St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1904-10-08
Y MARGUERITE sTABLER.

BY MARGUERITE sTABLER.
SOoOcOoOcOcOcO<
ut AMT 'lowin' I'm any better >
l the rest of 'em, but now say
Lou, mean Miss Louise, amt We, tina
is, can't ye-''
But with each saambling word tn
straight shoulders of Miss Louise wa
Strengthening into ramrod erectness
"Win you never realize, Mr. Muir
ply" she interrupted, with a Chilling
accent on the mister, that where Their
is no congeniality there can be no
ahem, esteem?"
And Murphy, whose plea had beef
Just plain, old-fashioned love, note,
the naughty shoulders before him, an,
his heart went into his boots
1T isn't that I have ceased to Xix,
Mr.. Murphy" the girl explained late
to one Of the summer boarders. "bu
before went away l had never me
any cultivated people, and didn't know
how impossible he is. was too y0unl
anyway to be engaged, and you cam
think how his ungrammatical CONVEX.
sation CRATES upon refined sensibili.
ties
Murphy, meanwhile, had stamped
around by the kitchen, out to the barn
and through the corral to the canyon.
'Taint no use, guess,'' he said tc
himself, when hours later. remember
ing it was milking time, he pulled him
self together and started off stif1y up
the trail. Murphy had felt ever since
Lou had gotten hel' certificate that the
times were sadly out of joint for him,
but could not quite fathom the cause.
He could not see himself as Lou saw
him in contrast with the people she
had met at the normal school. the
teachers institute and the oddly as.
sorted guests who filled the little Buck
Valley inn. "The pity of it is that l
ever encouraged him to think l cared
for him." she repeated to herself when
ever reproachful qualm strayed into
her conscience
And Murphy, to be sure, was not a
romantic figure as he swung along the
Grizzly trail. His hair was undeniably
red, and his face aggressively freckled,
his frame was loose jointed and sham
bling, and his usage of the kings Eng
fsh-most objectionable of all his
faults in Lucy's sight-betrayed a con-
tempt not bred of familiarity. That
many of the visitors who came up
from the city found pleasure in his
companionship for his keen wit, good
hard sense, and woodcraft, had never
touched Miss Lou. There was a young
bank cashier from the valley, cal
low, brieflessN barrister from the city,
q well-set-up engineer from that, to
her, vague and mysterious region
called back east" who lounged on
the porch, fished up the canyon and
supplied her ideals of manly dignity
and quality.
It had been hard enough to bear
with Jim's crudities when she first
took the school, but when the vacation
season opened and people from the
towns sought out her mountain fast
ness, she felt 1t inconsistent with her
calling to be followed everywhere by
Jim; by man who unblushingly de-
scribed the swagger young cashier as
''the Teller l had took up the stream
Onct or twict last year." and announced
loudly enough for every one on the
porch to hear that the barrister was
1.-THE FUNNIEST shot have ever saw"
But If Lou could have OWNED the
struggle Jim Murphy was making with
his unkempt English when he met her,
the next day at the spring, she might
not have flouted him quite SO cruelty
"Say, Lou" he began, in the old IA
miliar way, but managed to correct |
himself before the flexible shoulders |
had reached the pinnacle of their dis
dain-''say, Miss Louise, yell go to the
dance with me Sat'd'y, won't We? An
say, now"-but fearing another word |
might involve his syntax still more |
and settle his fate forever,
he simply fastened his eyes upon her |
and waited. dumbly.
THANK you very much, Mr.. Muir
ply" the girl answered, in cool, SUI
perior tones, Il can't give you posi-
tive answer just now, but I will let
you know by Friday" Whereupon
Murphy gulped down retort and
backed off down the road.
Friday was a safe distance Off Lou
to give either the cashier or
The barrister time to ask her. and as
she had only thanked Mr.. Murphy and
not told him he might hope for any ia
FOR at her hands, she felt she had
managed the affair with rare d.
olomacy.
do you see how the little school
na'am is playing the fellow" the
began to ask each other as
hey watched the play going on, and
aw the big, good-hearted fellow get
ing the worst Of it. And many there
vere who longed to take her in hand ]