Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1900-05-30
BY WILiIAr1 BLACK.

~ "S6klAEJ 06ASAe
combe appears Mt the bow. and gets bod
, OK the long pole. while Miss Ross.yn
comes along and joins her friends aft.
Il had no idea it had left OF raining"
she observes, innocently.
Il hope you got the banjo properly
tunedT one Of us says to her.
oh, yes; it Is much better now," .he
answers pleasantly. and with an artIess
air. But Mr.. Duncombe was too mod
est. He can play very fairly indeed.
DE played two or three things just to try
the banjo, and l was quite surprised"
Oh. you can give him some lessons.
Peggy" her friend says: but the young
lady won't look her way: and the sar-
| casm-if any was intended-is lost.
We mOOred at WallingfOrd that night !:
and by the time that dinner was ready il
was dusk enough to have the lamps and
| candies-iighted. And perhaps. as we sat
| in this little room-and observed our
young dramatist's feeble efforts to guess
| at what dishes were the handiwork Of he
amateur cOoks-the place looked an the
more snug that the pattering of the rain
! on the roof was continually audible.
Dinner over. the two women-folk retir-
ed to the upper end Of the saloon, next
to the big window: and Mrs. Threepen-
ny-bit took down the banjo and. without
word, handed it to Miss Peggy.
"Ah. know what will fetch you." the
girl said, with a not unkindly smile.
! She struck few low notes Of introduc-
ton, and then began: "Once In the dear
dead days beyond recall" 1t was an air
that suited her contralto voice admirably
and when she came to the refrain-"Just
a song Mt twilight. when the lights are
low"-she sang that with a very pretty
pathos indeed; insOmuch that when she
had ended Queen Tita did not thank her
with any speech, but she put her hand
within the girls arm instead and let il
remain there. With her disengaged arm
i Miss Peggy held out the banjo.
you now." she said to Mr.. Duncombc
, in her frank way.
He took the banjo from her, of course.
"Oh, l can't sing" he said; but II.
quaint little ballad that most people know
Of, though very few have heard the
whole Of it. | imagine"
Then he sang, with good expression. Il
with no great voice:
"Its l was a-walking one morning in
May
! kins play,
l espied young damsel, 30 sweetly sung
she,
Down by the Green Bushes where she
chanced to meet me-"
| "Remember," said he, 1.-THE words were
written down from memory, and may
have got them all wrong"
Then he went on:
maid|
I'm waiting for my true love- softly she
! said:
Shall be your true love. and will you
To leave the Green Bushes and follow
with me?
I'm buy you the beavers and fine silken
gowns,
I'll give you smart petticoats flounced to
the ground,
I'll buy you fine jewels. and live but for
thee,
, II you'll leave your own true love and
| follow with me-"
''The founced petticoats make me think
the ballad paust be DID," said the trouba-
dour; and he continued:
oh, l want not your beavers, nor your
| silks, nor your hose,
For I'm not 80 poor as to marry for
clothes:
But If you'll prove constant and true
unto me,
Why, I'll leave the Green Bushes and
| follow with thee.
Come, let US be going. kind SIR. II you
| please,
Oh, let us be going from under these
| trees,
For yonder is coming my true love. see.
Down by the Green Bushes where he
/ was to meet me.
"And it's when he came there and found
she was gone,
He was nigh heart-broken, and cried out
fOr,Orn:
She has gone with another and for
| saken me,
| nd left the Green Bushes where she
used to meet me-
"Well. now. call that just delightful"
! Miss Peggy cried, at once. why. I
| haven't heard anything 80 quaint and
pretty for many a day! Just delightful
call it. Mr.. Duncombe, it is always
shame to steal peoples songs, and espe-
cially this one. that is in a kind of way
your own property; but. really, should
| like TO take it back home with me. Would
you mind singing il over to me some
other time? l think I could remember
it."
But 1 will copy It out for you." he
said, instantly.
1T would be too much trouble" she
rather faint-heartedly suggested.
1T would give me a great deal of pleas
1 .A said hA IN.
earnestly, and she thanked him with her
| Eyes east down.
| We had some further playing and SIM.
ing (but no "Virginny;" oh. no; she was
too well behaved; the time was not yeti.
And by-and-by the hour arrived for our
retiring to our several hunks.
| CHAPTER v.
It rained the next morning, but the
afternoon was clearing. though there WAS
still an April look about the banked-up
clouds. with tkeir preadths of bronze u:
saffron -hued lights here and there.
had had some thoughts Of pushing :"
Oxford that evening; but as rain began
Ito fall again, and as we wished Miss
lPeggy's first impressions Of the famous
University town to be favorable. we re-
solved upon passing the night at Abing-
ldon. Indeed, we were all Of us glad to
lret in out of the wet; and when water
Iproofs had been removed, and candles
lighted, the blinds drawn, and Murdoch .
tministrations placed on the table, 1t did
not much matter to us what part OF
England happened to be lying alongside
our gunwale.
We had no music this evening. for ev-
lery one was busy in getting his er her
things ready for going ashore on the fol-
lowing morning. Alas! for our fond de
sire that Miss Peggy should approach
lOxford under favorable influences OF