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Show brown, and the very green spectacles he used to wear for his weak eyes. And he took hispipo out of his month and looked at me just as your Grandfather Maple has looked at me a thousand, thousand thou-sand times. And says I: 'Reuben, is that you?' And says ho: 'Yes, Lois, it is.' And says I: 'Oh, Reuben, what brings you ,back to this world? And says he: 'To wipe out the stains of a wicked world.' And says I: 'Are you happy, Reuben?' And says he: 'Yes, and that's the reason I want others to be.' And then I began to tremble trem-ble all over, and says I: 'Is it anything I can do, Reuben?' And says he: 'There's no more offending nor giving offense in the other world, Lois, and Job Crofton's soul and mine are at variance no longer.' Bays he: 'Let there be peace, Lois, and let the young man Gilbert be your grandchild's grand-child's husband.' And then he knocked the bowl of his pipe on the edge of the nndiron, as I've seen him do it so often; and he got up and he walked out of the room, just for all the world like a living creature. I've often heard as ghosts can go through a key hole, btit your Grandfather Grand-father Maple's ghost opened the door and forgot to shut it after him into the bargain. bar-gain. So, when I roused up enough to know what was going on around me the floor was covered with snow that bad drifted in and the candle was blown out." "Oh, grandmother! do you think this was real?" cried Minny, with startlod eyes. "Didn't I see it with my own eyes, and hear it with my own ears?" demanded old Mrs. Maple. "It's your grandfather's ghost! And I might have known that if he wanted to appear he could, for he had obstinacy enough for anything, rest his soul! You may Marry Gilbert Crof-ton Crof-ton if you want to, to-morrow, Minny! And perhaps your grandfather's ghost will be easy then!" So the young people were happily married, mar-ried, and Gilbert came to live at the farm, and managed all the old lady's affairs af-fairs for her. And she lived to be a hundred hun-dred years old before she closed those keen, blue eyes of hers upon the matters of this mortal world. But one day, in turning over the relics of the roomy old garret, Minny came across a red chest, clamped with brass, and faintly odorous of dried lavender and rose leaves. She opened it. "Oh, Gilbert, look here!" cried she; "my great-grandfather's best suit laid up in camphor gum and sweet herbs! Why do you suppose that Grandmother Maple has kept it?" "I don't know, I am sure," said Gilbert, Gil-bert, with a mischievious twinklo in his eyes, "Perhaps for the younger generations genera-tions to masquerade in!" Minny sprang to her feet, a sudden light seeming to illuminate her whole face: "Gilbert!" cried she, "did you" "No matter," said Gilbert, laughing; "shut up the box, Minny, your greatgrandfather's great-grandfather's ghost will never haunt the house again." And it never did. Amy Randolph ia New York Ledger. ALL IS FAIR IN LOVE, Click, click, the sharp needles of the lecember snow storm were rattling (gainst the casements of old Mrs. Maple's ;armhouBe; patter, patter, tho last dead leaves of the old sycamore tree drifted down upon tho door stone. It was an old, old house, and Mrs. Maple was an old, old woman. Bnt you will sometimes find tufts of snowy bios-bins bios-bins bursting froia age lichened apple trees, and sprays of greenery on the Voughs of century old oak trees; and so It happened that' Minny Maple, the au-cient au-cient crone's great-granddaughter, was the bud and blossom of her worn out life. Old Mrs, Maple owned house and land and had money out at interest; but he was & shrewd old lady and liked to'keep her affairs in her own hands. And pretty Minny, albeit an heiress in prospective, pros-pective, taught the district school and took caro of the f arm dairy out of hours. "It won't hurt her to work for her living liv-ing if she is to be rich one of these days," said Mrs. Maple. "I worked when I was girl." And upon this dreary December night Mrs. Maple's swift knitting needles gleamed like steely lightning in the firelight, fire-light, and Minny sat on a low chair be-( side her, mending table cloths, while ever and anon a big drop would plash down upon the darned spots like a glistening glis-tening globule of dew. ! "But, grandmother, why?" burst out Minny at last, with blue eyes lifted up Eke forget-me-nots