| Show fi it i CO CONTINUED tri trl uede constitutionally BASHFUL kioa little cherry lips came nobly to the KC ifor fon eon for shame shamel 1 miss hanson she cried dio oto to beat a little boy at such amatel it yali tont mend your umbrella or straighten jour your calash 1 and the pre is lra irs i shing the paint all out of your cheek I 1 sl my enemy left me roe to fly at my defender whose name nama was florence hay but bat florence was a little too agile for the old lady whom she speedily distanced while I 1 mado good my escape into the sheltering foliage of an apple tree where securely perched on a strong limb I 1 remained until school was out and the girls had all gone home after a time at my urgent entreaties ny my parents removed me from the tillage village school arnd arid placed me at an institute for boys iliad I 1 had thought previously to the change that I 1 should be perfectly happy yien when it was effect effected etl eil but I 1 had bad som how I 1 calculated miscalculated nis eis I 1 missed the bewitching faces of the girls I 1 had fled from frow and for tie tha girst first time in my life I 1 realized that the world would be a terrible humdrum lort of a place if there were I 1 nothing but men here i to confess the plain truth I 1 had bad discovered in spite of my bashfulness I 1 loved very every single girl I 1 had ever seen not ven even excepting good black bess in in my mothers kitchen who concocted such admirable turnovers turn overs and seed cakes but at that time sooner than have acknowledged led ed such a weakness I 1 would have boiled alive I 1 As I 1 grew toward manhood my bashfulness got no better etwas it was coil coti confirmed farmed firmed it had became a chronic disease as irre diable lne lae as the rheumatism and a thou band land times more distressing I 1 was frequently invited to quilting apple pa parings ringo t etc but I 1 never dared to go lest I 1 should be expected to kave have something to say to some of the feminine portion of the com company if my mother sent me on any errand to ft a house where there were girls I 1 used to stand a half an hour on the doorsteps door steps waiting walting for courage to rap and if one of the aforesaid girls happened to answer the cummons lum mons it was with the greatest difficulty that I 1 could restrain myself from taking refuge in flight and after I 1 had bad got in and made known my business I 1 knew no eore acre what was told me in return than we know why the comet of lust last summer had bad a curved train at church I 1 habitually sat with averted face and cut my finger nails in fact I 1 kad had performed that operation for those digital ornaments so often that there was very little left of them to practice upon I 1 most devoutly wished that it had been EO that folks could baye have been created with knitting 0 1 work y i ork or something 0 of the kind in in their h hands bands an d s it would have been so nice when one dont know what to do with his extremities As ks for my feet though not remarkably IT wg e 1 I they were consta cousta constantly inthe way ka 4 often seen been the toe time when en I 1 would ate aye en all the world had it been mine to 10 gite give gli if I 1 could cout have taken them off and to the obscurity of my pocket one eventful day my mother took it into he herhei ea to have a quilting early in the afternoon I 1 retired to the garret as a the most isolated spot I 1 could think of and ensconced myself in bed all the girasin girls in the neighborhood were invited and I 1 would sooner have facan a flaming line kne of armed batte butte ba rles ries such a gar gay joyous j dyons time as they had bad of it judging from the sound of merriment that occasionally floated ip up io 10 my retreat I 1 jongco cd to be a of the frolic I 1 knew they were enjoying but I 1 could not summon m on resolution enough to venture from my concealment and so I 1 wound the sheets round round my head to shut out the gay peals of laughter and tr tried ed to think myself highly satisfied with my achievement I 1 was comfortable and safe so far as I 1 knew but the hours were long ones and I 1 prayed time to jog on his team a little faster if convenient by anday and by the merriment grew louder there was a pattering of eager feet on the garret stairs considerable loud whispering whisp 1 er in the passage and an infinite amount of gh gi 0 gling ling good beav heavens enst I 1 what are they going to do L clutched the bed clothes with frantic hand handstand s sand tind drew them around my head to the ilie u utmost neglect of the rest of my body pio probably bably believing like the ostrich that BO so long as J saw ho nobody nobody would see me directly the door was thrown open and evidently there was was a consultation upon the threshold go in flora said the gay voice of kate merrick the pride and tease of the village tl 1 I say go binl what on earth are you afraid of roy sunderland wont eat you if he is a bear bearl I 1 I 1 I 1 but what will he think I 1 said florence hay softly he is so bashfull bashful 1 goodness katel how bow can I 1 0 nonsense you