The commercial. (Union City, Tenn.) 190?-193?, 1902-04-18
FLORA AND HANNAH.
BY MARY e. WILKINS.

~~NN-~J
Ithappened number Of years ago,
lWhen valentines were made more ac-
/ count of than they are.now. Why, IN
those days some valentines were al
most as good as an offer of marriage.
/ am sure Jonty's was. He meant 1t
FOR one, and | knew he did. Jointly,
his name was ] Jonathan, but we always
Scalled him Jointly, was my husbands
youngest brother, and he had lived
with me ever since his father died,
when he wasn't much more than a
baby.
HE was 20 years younger than my
husband, and we both Of us, since we
Ididn't have any children Of our own,
Hooked upon him as son. My hus-
lband Dust set his eyes by his little
Ibrother, and he was pretty boy, the
reddest cheeks, and the curliest light
hair, and he was just as good as ne
| could be, always ready to run errands,
get a pail Of water and bring in kin
ding wood, starting the minute he
was told, and goin' laughin' as If he
was tickled to death at havin' chance
gto do somethin' for somebody, The
way he used to wait on Grandma
| Page, find her glasses for her, and
| hold her yarn, was really wonderfulin
a boy. Grandma Page was his and
Caleb's, my husbands, great-grand-
mother. She was pretty old when
.Jonty came to live with us, and when
that happened about the valentine
she was near 80, but one OF the pref
test old ladies you ever saw, cheeks as
pink as girls, and her white hair all
4 WaEy, and she wore the incest white
caps, with lavender ribbons on them.
We were proud of Grandma Page,
and She was one of thoseittle, gentle,
delicate, clinging creatures that ev-
erybody loves and pets. People used
to say she didn't have much force,
and couldn'tdo anything but knit and
look peaceful, and pretty, but she
wasn't half the care that most old
people are. When my husband died
Jonty was most IS years old, and it
was the greatest comfort to me that
/ had him and Grandma Page. Jointly
he took hold and run the farm just as
smart, and we got along well, and had
plenty of everything, though l was
sad enough sometimes.
/ felt dreadful sober when Jointly
came to me that afternoon about the
valentine. 1t made me think of the
time when Caleb sent me valentine
for one thing, and then couldn't
help feeling little sad that Jointly
should be thinkin' of some other
woman beside his grandma and me,
though / knew it was for the best
if he got good wife and helpmeet.
But tried to look as cheerful as |
could. Jointly didn't act half as silly
and ashamed in asking me as some
boys would have acted. He was al
ways real honest and simple and out
spoken, and never seemed to see any
reason for being ashamed of anything
that was right. He never colored up
a mite, though his cheeks were al
ways like roses, as bright as a girls,
and he laughed kind Of sweet and
pleasant when he showed me the little
sheet Of gilt-edged paper with a
bunch Of rosebuds in the corner, that
was to go with the handsomest val
entine | ever laid my eyes on. There
was paper cut somehow so you could
lift it up in sort of spiral twist and
see underneath couple seated in an
arbor all covered with roses. What
Jonty wanted was little poem writ
ten on that sheet of paper. Cant
you do it, Aunt Jane?" said he, in his
coaxing way. He always called me
aunt, though was really his sister
in-law
'SWhy, my land, Jointly, don't be-
lieve / cam said I. ''I'm afraid I'll
spoil this beautiful paper"
cob, no, you won't, " said he. "Do,
Aunt Jane"
Now l have really had quite name
for writing poetry, and once piece
on the death Of Deacon Briggs wife
was published in the paper, butt have
written mostly in albums, for people
on the deaths of relatives and
friends. and then they would keep