drenched in rain, to the old lady's parchment like face. j "Because I say so," said old Mrs. Maple. Ma-ple. And tho fire crackled, and the snow clicked softly against the window panes, and the knitting needles made zigzags of light as they flew back and forth. "But you say, yourself, grandmother, that he's a good young man," pleaded Minny. Old Mrs. Maple nodded. ."Without a bad habit in the world!" And again old Mrs. Maple nodded like a Chinese mandarin in a collection of curiosities." curi-osities." ''And forehanded with his farm?" For the third time Mrs. Maple nodded. "Then, grandmother, why won't you consent to our marriage?" urged the girL "Child," said Mrs. Maple, turning her spectacle glasses full upon Minny's sweet, flower like face, 'Tve told you why, half a hundred timest It's because your greatgrandfather great-grandfather Maple and his great grandfather grand-father were mortal enemies. Because you grandfather's last words upon his death bed were: 'I leave my soul to heaven, my money to my dear wife, and my everlasting enmity to Job Crofton!' " "But, grandmother," said Minny, with . a shudder, "that was very wicked! And surely, surely, the Bhadow of a tombstone should be a reconciliation?" Old Mrs. Maple shook her white head. "Your grandfather was a very vindictive vindic-tive man, Minny," said she; "I never disobeyed him living, and I never will disobey him dead!" "But, grandmother," coaxed Minny, with her fresh cheek against the old lady's hand, "he wouldn't know it. How could he?" "Child, child, your Grandfather Maple knew everything," said the old lady, with a sudden superstitious glance over her left shoulder, as something seemed to rustle at the casement. "And I do believe his ghost would haunt ine if 1 didn't give good heed to his last words. No, no; Gilbert Crofton can never be your husband, and you may as well give up the idea first as last." , i And Minny Maple cried herself to sleep that night. "For I never, never can marry him without Grandmother Maple's consent," she sobbed. "111 stay single for bi3 sake until the day of my death; bnt I never can disobey the kind old soul who has taken a mother's place to me and brought me up from a baby." But the next night there was an apple bee at Deacon Dangerfield's, and Minn Maple was there. Gilbert Crofton did not make his appearance until late. "Gilbert," said the little fiancee, who " cat reproachfully amid a crimson avalanche ava-lanche of apples, "what makes you so late?' ' , ' 'Tve been busy," said Gilbert. "But never mind, so long as 1 am in time for the Virginia reel." And they walked home togethei through tlw snow drifts, talking happily hap-pily of wliat might be if only Grandmother Grand-mother Maple's adamantino heart could be softened. . Bnt, late though it was, with the old clock on the stroke of 1, there was a light shining redly from the keeping room windows, and through the uncur-, uncur-, tained casement they could see Grandmother Grand-mother Maple marching up and down tho room like a sentinel on duty, her high heeled boots tappiug on the floor, her fingers instinctively wandering around and around the insido of her empty snuff box. Minny hurried into the room. "Why, grandmother," eriedshe,"wlmt-ever eriedshe,"wlmt-ever is the matter? Here are the logs all burned down to white ashes and the candle wick guttering, and yon in such a flutter as never was! What has hap- . pened, grandmother?" Mrs. Maple turned her keen blue eyes upon her great-granddaughter with an eipression like that of a sleep walker. "Minny, come in," said she; "and shut that door. Is that you, Gilbert Crofton, the great grandson of. Job? Come you in also. Children," with her old hands shaking as if palsy stricken, "Pre seen a ghot!" "Impossible!" cried Gilbert Crofton. "Dear grandmother, you must have been dreaming," soothed Minny, creeping creep-ing up to her side and drawing her down into the old armchair beside the hearth, "Dreaming!" shrieked the old woman. "I was as wide awake as I am at this moment. I had been over to see Mrs. Muir's sick child, and it was close on 10 o'clock when I got back. And the minute min-ute I crossed the threshold I had that queer feeling of some one being in the room creep all over me. And there, sure enough, in the chair opposite, where he used to. sit thirty good year ago, wa! your great-grandfather Maple, with his eld- cue wig and his suit of butternut |