The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1915-03-26

father.
Meantime Feeble Phoebe Day was
driving her fathers horse up to the
Mills to bring Cephas Cole home. 1t
was a thrilling moment, a sort of out
ward and visible sign of an inward
and spiritual tie, for their banns were
to be published the X day.
1t had been an eventful autumn for
Cephas. After a third request for the
hand of Miss Patience Baxter and a
refusal of even more than common de-
cision and energy. Cephas turned
about face and employed the entire
month of September in a determined
assault upon the affections Of Miss
Lucy Morrill,, but with no better avail.
Cephas' belief in the holy state of
matrimony as being the only one prop
err for a man really ought to have com
mended him to the opposite land un-
gratefully sex more than it did, and
Lucy Morrill, held as respectful an
opinion Of the institution and its mani
fold advantages as Cephas himself,
but she was in a very unsettled frame
Of mind and not at all susceptible to
wooing. She had a strong preference
for Philip Perry and held an opinion,
not altogether unfounded in human
experience, that in course Of time.
when quite deserted by Patty Baxter.
his heart might possibly be caught on
the rebound. 1t "A only Il chance.
but Lucy would almost have preferred
remaining unmarried even to the with
ering age of twenty-five rather than
not be at liberty to accept Philip Perry
In case she should be asked.
Cephas. therefore, by the middle OF
October could be picturesquely and al
li~teratively described as being raw
from repeated reflections. His bruised
heart and his despised ell literally
cried out for the appreciation so long
and blindly withheld. Now all at once
Phoebe disclosed Il second virtue, her
first and only one hitherto in the eyes
of Cephas having been an ability to
get on with his mother-a feat in
which many had made an effort and
few indeed had succeeded. Phoebe, it
seems, had always secretly admired.
respected and loved Cephas Cole.
Never since her pale and somewhat
CLASSY blue eye had opened Oh life had
she beheld a being she could so adore
if encouraged in the attitude.
The moment this unusual and unex.
pected poultice was really applied to
Cephas' wounds they began to heal.
In the curse of a month the most
ordinary observer could have perceived
q physical change in him. He cringed
no mOre. but held his head higher; his
back straightforward; his voice developed
Il gruff, assertive note like that of a
stern Roman father; he let his mus
tache grow and sometimes, in his most
reckless moments. twiddled the end
of it.
And then congratulations began to
pour in. Was EVER marriage so for
t%uitOus? The Coles farm Joined that
of the Days. and the union between
the two only children would cement
the friendship between the families.
The fact that Uncle Bart was a joiner,
Cephas a painter and Abel Day a ma
SOL and bricklayer made the alliance
almost providential in it's business op-
pOrtunities. PhOebe's Massachusetts
aunt sent a complete outfit of gilt
edged china. a clock n a mahogany
chamber set. Aunt Abby relinquished
to the young couple a bedroom and a
~r 1o,Dn -, kh@ Sp,n{r ~ - + -
while the Days supplied live geese
feathers and table and bed linen with
positive prodigality. Aunt Abby trOd
the air like one inspired.
IF only l could "a looked ahead"
smiled Uncle Bart quizzically to him
self, I'D "a had thirteen sons and
daughters an married off n Of 'em
every year. That would "a made Ab-
by's good temper kind o. permanent"
Cephas Was content too. There was
a good deal in being settled and hav-
ing 1.-The whole doggoned business of
your hands. Phoebe looked a very
different creature to him in these lat
ter days. Her eyes were just as pale,
of course, but they were brighter, and
they radiated love for him. an expires:
sion IN the female eye that ne had
thus far been singularly unfortunate in
securing. She still held her mouth
slightly open, but Cephas thought that
it might be permissible, perhaps after
three months of welded bliss, to re-
quest her to be more careful in clos
ing it.
Cephas did not think of Patty any
longer with bitterness in these days,
being of the opinion that she was pun
ished enough in observing his w
growing popularity and prosperity.
If she should see that mahogany
chamber set going into the ell l guess
she'd be glad enough to change her
tune thought Cephas exultingly, and
then there suddenly shot through his
mind the passing fancy, Il wonder if
she would!' He promptly banished
the infamous suggestion. however, re-
enforcing his virtue with the reflection
that the chamber set was Phoebe's
anyway, and the marriage day ap-
nOinted and the invitations given out