must pay the forfeit or your thimble remains in my possession I 1 I 1 wont be coaxed over this time I 1 returned kate decisively there was a slight scuffle le and ana then the eager hands oftie coterie began begam to pull away my fortification I 1 res resisted is ted with the strength gt reng th of desperation but I 1 was no mat match ch for a dozen frolicsome girls they me and while four of them held my two arms florence hay kissed me Mahome mahomet tl I 1 such a thrill as went through 3 my heart henrt I 1 I 1 devout edly wished she would woula repeat the operation but instead of doing so she scampered from the them room followed by her boisterous companions ons completely overcome I 1 crept under the I 1 remained until nightfall sent our merry visitors to their theil respective homes well the years passed on and brought my eighteenth birthday I 1 bad lost nothing g of my besetting difficulty my mother was thoroughly mortified merti hied fied by my conduct and did not hesitate to lecture me soundly on my folly and my aunt alice emphatically declared I 1 was the most consummate con fool that she had ever seen I 1 knew it was true but so io perverse is man mad I 1 did not feel beef at all obliged D to her for uttering it one day it rained a little in fact it often does so florence hay was returning from the village just as the shower came up and partly out of regard for my mother with whom she was a great favorite partly from the fear of ruining her new spring bonnet she stepped into our house my mother was delighted to see sec herand made her quite at home directly it was no new thing for the little maiden to visit my mother but on such ocea occasions I 1 had always hitherto taken flight to the field or the hay bay mow now however it was rain raining hard and I 1 was holding silk for my mother to wind so a retreat was impossible on adge page 42 J continued from page though in exquisite torture every mo ment 4 int fair visitor should address gom rom ome e question to me and oblige me to speak peak yet I 1 enjoyed being where I 1 could look into her bewitching face immensely ghe bhe had such blue eyes and such suon cherry lips I 1 and those lips had kissed mel I 1 biased dred red hot to hink think of it and my 40 0 o od jd mother ther anxiously commented on my kigh high color olor ma saying she WAS afraid I 1 was ai fwu n m to have the erysipelas h Ery erysipelas indeed I 1 i a it rained all the afternoon florence florenc e grayed to tea and by tle the time the meal vla via over had broken two plates knock ill down a saucer upset the cream pitcher and nearly cut the end of my ny thumb off mth with my knife also the rain rain had cess ceased i ed aad it i wai was dark Flo fio florence florelia relic declared she could not net stop atop another moment her friends would be alarmed about her she must go at once I 1 my mother urged her to remain all night nigh t but she could not think of it and while ghe the was arranging her wraps my mother beckoned to me in the entry roy she said sald decisively yio ylo Fio florence florende rende reude would not go home alone 1 I cant help it saidi said sald I 1 doggedly 1 I guess ruess nothing will devour heron her on her ap I 1 journey my son she exclaimed with just se verity 1 I cannot permit you to speak in n that way of one whom I 1 so highly respect t it is ungentlemanly I 1 your father is absent the servant is baisy and florence has a rull fall hald half mile mlle to walk you will attend lier her homel my limbs trembled under me I 1 would have darted from the back door and left my mothers favorite to shift for herself bat my austere relative had kept n firm hold kold of my arm and without further parley drew dreir me back to the parlor if you must go she said to florence 1 I will not urge jou you on roy shall walk kome home with you florence opened wide her blue bide gyes in evident astonishment and as asfor aspon for me the whole creation was in a whirl I 1 the room went round and round like a tap LI I waa obil obliged 0 o red to grasp the back of a chair to leep keep me from falling I 1 was penetrated with speechless dismay roy roy boy florence is waiting said my unrelenting mother there was no appeal to use a vulgar but expressive phrase 1 I was in for it and nerved by ty a de desperate conrage courage ivria which sometimes comos comes to the aid of bf the W weak enk in great les lea I 1 flun dung open the door blundered down the ibe steeps and oo 00 opt t into the street florence followed lei hur sur oraly ily ply behind shut the gate gato after her and fastened the latch how I 1 envied her pro tokino boking 0 coolness aft s S we vve we went nt on jhb o bi one gide side 1 of the road rold ro id and I 1 on the other and about three yards in advance of her by and by W djin lit we had proceeded tn in utter silence sile slie iee lee ice fo for a quarter of a mile wile my companion nid said demurely roy you can get over the fence and go ia the field and ill pil keep the road roada tt was quizzing me mel noi nol endure her ridi ridicule culi sa so alti 1 I 1 made a sort sori of or