Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1918-01-08
By J.LHarbour

and plants were OF tne Olu-IdSIliOuee
varieties. Miss Semira did not care
for floral novelties" She liked hel
four-o'clocks and ragged robins ant
acknowledgement and bleeding hearts
better than any "others" she had evel
seen.
Miss Semira was so small ant
fragile looking, with such delicately
tinted pink cheeks, and such fluffy vel
low hair that she looked quite like 9
flower herself as she moved about ir
her little garden in blue lawn dress
with little white flowers In 1t, and hel
lace-trimmed snowy white apron II
which there was neither spot nor wrin
kle. She was STOPPING over picking 6
dead leaf or two from one of bel
geraniums when a shrill. rasping voice
startled her by saying.
"How nice your flowers do look. Miss
S'mira; an how sweet they smell.
can smell them clean over to my
house when it's still or when the wint
is blowin' in that direction. You allus
have such good luck with 'em. Flow
ers grow better for some folks thar
for others"
Miss Seuira looked up and saw
tall, gaunt woman in q chocolate-col
ored calico dress and green and white
checked glngham apron standing a
her gate. A red and white tennis car
perched on one side Of her iron-graJ
head gave the woman grotesque
look. =.
20, Mrs. Sampson, is 1t your" sale
Miss Semira. "Come in, won't your
mo, it amt wuth while little tint
as I've got to stay. Then I've lef'
some ginger bread in the oven. wan
to know If you wouldn't be willing II
take q mealer."
"a mealer, Mrs. SampsonT
Eyes. You see I've got chance Il
let my big front room upstairs II
can find a place for the person tina
wants It to take their meals. / can
undertake to give anyone their meals
with my rheumatic pesterin' me thu
way It does, an Sampson havin' i
when don't. Then I amt no COOK
ANYHOW. But I do want to let tina
big front room, an this person vii
take It If I can find q mealin' place
near by, an here you are right acros
the road an livin' all alone, an you al
much of born cook as you are borr
flower raiser. An I've heard you say
that you sometime got dreadful tiret
O. takin' your meals all BY yourself.
"Wno is 1t wants your room"
swell, it's a gentleman-but there
you needn't look SO scairt. Miss S'mira
for 1t amt a young gentleman nor
middle-aged gentleman, but a real nice
fatherly-lookin' old gentleman tina
there'd never be a mite O. talk 'bou
you givin' his meals to. he must b.
old enough to be your father, an
don't know when I've seen q nicer mp
pearin' man. I'd sight ruther hav'
him around than nine out O. ten rus
sy, fault-findin' wimmen. Don't yo'
saw no until you think 1t all over"
Miss Semira thought 1t all over witt
the result that two days later MI
Jared Lyster found himself seated a
Miss Doane's daintily set table. Mis-
Semira had often been heard to say
81 don't mind any part OF livin
alone 80 much as mind eating M
meals all by myself. II I just hat
someone that was interesting ant
pleasant to talk to at meal-time
wouldn't mind the rest. I would tax
n mealer If / got good chance"
Mrs. Sampson had gone trifie De
yond the truth when she had said tina
Jared Lyster was a real fatheri
looking old gentleman" Miss Semira'
mental comment when she saw hin
was:
"why, I don't believe that he Is
day over fifty-hve."
Miss Semira's own years numbers
forty-tive. She had expected her meal
er to be a man of at least sixty-fiv
and possibly seventy years Of age. bu
she did not voice her surprise to Mrs.
Sampson. She accepted the situauo
In q manner that manifested her goo
sense and she said to herself:
"rhere's nothing for people to tai
about If he isn't as old as / thought q
WINS. I have lived in this town to
long for anyone to gossip about me
He certainly is q very well-favoree
gentlemanly person, and there's moth
ing In me giving him his meals thu
should set any ones tongue to was
ging." :,
Jared Lyster was q childless vic
over who had purchased a small stor
In the town. He was quiet, gentle
manly man of domestic taste who.
must be confessed. had no intention Q
going through life homeless. Like mos
men he had fondneSs Tor good meali
well served and he liked to live In al
atmosphere Of cleanliness and order
He found this atmosphere in Semirs
Doane's pretty and well kept lttl'
home, and the meals she served wer'
to his entire satisfaction.
Miss Semira, on the other hand
found the society Of Jared Lyster t
be more agreeable than she would hav'
dared confess. She would not &C
knowledge even to herself how mucl
she valued his presence when he hat
been her ~mealer" for three months
But she found herself studying hi
tastes and cooking the dishes she knew
he liked She found herself also put
ting red ribbon bow In her hair near
ly every day after he had casually re
marked that red was his fsvorite colo
and that he liked to see the little bov
Of red In her hair. She found her
self watching for his coming and b
did not know that she often stood be
hind the lattice work on her httl
porch watching him out Of sight No
did she know what bis thoughts wer