Year: 1878

VI0LET'S LAST PROPOSAL.


A letter from Betsy at last Crumpled
it is and hy.stained, divers bits OF paper
Of many colOrs, one OF them actually
bearing the crossed,out signature of the
poor dead and gone Mrs Higgins, and
another mutiIated page, bearing marks
of calculation for tailoring done by
Betsy herself; but the whole funny com
pilation makes me look around my room
in the boarding house as any prisoner
might upon gaining brief boon of
liberty, for the letters come straight from
the dear old mountains that | thought
Violet had spoiled form forever. Only
one year ago Violet lay upon yonder bed
and having just got Farmer Higgins $
letter called out to her that at last 7
had secured boarding place for uswhere
might hope for little rest during this
one holiday.


"What sort of place is it, Lide %
said my sister, turning her head Ian
guidly on the pillow and looking over at
me with her tricksy brown eyes. Not that
she was sick. Pm not going to intro.
duce you to an interesting invalid-oh
no; if anybody could lay claim to SYM
pathy in that way, it was the rack of
bones of which | was composed. We
were both school teachers; but Violet
was not much more than monitor AZ
yet, while had climbed the weary grade
OF promotion to vice principal. Violet
gave me great deal of trouble; it seemed
to me at times that all my care and
interest could not keep her position for
her, and the bare thought of her b ing
idle and away from me made me tremble.
| would have been glad to support her in
idleness, for she was little more than a
child, and all had in the world, but
could not have her out of my sight.


Not that she had any secret tendency
to lunacy, kleptomania or anything OF
that kind. She was Onl Y an inCorrigible
flirt-that was all but that WAS enough.
You would think SO if you happened to
be of her sex, and under the root with
her abode your brother or sweetheart, or
uncle or grandfather. 1t made no differ
enoe whether it began with disinclina>
tion on one side or bOth--sometimes this
WAS an incentive. 1t mattered little
whether the party was prepossessing or
otherwise, old or young, grave or gay,
stupid or bright it WAS all the same to
Violet. During the last two years had
been afflicted with no less than seven
offers Of marriage in her behalf, five of
them wholly Ineligible; one / looked
upon with great degree of favor, which
destroyed its every chance of success
and the other, that OF the principal of
cur male department, Mr. Baxter, filed
me with sickening sense of the rough
and tumble way III which pearls were
cast before swine. Here was q man of
mature age, of commanding intellect, OF
absorbing occupation, deliberately dup.
ing himself with the idea that his happi
ness depended upon vain, silly chit Of
nineteen, when within the tour walls with
him, right under his injudicioUs nose,
were several women who would have
been admirable companions for him in
every way, suitable in age and intellect
and appreciation, each and all of them
so worthy and deserving of rest from
toll, and the love OF a manly heart. But
he was completely infatuated; and when,
driven to desperation, | consented TO her
marrying him, and, as usual, she was
surprised and shocked, and couldn't
entertain the idea for a moment, he gave
me to understand, with an air OF lev dis
dain, that it was merely personal feel
ing upon my part which was the obstacle
to his happiness She certainly did wear
an air of secret sorrow in his presence as
she did in that OF each of her rejected
suitOrs her eyes sometimes filed with
tears, her voice trembled. At such
moments these men have looked upon me
in a way that was positively violent;
between the seven of them my lie was
not worth halfpenny. Vacation did
not come day too soon for the salvation
of my sanity, if not my life How
could / help, then, turning to this letter
of Farmer Higgins as a refuge from
these persistent and ubiquitous evils?


"It is sort of place" | replied to my
sister, "where it is impossible for you to
do any mischief. 1t is ia the heart OF
the Catskills--"


Her eyes frightened an almost inrer.
ceptible smile touched her lips.


!" Not q hotel my dear, " said quickly,
" nor boarding house, nor yet in
the vicinity of boarders, nor peopled by
race of men that you will find avail.
able for your wiles; and anyway there /.
only one man--the farmer himself. He
hiss a termsgant sickly wife and five
young children; the hired men 90 away
TO sleep. and get to work at day break;
it il hve miles from the nearezt village.
and not 9 house within walking dis.
tance."


"'Thers must be a doctor and q minis.
ter,o said Violet, reAectively. =


"Not at ALL" I rejoined the people
up there understand the healing power
Of herbs surgeon is only required for
the setting Of bones, and lives miles