flying 4 celap to ao her side bf the spatt spattering erin crin alf the mud in evl ry di deett TM 1 I ionas nas I 1 landed beside er nha 4 ju st 1 to 0 bette better r the tife doot foot isas as 3 0 on that ude sidewalk side walk than on the one I 1 jh e ef f t when wnm wun I 1 heard waid somebody g 4 ic looking up tip I 1 saw will richsrd richard god eon on D a mu mil mutual ual acquaintance approach approaching hing bing the tie eop cop respiration started 1 to my brow eow sow BOW could I 1 endure to be seen going atna a girl I 1 could not Non nou everl everi the 11 liaa lias es araa out of the question I 1 I 1 flew to the v gaii gali 1 sprang over and threw my a pile of stones I 1 heard wih will and aud florence to together 9 ether in ia a vastly amu amused way and then she took his arm arin and off they went I 1 I 1 shook my conc code cT eTched lied hand after at that moment I 1 could have cudgeled cudge led will without compunction the ridiculous s story xiu ulu orr ory of my adventure no ym spread it laribe ana lu i l u k othe odthe V vil kl lage idge my mother gave men me iny ing and my said raid punctilious fair calr r administered a the bei sei severest erest re buke luke b abfall a I 1 he old mid I a 1 managed to live t i obit ehlt though 0 and a few months later entered college I 1 will not inger linger on the days spent w with ith I 1 my A alma lma ima mater the history of of thet the acra scrapes pes which my mischief loving students got me into durino daring 0 those four years would fill three volumes of octavo at the end of the prescribed proscribed time I 1 graduated with the highest honors for I 1 had always been a most determined bookworm and nd with my diploma id my iet f t I 1 leta ieta returned ined inea home j t my friends were rejoiced to see me they said and aunt alice informed mo me that I 1 had improved wonderfully in manners as well as looks she thought me dr do cidely handsome she said which bemarkt remark I 1 privately concluded was about as sell sen sible as any I 1 had bad ever heard her fier make the day following my arrival home my mother spoke of ofT lorence vlorence I 1 had been longing 13 to ak ask about herbut her but dared not hazard the quer question tion my ay mother thought I 1 ought to call on oil the hay ray family we had always been intimate ehe she said and it would be no more ihan than courteous for me m to barp sarp surprise them with my presence I 1 told her the thie truth I 1 should should be extremely happy to do so but lacked the courage mother said eaid I 1 frankly boit you know my cardinal failing be merciful unto me I 1 should only make a fool of myself 1 I will make an errand for you yon she r replied quickly mrs hayls hajis hay is troubled iga lea with a coomb cough C and nd she wanted same eliae of my preserves for it you shall carry them over ali ah I 1 it takes a woman to manage things depend on that I 1 caught eagerly at the suggestion for the imaged face of florence hay had obtruded between my eyes and endless greek root roots a great many times tunes during the tbd past liast four years I 1 was glad of bf an excuse to see sec once more the face itself armed with my my letter of af introduction a glass jar of tomatoes and arrayed in my best suit I 1 rang the bell at the doir codr of mr hay A servant girl admitted and showed mo directly into the room where florence wa was s sitting how very beau beautiful ticul she had g grown krown rown during daring 0 my absence I 1 had never seen been so fair a vision she rose at my my entrance and bowing with wita inimitable grace extended her hand am I 1 right in beli bell believing beilen belien eting eying ng thai that ibave the plea piea pleasure lure sure of addressing ng mr sunderland sh she said saia with gentle Oolite politeness ness I 1 bowd towed the jar slipped from my grasp and fell to the floor I 1 made a hasty movement to take the hand hind rhe she offered me mo and in so doing I 1 put my foot on the jar it was crushed to atoms and ani I 1 the seeds and syrup flew in eter eyer the obstacle beneath my ray feet made nie me stagger 0 I 1 grasped the folds of a windo window IT I 1 curtain in fbi b hwe af saving saying myself bilt bilk my m equilibrium barium was too far gone down dows come the cartain eter over I 1 went bead hirdt first against the flower sf add oh which taro tare were a nondescript array of flower pots a canary bird in a cage and k big maltese c cat at in a basket i me zhe force of my fall 11 ihre ye s fahd with all its favorites it went over oil on buei tue carpet cat bird cage plants annaroy y sunde sande sunderland rland all lay iu in one mass of ruin rain I 1 together at the feet of the astonished miss is hay thereat was wits the fiest to ra rover roven oven over ber her presence of mind aad and with a midnight cry which would have appalled the stoutest heart she sprang spring into my rac fac tearing up the skin with a violence abr worthy of the admiration of f all persons parsons who believe in thes wisdom of getting at thle the ia root i ot of a matter mattir at once 1 r TO BB mc I 1 |
