The Newtown bee. (Newtown, Conn.) 1877-current, 1902-05-09

holes in your stockin's and get to firt-
ing with that red-headed Slason girl,
Joe. Now Serena, she is all right;
she's real nice girl, though she's
most too young to settle down YETI
Irene had the air of grandmother
and Kitty Tompkins is pretty and
smart and Mimy Estes can make better
pound cake than 1 can. and that's
sayin' something; If you set your mind
on any Of them 1 won't say word.
But 'aint goin' to have you margin.
Min Slason. I'll marry you myself
first"
"Who's said anything about Min
Slason?' said Joe irefully, "do you
think I'm fool?"
"Why, no, not exactly" said Irene
ref1ectively; ''but Pm afraid you're one
of the kind that can turn fool on tur'
, rible short notice, joe"
eth be your fault il l do" retorted
Joe. eff you'd agree to have me with.
out any more fuss I'd keep away from
the other girls"
"No you wouldn't, Joe," affirmed
Irene gravely. "That's just the
trouble,-you don't know your own
mind. And what's more 1 don't know
it, either, in this case. II 1 did we
could manage all right. But 1 shan't
run any risks"
Joe had finished his pie. He rose
and came around the table. He was
six feet in height and the tiny kitchen
seemed in danger of total wreck every
time he moved. He came and stood by
Irene's chair.
"What be we goin' to do about it?''
he demanded. eff 1 don't know my
mind an you don't know it, how be we
a goin' to find out what it is?''
Gwen get at it somehow" replied
Irene.
Joe looked down at the gingham clad
figure and at the expressive hands that
were folded on the table.
"I'm goin' to kiss you, Irene," he
said abruptly, bending over her.
"No, you aint," rejoined Irene calm
ly without moving.
why not?" he demanded.
Because you might want to kiss
Serena this evenin', and then you'd
think of this and wish you hadn't. i
amt goin' to have you wishin' you
hadn't. Besides, II wouldn't help you
to find ont ;;-oLr mind, If that's what
you're thinkin' Of. Good land. you
wouldn't have any mind, in week, if
you took to carryin' on like that"
Joe Strengthened himself up sulkily.
81 b'lieve you're WITCH" he said.
I'm e'enermost ready to say that I
won't have nothin' more to do with
you." '
"An right, Joe," responded Irene
cheerfully; "but mind you steer clear
of the Slason girl, and tell Serena
A bang of the kitchen door finished
the sentence. Irene was alone with
her meditations.
Joe's evening at West Lennox was
not success at first. Serena inform
ed him merrily that he was too late
with his invitation to the picnic as she
had already promised to go with Thad
Kitty Tompkins had gone
to party and Mimy Estes was enter
the Ryeboro town clerk in the
parlor. The strains of her accordion
1oated out tantalizingly through the
open windows. Joe was beginning to
lose his temper. He told himself
that girls were Eighty lot, anyhow,
md man would better keep away
rom them unless he wanted to be al
ways in stew. He might have known
hat Whitman fellow would be after
Serena, but he wouldn't have thought
hat Mimy would have taken up with
man that was growing bald headed |
wen though he was the town clerk.
IS for Kitty, it was no use bothering
our head about girl that went some
where five evenings out of week.
Not that he cared! Irene needn't
worry about his head being turned by
ny. They
lie pulled up his sorrel suddenly at
light of figure coming up the road
the soft spring moonlight. 1t was
liss Loring, he knew by her walk.
1iss Loring was summer boarder at. !!
Vest LennOx in those days when sum-
Ter boarders were yet a novelty. She {
anne each-year with the first violets