The Globe-republican. [volume] (Dodge City, Kan.) 1889-1910, 1901-02-07
90 e Lost
Valentine


Miss Lavinia Dart was. IN her kitchen
one morning in February.
Miss Lavinia rarely lost her self
poise under any circumstances, and
she had not, at the age of forty-six
years, become the victim of that STAY
er of peace and happiness of woman
kind-nerves
'tShe's the easiest person to fit in
this town. said Miss Dodd, the Har-
1eyvi1le dressmaker. AN she's dread
full tasty
Then Miss Dodd, having once "got
started" on the subject of Miss LAWN
ia, would go and say: I'D jest
like to know why she never got mar
ried. I've often been on the point OF
askin' her. but somehow L never could
quite fetch myself to it,
1t was well enough that Miss Dodd
could not quite fetch herself to the
point of questioning Miss I4avinia re-
garding any possible lover of the past,
for there were limitations to Miss La
vinia'S patience and gentleness, and
those limitations were reached when
one attempted to take liberties with
her private affairs.
Presently there was knock on the
kitchen door, and when Lavinia opened
it the Widow Rice, elderly, uncomfort-
ably stout, and in manifest perturba-
ton of spirit, entered the kitchen
Dropping heavily into small rock
ing-chafr near the shining stove, and
over her head to slip to her shoulders,
she said gaspingly and with a sug-
gestion of tears in her voice:
~ do mo- what you'll think, Laviny
Dart; 1 do no what you'll think, but
it want his fault. He couldn't help
it-poOr man! 1t wa mt his fault that
his sled overturned on the way home,
an he never spoke again after they got
i'm to the house. 1 don't see as you
can blame him none or me either ]
do no when I've been so upset by
anything, Laviny.''
What is it, Mrs Rice?'' asked La
vinia- Il have not the least idea OF
what you are talking about
Il don't suppose you do, Laviny- I'm
so upset 1 hardly know myself what
I'm sayin'. But guess it ID give most
anybody queer turn to find that they't
had something ten years that didn't
b'long to 'em, an that the owner ought
to of had years an years ago That's
what's happened to me, an the thing
I've had belongs to you
ITO me?''
Yes, to you Laviny Dart
1T cannot be anything of any con
sequence
Il hope it amt. I'm sure I do. Blu
this mornin' I went up into my atti,
to look round for more cloth to fnis1
up a quilt | opened old red ches
that I've KEEP some o. my poor hus
baod's clothes in ever since he died
because 1 kind o. hated to cut 'em u
or give EN- away an see somebod,
else wearing them The very frs
thing took out was the coat my b Is
band had worn the day he met witt
the accident that caused his death. TIL
sleeves an collar were moth-eatel
that made up my mind that I Nigh
well cut it up an use what wa
good of it for the quilt So I took
an some other things downstairs ar
was shakin' them out in the wood
shed I picked up the coat an wa
shakin' it mighty hard when the oil
1inin' broke loose in one place an GU
dropped letter. Yes. Laviny Oar
a letter addressed to you."
ITO me2''
ITO youl I never was set bac
by anything in my nfet Topped RICH
down on a pile o wood an tried t
puzzle it all out, an 1t didn't take m
no great while to do it. You kno'
how that, US Twin right across tn