The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1914-12-18

"S"J SO"he pouS itiuS uOL uuCOlu-
fortabIy on the bel OF corn husks.
and the patchwork comforter drawn
up under her chin. she could think.
but for the first time she could not
tell her thoughts to Waitstill. She had
a secret. a dazzling secret. Just like
Ellen Wilson and some Of the other
girls VINO were several years older.
Her afternoons experience doomed as
large in her innocent mind as if it
had been an elopement.
Il nope I'm not engaged to be mar
ried to him. wen if he did The
sentence was too tremendous to be
finished ever in thought. IL don't
think l can be. Men must surely say
something and not take it for .~"lntel
you are in love with them and want to
marry them. 1t is what they say when
they ask that | should like. much bet.
Ter than being married. when I'm only
jI!5t past S"T"ntrcn. | wish Mark was
Il little different. | don't like his care
loss ways. He ahmircS me. | can tell
mat by til" way he looks. but he ;d-
inires himrclf Just as mach and ex-
poets me to do the same. Still. sup
'p~" non" of them are perfect. and
Girls have to forgive lots of little
ihln@S when they are engaged. Mother
AUST have forgiven = COCO u.anv
lhingS when she tonN father. Any
way, Mark is goin| away for a month
III business. so | ShAn't have to make
Up my mind Just yeti" Here sleep de
~""ndcd upon tn" slightly puzzled, but
on the who'" DELIGHTFULLY."- rnmplacent
title creature. bringing her most al
.Hrin@ and nntruStworthy dreams.
The dear Innocent had indeed no
need Of haste. Young Mr.. Marquis d."
Lafayette WilSon-Mark for Short-was
not in the least a gay deccivrr or ruth
."SS breaker of hearts. and so far as
known no Scalps of village beauties
we're hung to his belt. He was a lika-
bic. light weight. young chap. as indo-
lent and pleasure loving as the strict
customs Of the community would per-
nit. and a kiss. in his mind. most Ger.
tainly never would lead to the altar,
e he had already beer many times
q looll. hlSS i dJlSIlCC IiAlcI Is
maiden meditations and uncertainties
and perplexities, therefore, were decid-
edly premature. She was a natural
born, unconsciously artistic, highly ex-
pert and finished coquette. She was
Ill this at seventeen. and Mark at
iwenty-four was by no means Il match
Tor her in this field of effort vet. But
n,,n{ip,N ~, =, .>%;,, >-, ,:x.-- 49,
lhe net the cOquette loses her balance
nd falls in herself. There wasn't a
ait of harm in Marquis de Lafayette,
iut he was extremely agile jim keeping
out of nets.
WaitStill was restless. too. that night,
Though she could not have told the
reason. She opened her window at the
back of the house and leaned out. The
evening was mild. with a soft wind
Flowing. She could hear the full brook
flashing through the edge OF the wood
lot and even the "kerchug" Of an occa-
siOnal bullfrOg. There were great misty
stars in the Sky. but no moon.
here was nc light in Aunt Abby
Coles kitchen, but d faint glimmer
Shone through the windows of Uncle
Bart's %jOiner's shop, showing that the
old man was either having an hour of
peaceful contemplation with no COM
paniOn but his pipe or that there might
be a little group of privileged visitors,
headed by Jed Morrill,. buSily discuss
ing the affairs of the nation.
Waitstill felt troubled and anxious |
tonight. bruised by the little daily tor
ments that leSsened her courage but |
never wholly destroyed it. Any one
who believed implicitly in heredity
might have been puzzled. perhaps, to
account for her. He might fantasti-
cally picture her rs making herself out
of her ancestors. using a free hand.
picking and choosing what she liked
best. with due care for the effect of
combinations; selecting here and there
and modifying. if advisable. a trait Of
Grandpa or Grandma FOXwell, of
Great Uncle or Great Aunt Baxter;
borrowing qualities Iavishly from her
W gentle born and gently bred moth
er and carefully avoiding her respect
ed fathers stock. except perhaps to
take a dash of his pluck and an ounce
OF his persistence. Jed Morrill, re-
marked Of Deacon Baxter once, "When |
Old Foxy wants anything he'll wait till
hell freezes over afore he'll give up
Waitstill had her fathers firm chin.
but there the likeness ended. The
proud curve of her nostrils. the clear. |
well opened eye with it's deep fringe
Of lashes, the earnest mouth, all these
came from the mother who was little
more than a dim memory.
Waitstill disdained any vague,
dreary, colorless theory Of life and it's
meaning. She had joined the church at
fifteen. mOre or less because other girls
did and the parson had persuaded her.
but out of her hard life she had some
nov framed a courageous philosophy
that kept her erect and uncrushed. no
matter how great her difficulties. She
had no idea of bringing a poor. weak.
draggled soul to her Maker at the last
day, saying, Here is all l have man.