Show WOULDNT LOOK AT A GIRL I A Bashful Mans Experience Related Re-lated by Himself Senator Sebastian of Arkansas i says the Louisville Commercial wa a native of Hickman County Tennessee Ten-nessee On one occasion a member of Congiess was lamenting his bashfulness bash-fulness and awkwardness Why said the senator from Eackensack you dont know what bashfulness is Let me tell you a story and when I get through I will stand the DOD if you dont agree that you never knew anything about bashfulness bash-fulness and its baneful effects I was the most bashful boy west of the Alleghanies I wouldnt look at a girl much less speak to a maiden but for all that I fell desperately in love with a sweet beautiful neighbor neigh-bor girl It was a desirable match on both sides and the old folks saw the drift and fixed it up I thought I should die just thinking of it I was a gawky awkward country lout about 19 years old She was an intelligent refined and fairly educated girl in a country and at a time when the girls had superior advantages and were therefore there-fore superior in culture to the boys I fixed the day as far as I could put it off I lay awake in a cold perspiration perspi-ration as the time drew near and shivered with agony as I thought of the terrible ordeal The dreadful day came I went through with the programme somehow some-how in a dazed confused mechanical mechani-cal son of way like an automaton booby through a supper where I could eat nothing and through such games aspossum pieSister Phoebe and all that sort of thing The guests one by one departed and my hair began to stand on end Beyond the awful curtain of Isis lay the terrible ter-rible unknown My blood grew cold and boiled by turns I was in a fever and then an ague pale and flushed by turns I felt like fleeing to the woods spending the uight in the barn leaving for the west never to return I was deeply devoted to Sallie I loved her harder than a mule can kick but that dreadful ordeal or-deal I could not I dared not stud it Finally the last guest was gone the bride retired the family gone to bed and I was left alone horror of horrors alone with the old man John said he you can take that candle you will find your room just over this Good night John and may the Lord have mercy on your soul and with a mischeivous twinkle of his fine gray eye the old man left the room I mentally said Amen to his Heaven help you and when 1 heard him close a distant door staggered to my feet and seized the farthing dip with a nervous grasp I stood for some minutes contemplating contem-plating my terrible fate and the inevitable in-evitable and speedy doem about to overwhelm me 1 knew it could not be avoided and yet I hesitated to meet my fate like a man I stood so long that three loveletters had grown on the wick of the tallow dip and a winding sheet was decorating the side of the brass candlestick A happy thought struck me I hastily climbed the stair marked the position of the landing and the door of the bridal chamber 1 would have died before I would have disrobed dis-robed in that holy chamber where awaited me a trembling and beauti ful girl a blushing maiden clothed upon with her own beauty and modesty and her snowy robe de nuit I would make the usual preparations pre-parations without blow out the light open the door and friendly night would shield my shrinking modesty and bashfulness and grateful grate-ful darkness at least mitigate the horror of the situation It was soon done Preparations for retiring were few and simple in theircharacter in Hickman altogether altoge-ther consisting of disrobing and owing to a scarcity of cloth in those days man was somewhere near the Adamic state when he was prepared pre-pared to woo sweet sleep The dreadful hour had come I was ready I blew out the light grasped the doorknob with a deathly grip and nervous clutch one moment I and it would be over One moment ana it wasnt over by a dn sight 11 leaped within and there around a glowing hickory fire with candles brightly burning on the mantel and bureau was the blushing bride surrounded sur-rounded by six lovely bridesmaids |