Year: 1873

VIII you be at home tonight Annie?


The person who asked this question. a


tall, muscular, good-looking young far


mer, was leaning upon Squire Moore
f ont gate, talking to rhe Souire's


pretty daughter, who stood inside of


it. As the simple words passed his


lips, he Redeemed suddenly to the very
roots of his fair hair, as if he had lust
been guilty of some great impropriety.


He was bashful-extrem2ly ba sinful was
Dayi Winthrop-at least in the presence
of you lg ladies, most of all in the presence
of the girl he loved No young man in
all Wilkes county owned better kept
farm, or talked with more confidence
among his cronies of stock and crops, and
such like. But the sight of pretty foot
or face coming his way affected him queer
Iy. On such occasions he never knew
what to do with his hands aud eyes, and
seemed always to feel like screwing him
self into the nearest mouse hole until the
danger-that is to say, the young lady
was past.


This state of things being considered.
| no one ever understood how he contrived
to muster up courage enough to enlighten
Annie Moore on the subject of his prefer
ence for herself The matter probably re-
mains to this day as much mystery to
him as it did to others.


Miss Annie, however har fair share
of tlct and womanly cle7emess slowed
safely away somewhere in the receSses of
her pretty little head, although it was car
rled launtlly upon the inexperienced and
rounded shoulders of fresh eighteen.


"Oh. now, Annie just one"
But further appeal was broken off bv
tantalizing little laugh, and when, render
ed desperate by this, he tried to revenge
himself, at the very moment when he
thought himself secure of the coveted
bliss, and stopped his head triumphantly
over, his struggling prisoner, the rosy.
laughing face vanished suddenl V from un-
der his arm and was off and away up the
garden path leading to the house almost
before he could realize what had happen
ed.


For one moment David, who stood gaz-
ing ruefully after her, thought of pursuit
and a recapture. But before he had
time to put his plan into execution, his
tomentresS, after stopping to give one
mocking farewell wave of her hand from
the front porch, vanished inside of the
hall door. So there was nothing to be
done but to turn reluctantly from the gate
and take the road homeward.


lfyOu could have looked into the fami-
ly sitting g-rOOm at Squire Moore's shortly
before eight o clock on that same evening
you would have had CHEEKY picture be-
fore you The after-supper clearing away
was over, for the sitting-room was also the
room where the daily meals of the family
were eaten. The leaves of the old-fash-
iOned dinner-table had been let down. and
the table itself, covered with a bright oiled
cloth, set back against the wall. The
crumbs had been carefully brushed with
turkey-wlng from the neat homemade
carpet, and Annie workstand was drawn
up in front of the ample and blazing fire
of hickory logs, which cracked checrily in
the old-fashioned fireplace.


A bOuntifully piled tray of red-cheeked
apples and plateful Of cracked walnuts
were on it in close proximity to Annie's
cOquettlsh work basket, made of pine
cones by her own deft little hands, and
daintily lined with blue silk.


She did not need to be reminded that
David was worth, in a worldly way, much
more than any Of her other suitors, and
that he was gOOd-lOOking, good hearted
and intelligent enough to satisfy any but
an over fastidious person of her class. He
was lnexceptlOnable, In short, barring his
unconquerable and excessive bashfulness,
which, indeed, was never-failing source
OF merriment to the young people of their
little circle.


And 50, when David, in his awkward,
blundering, half-frightened manner began
shyly to exhibit his preference for her in
various little ways, such as waiting on her
to and from singing school, constituting
himself her escort when she went Sundays
on horseback to the lonely little church in
the woods, and singing her out as the
recipient of whatever attentions he could
find the nerve to pay, at the frequent
quilting parties In the neighborhood- :
Annie did not frighten him out of his bud
ding passion by any show, either by sur
prise or marked preference, but took it all
IN the earnest, pleasantest, most uncon-
ciOus mannar possible The girls Uttered
and nudged each others elbows, and the
young men cracked furtive jokes at the
expense of her timid suiter, but she stood
up for him like a real kind-hearted West
em lass, as she was, and tried to encour-
age him out of his shyness as far as she |
consistently could


She never seemed to notice any of his |
unfortunate blunders, and very likely |
helped him along considerably when his |
feelings reached the eliminating point, |
one moon-hghted Autumn evening, as
they were walking together from corn
husking.


That had been Just one week ago. An |
ME had said,,'' yes, and had agreed to take |
the responsibility of bringing father and |
mother around on the subject. David |
had not been to the house since Proba-
bly, he felt very much like dog who fears
to venture upon the premises of a person
whose sheep fold he has just plundered. =
Thus it happened that as yet the powers
that were knew nothing of the mOmentous
secret which they kept between them
selves, fearing to divulge And now An
nie, who wished to put off the ordeal of
avOwal as long as poSsible-at
any rate to gain time for one more conf
Dental talk with David on the subject
said hastily, in reply to that stammered
query of his with which We prefaced this
narration;


Mother is going over to Aunt Ruth's
with father to spend the evening, and
she wants me to go, too, but | guess |
won't I've been working on fathers
new shirts all day, besides doing the dai-
ry work yesterday, and I'm about tired
out" Then she added, before he could
reply: Don't come until eight O'Clock
| shall be about through putting things
to rights at that time.


OF course David was not too obtuse to
understand that he was specially favored
by the arrangement, and he so far forgot
his bashfulness as to petition awkwardly
for parting kiss, which was at once re-
fused in the most inexorable manner pos
sible.


mo you shan'tl There, nowl Do take
yourself off, will you? Dye think didn't
zee YOU fdgetting around I'm. Smith at