The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1901-08-23

| II SC0nt to 90 to Strdthb0ro and git mar
| Tied," she cried.
done started, tryin to keep laughin,
like twas joke-'if you does says /,
nary table will ! set for you. I'm
tellin you the truth, and you know
what things is likely to be withouten
me- says l."
The famous cakemaker had relieved
| herself, but truth and Scripture still
failed to make new NIilly, as little
| time was to show. 1t was the after
noon of the wedding day when Lucinda
arrived. The ceremony was to be per-
| formed that evening. The house was
already full of guests and was like q
| hive of swarming bees, such a buzzing
and hurrying and scurryng were there.
| for toilets were in the making, and
many white dress, brought, like Lu-
einda's own. in saddlebags, must now
be ironed out, be the kitchen quarters
| filled with never so much anxiety and
turmoil of their own.
The men, more or less unhappy and
stranded, tried to keep out of the way
| and staid chiefly out of doors. Despite
intermittent, decorous efforts to save
| himself for the great moment, the
| bridegroom was painfully conspicuous
among them, being a marked and soli-
tary man by reason Of his ''store"
clothes.
Ethan Simms was exactly the sort of
| male creature that looks upon such
eminence as thing hard to bear, but
now, as the common fate of bride
grooms, he gazed at that long tailed,
brass buttoned blue coat with heavy
hearted envy, He was sadly depress-
| ed about his love affair. He was an
| excellent fellow, and there is evidence
| of it in the fact that he had moments
of sympathizing with Lucipda's reluc.
tance to marry him,
"Maryel Is that she ever thinks she
WILL" he would say to himself, but
final reflections always supported him
in his desires, as is the way with final
| reflections, and he would conclude that
nothing better than Wedding him was
likely to come to her. That he argued
il out with his passion shows the rea-
| sonable temper of the man. And who
would have liked him better for arriY-
ing at any other conclusion? Certainly
| no woman.
Twilight found him sitting alone on
the fence, smoking and meditating
means for bringing Lucinda to the al
tar.
'If it was once DONE" he said to
himself as he brought his long legs to
the ground, knocked the ashes out of
his pipe and returned it to his pocket,
"she'd be better content nor she is now,
but she is that skittish and she sees
through me that quick that l don't
know what sort of devices to fall
upon"
In the house the candles were now
lighted. Sleek ringleted young women
came forth In groups; family poten-
tates disappeared; the store clothed
bridegroom was followed moment by
the arriving parson, and then he, too,
became invisible. The air was tense
with expectation. Low, eager talk
about tuckg and embroidery, "tine
swiss" aud ''clocked stockings was
drawing the women's heads together.
Finally this died out. The parson was
spirited away to the fateful upper re-
gions. Still no bride and bridegroom.
The delay was extraordinary. Opin-
ions that it was outrageous were brew
ing, for supper YOU see, was still to
eome. An odd uneasiness was In the
dir. In fact, to make a long story
short, Milly Anson had chosen this
hour to declare that she would not be
married to Thomas Simmons-not shell
Tears, revilings, corporal shakings,
threats of immediate death from her
father, given With a truly awful sim
eerity OF mien, all availed nothing.
Milly was a weak creature and had
capacities for stubbornness to be found