The Cooperstown courier. (Cooperstown, Griggs Co., N.D.) 1902-1913, 1904-02-04


Is Nell and screamed To be CALLED a
small boy is SO frritating-when one
is! And Mat is undeniably understood.
But he did not see the cause of our
mirth. He said, severely: . T. -
Its all very we'll to laugh, but /
think it's your duty to make her drop
1t, II you can You think 1t over - ,-e
So Nell and l thought it over. To
tell the truth, wefelt fattered by Mats
confidence In our power to, do some
thing, and we agreed with him In
thinking that something ought to be
done.
Mabel Rogers used to be considered
the prettiest, brightest, most popular
girl in town before she went to visit
her New York cousins; but that visit
nearly spoiled her. When she came
back her aim in life was to look and
act and talk like the city girls she had
met, and of course she overdid it. No
city girl ever would have recognized
herself as the original Of Mabers ,ex-
aggerated imitation. ii
She wore her pompadour about three
sizes too big; her manner was all
"gush," and her affected way Of talk;
ing made it a standing joke in town
that mabel Rogers went to New York
on the cars; Mabelle Wogehrs came
back fwom New Yawk on the cabs"
What. Mabel needed most, think,
was brother. have noticed that the
girls who have brothers are not so apt
to get silly little airs and affectations
as other girls are; i have often wished
had a brother, but Mat does very
well. He keeps me supplied with many
of the comforts of one, particularly in
the matter Of frank criticism. !. Z:
Nell and thought it all over for sew
eral days. We Thought hard. 1T takes
hard thinking, I have discovered, to
find d really successful way of not
minding your ewRns business. In the
end, 1 am sure we would have given it
up If. Nell had not had an idea. in
~ tia 81 She is always having ideas IN
She had this. one while we were
teadings.sih the! hamp ocl<G one after.
noon. and she gave little bounce that
Imades the hammock flop, and throw us
out on the ground. Our hammock has
the; hqppiest disposition, anyhow.
Then, while we sat there on the
i grpund;fF weak from laughing, she. ex-..
planned that she had the loveliest idea.
Il said 1T; seemed, to- have quite upset.
her, but she utterly snubbed my poor
srNioY
81 just found in this. book, -. she went
on ssimihas similibus +: :curantur::.4s Il
wonder we didn't think of it before. Z
Translate: it, 7 said iinever have.
ideas in, Latin myself.
+ And you expect ito. enter. college
this fall!" Neil said, significantly.
g Like cures like of course, my dear.
I've heard It. somewhere before, n she
added honestly. - IS. ~. e,y.., e..ny
"You mean" began # = r.
Exactly" Nellie assured me. 'We'll
inst try being affected ourselves, and
E51ets Mabel see hoMsillV it is:'' '.:ss 81. !
rs !, had, u.s. Il, said Mat Mabel.
Would bess1nore likely to- ses that We
were just rude, and perhaps we WOULD
only Offend her instead Of reforming
her. Mother agreed with me, too. She
advised us, If we really felt called on
ito mend Mabelss NJ ways, to- tell her:
frankly what we thought, instead OF
using method that was SO likely to
be misunderstood. s~=s =s4
But Nell and 1 agreed that we did
not have the courage to do that, and
besides, this other way would he more
fun. Mother smiled and did not SAY
any more. She never nags, and she
never says II told you so, my dear!"
She. just: lets me find out a good many.
things for myself.
So Nell and spent several days in
learning how to do it. We studied
Mabel pretty closely, and confess 1
had kind of sneaking feeling. for she
is one of the sweetest, frankest, most
generous girls I ever knew.
f. But at last we considered our educa-.
ton completed, and one afternoon, we
started out, withstrailing skirts bor-
rowed-and absurdly bepompado
heads, to make q formal call on Mabel.
We flattered ourselves that we had ac-
CURED the correct accent, and our
manner was affected to a point several
degrees above Mabel's. We tried it on
Mat before we started. and he nearly
had a fit.
At Mabel's house we usually walk
right in and announce ourselves, but
this afternoon we rang the bell and
brought Maggie with her tray. /
know she was surprised, but she was
game" as Mat would have said. = =
As we gravely presented our cards
and asked for "Miss Wogehrs and Miss.
Mabelle," her face was as expression
less as ifIwe were perfect strangers.
She quietly showed us into the parloy
and went to "tell the ladies'" She
came back in minute to say that Miss
Rogers was out, but Miss Mabellei
would be down in q, minute. ...... .,....
Nell and wondered afterward II she
gave Mabel a hint. We have never
found out. ne *S!3. g,s.
Perhaps our sending our cards
warned Mabel. At any rate, when she
came into the parlor nothing in her