The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1904-01-24

that she was favoring his suit. The rea-
son he thought so, the boys had told him
the way to make her fall in love with
him, was to get him a blue broad cloth
coat with brass button on it. buff vest
and lavender colored pants, a silk hat
and kid gloves, and pin on his coat
boutonniere, and, every Sunday morn
ing when Miss Mary sat on the porch or
at the window walk past the house and
cast love chances at her. He did it, and of
course a delegation of mischievous boys
were on the lookout watching his move
ments, as he'd go and come, stopping
sometimes to heave a lovers sigh. After
such dress parade, he generally reported to
the boys the supposed result, which to
his mind was always favorable. The boys
told him to keep on parading, and cast
ing glances at her, and sooner or later,
she'd be certain to fall desperately in
love with him-she just couldn't help it.
Not long after that he received a letter
from (as she signed herself "The Girl
Who Loves" 1t was written on sweet
scented paper and breathed in every line
the most delicious tenderness of senti-
timent; but, with girlish coyness, the
writer said, "I'll not sign my name for
fear you do not love me as I do you, and
you might go off and make sport of my
weakness. But you know who I am, for,
as you have gone by my home these last
few Sunday mornings you could not fail
to sec how tenderly, sweetly. yea, low
ingly I gazed upon your matchless form
and handsome face, etc, ETC." This let
ter went to him through the post office,
and was carried by him right to the boys
to be read, for he could neither write
nor read writing. The reader understands,
of course, that these boys wrote the let
ter He took one of them off to one side
and made him promise not to tell any
thing and the promise being duly made
he handed him the letter to read 1t was
too good to keep, so he let all the boys
read it, which they did gravely enough,
and then very enthusiastically congratu-
lated him upon the prospect of speedily
becoming a rich mans son-in-law. OF
course reply had to be written at once,
and the boy who volunteered to see that
the correspondence should be carried on
all right, said, after reading the loving
effusion to the hero of the story, that he
would properly address and mail the let
ter, which he did by tearing it up. Soon,
however. another letter came filed with
more love than the first, and in it she
made the request that, IN the next Sun
day morning promenade by our house he
would stop in front of the porch, if he
saw her there, and let her feast her eyes
on the man she loved better than she did
herself, etc. And sure enough he did it.
Over on the other side of the street. near
a shade tree, he stood for half an hour,
playing Romeo to his Juliet, but she
thought, if she noticed him at all. that
he was some vain fellow who, proud of
his Sunday clothes, was standing and adj
miring himself under the trees. as he
watched the people going to church. But
the next letter he received told how she
almost went into transports at sight of
him, and then told how miserable she
was and always would be, when she could
not see him, and intimated that marriage
was the only escape to her out of the al
most unbearable condition of things, etc.
That letter almost ran the fellow crazy,
and it was with difficulty that the boys
restrained him from doing something rash.
One or two more letters passed, and they