Year: 1874

|
! qp and have to be or on the Z a. m, train to
| Albany. My father just dying there. SO notify
| you, ~ time II money lJosBPH JoHNEs.


Now Mr. Griffin kept everything in
his office under lock and key-paper,
envelopes, and all lest the clerk should
unlawfully use and waste them out of
Office hours He grudged the pen and
ink; but these might be needed to fill up
a telegram form or file bill, and he
reluctantly left out certain sheets of
| foolscap for possible exigencies. Mr.
Joseph Johnes, having a sweetheart and
not having a disgust at valentines, had
been inditing one that very afternoon to
his Susan, and on the first envelope had
dropped dreadful blot of ink between
her two sweet names. Luckily, he had
provided for mishaps and bought two,
and the completed missive, neat and gay,
lay on the table ready to send. But
when he came to inclose his note to Mr..
Griffin there was no envelope to be had.
1t was nine o'clock and the drop-letter
mail for early morning delivery would
soon be closed; there was no help for il.
Unaware of Mr.. Grifins rage at valen-
tines, he scratched out Susan's blotted
name as best he might, and, writing his
employers address under It, stamped
both epistles, dropped them into the
office, went home to bed, and left for
Albany in the morning, as unconscious of
the fire he had kindled as any other
sleepy man on the train.


Now there was another valentine in
that office, dropped before either of these
two, among the ten thousand of its kind,
that was meant to assail Melindy in
serious and sentimental manner. For
John Perkins was shy and slow of
speech; but his mind was set upon
marrying Melindy, and he devised a
valentine as a neat way of making the
offer of his heart and hand gracefully
and acceptably. Accordingly he bought
a splendid sheet, garianded with roses
aid garnished at top and bottom with
1.-TWO fat Cupids, one dressed in the simple
drapery of red and yellow bandana
handkerchief about his middle, a very
bent bow in one hand and a scroll in the
other, while his brother was attired in an
insufficient American flag and held a
portly quiVer, brietlinS with orrOrrS, and
auUtfief scroll inscribed with a legend
like that above-the first verse being at
top, the other below:


There is but only one,


And am only he


Who loves but only one,


And thou art only she.
Requite me for the same,
And say thou unto me;


love but only one,


And thou art only he.


But lest Melindy should consider this
declaration as merely conventional and
uncertain, John inserted in the small
garlanded space between the scroll-bear-
ers terse but comprehensive sentence
of his own in good set terms:


DEER MELINDY


meen 1t all as true as deth. viii you marry
met am commin tonight too know.


Your Valentine, JOHN PERKINS.


So morning came, fraught with faith.
Mr. Griffin's head did not ache; but he
was cross unspeakably. The fire burned
bright in his CRATE, his toast was crisp,
his coffee clear; but he growled and
snapped "like real live bear" as Me-
Indy said. However, poetic justice
overlook Mr.. Griffin then and there. Me
Indy had gone on to the roof to take
down her clothes, chiefly to keep out of
reach of that bitter tongue; so he himself
took in the letters. Judge of his rage
when he beheld only two valentines.
mistakable-plump doves and forget
me-nots in the corners, and even shame
less Cupids cumming down the flaps.
One was directed to Melindy; one, al
though blurred and blotted and appar-
emily redirected, to himself. This was
adding insult to injury. He had laid
matters in such train the day before
that he fully expected his ten thousand
check by post, and in lieu of it, he
got two paitry, disgusting valentines
| Rage entered into his soul and the fire
burned clear before him. On to its
bright surface went both epistles in one
second from his entrance. He did not
stop to consider till the flames had curled
| about them, devoured them utterly, and
the light cinder floated upward Then
Mr., Griffin put on his hat and coat and fled
downtown to his Office, so disgusted and
veXed that it gave him certain savage
pleasure to think he had burned Me
| lindys too; for what business had she
with such foolery? First one knew, she
would be marrying some idiot, and he
should have to board again. Well, he
knew how much more comfortable and
quiet his home was under her guidance
than Mrs. Blivins' house had ever been
and, as he had kept estimates down
pretty well, now it was nearly as cheap.
An angrier man he was when he got to
his office than before. His clerk gone,
without word of explanation; and a
| postal card in his letter-box announcing
the failure of his poor debtor, whose
| creditors had taken the alarm from Mr..
| Griffn's own unconcealed anxiety the
day before and all closed in upon him.
Let US leave him and go to Melindy.


All the morning she watched for the
postman; but he did not come. In the
afternoon he brought only circular
Melndy's heart sunk. She did not know
before how she had set 1t on valentine
She hardly knew how much she had set
it on John Perkins But she was bitterly
a tnI at foil Of oil
her day-dreams, and went about her work
with choking in her throat and heat
in her eyelids that made this saints day
anything but a holiday to her. Never
theless, her work was done faithfully as
ever-the dinner cooked and served tC
her grizzly and growly master and the
dishes washed and her kitchen made
i bright and neat as ever before John Per
kins came; but when he did come shC
turned upon him the coldest of shoulders


She was woman who had no acting
about her; her thoughts paraded on hel
face for general review always and she
had not brooded all day on her disap
pointment and Johns shortcomings fol
nothing. SO he, little conversant witt


the ways of the sex, was hurt past speech


His simple soul took her curt manner fol


manifest rejection; he was cut down ut


terly, and made but short stay leaving


with the remark, flung back through the


closing door, that he "did wish she'C


have thought better of it!"


Il don't know what | had to thinl


better of" fouted Melindy, with IA jerl
of the head. Then she flung her apron
over her face and had a hard cry, forgo


to turn off the water, though the nigh


was down in.the zeroes, and went to be-
miserable woman. don't know wha
John did do; but | know now MI
Griffin used very forcible language tn
next morning when Melindy told him tn
pipe had burst, and how furious he wa
to have to stop at the plumbers on tn
way down, and send John up for repairs
! | ! also know that John went about noon
and found Melindy sobbing so hard sh
J did not hear him come in. Like goo