray-blue eyes. and. turning
with an adorable smile toward Domin-
icus. carefully fitted one, Of the yellow
tomatoes into her red mouth. and deg
voulcd it in the same spirit in which !,
loyal subject drinks to .his king: 1t
was evident that Doni7iicus had been
right. Bertha was different from t%4,c
others. : Ills happiness Stained' tfc
boys :lmi"ble face scarlet, und while
the other boys .ieered AT him a numbe !:
of then, felt Il distinct pang OF jealousy.
They wrr" quit" alive to the .extraor
binary iayer> which ,lHuk Sssxealf shown
him. ~. NM. nm IN f -:
From That day on !;ertha. The ;!;,uYli:
ter of ii prospt, Gus lawyer and Il little
mHid distinctly conscious. Of her social
opportunities. and Dumini3.us. ,lie son
oil the man who raised garden truck,
were friends. There eamca day when
1erthn. having reached the proud age
of ten, gave Il bir: h,laN party on her
fla, hers lawn. and insisted ON huviro
Dom1lricus among her guests-s, ia
NOUS day for Dom ;llicus. ia which he
saw his princess in all the glory of her
best white froc!s. with her hair crimpet.
down her back. and had the rupt tre
OF eating cream tarts in her company.
But there WAS yet q prout!er day il,
which HomiEirus WAS permitted to re-
turn his sor!a! attention.; and WAS al
lowed to invite Bert la and three other
friends to the snowy kitchen OF his
home back Of the garden. where the
mother of Doinnicus sang beautiful
songs to them in Il language they could
not understand. and fed them with
cru1lerS and grape juice bertha
thought she had never seen amy room
so charming as This Kitchen. with its
racls~of hue }l31lhtes. its shining pans
and its illuminated notices upon tn,
wall.
Bertha was not more than 10 when
She was sent to private school. and
as the years went by she saw people
OF quite a different sort from Domin
ASus anu HIS litlnei ana llOlnei. inU
ought probably, to have forgotten al
about. them. But i, is an Andeniabte
faef-*=t no ,gh it may have,sSloMn snms
evidences of vulgarity in*hHtsna 'ixss:::;
that :ab: he years thaEAs$A$Sda&sst
pied*=ffita other matttrs::sRsucll as
boardiny school and summer resorts
and coming out" and the gaycties O
Il winter i'll the city. she repemheree
that curious Kitchen. and The people
who lived in it. and wondered where
they had gone. For it happened thai
one autumn. after returning from III,
sc"shcre. Bertha had discovered tina
the house back OF the garden wa:
empty. 1t had been Il sad moment TO,
her. She had felt the tears come t,
her eyes as she looked at the untid,
piece OF GROUND where the eNquisi1cl,
kept garden Of Jacob Van Brunt hat
been; and the windows. from, which tn,
round face of her friend had Otter
smiled at her. repulsed her NOW witt
their baroness.
1t happened that in course of tim
Bertha had Il notion TO go abroad. anG
l..