“THE CRAZY QUILT. | rt oe ie mn ve tones, ; ; 0 is baby bling and cross Dear me! there is baby waking | He was never grambling and erc again, and I have just the most diff, | before ubout anything,” Mrs, Afwarh cult pattern for my quilt. Jakey: | #8id. piteously, and Iam sure I will you please quiet the child ? not mean to be neglectful—he ought - Mr. Jacob Axworth laid down his to know that.” comb and brush, and turned impa- We--none of us like to feel that tiently away from the dressing case, |Our comfort is a secondary considera- Dot is sleeping soundly, he crossly tion to them we love best,” the lady inty | #aid; and when «e are too mach sligh- ed as he bent over a dainty | #8105 Sud ne ted, Letitia, we are apt to become res But I am sure she will wake direct. miss ourselves,” she added, so soberly ly, chirruped the apprehensive voice and sigoificently, that the dimpled from an adjoining room, where a pret_ | Pretty fage before her blushed crim- ty young lady was sitting with a son gorgecus erazyquilt beneath her busy Jakey 5 not becoming remiss; you hauds. And I do ‘so want to fin. ‘do not think thai?” Mre. Axworth ish my quilt. I do wish Jakey, that queried, the crimson on her cheeks you would stay at home and mind | growing hotter, a resentful flash be the baby a bit neath her misty eyes. It strikes me I shall be compelled to stay at home altogether unless I buy | ronise ” the other said, with a curiou an entire new outfit, the young bus ly roguish twinkle in her kindly, mer. band suddenly vociferated, as be made | ry aves: And I dare sy you have a bewilderiag litter of the dusty avd | heen too much occupied with the bottonless contents of wardrobe and | showy quilt to notice anything that drawers. My best coat is nearly with. may be construed as a slight. Aud, out buttons and my shirt dittoo. And | of course, you are aware that Mr. will yott be good envugh to inform me, | A xworth devotes a great deal of his Mrs. Axworth, in what uocomforta* | {ime to Laura Doane.” ple place you have depositet my blue cravat and canary silk baokerchief ? Dear me, why, Jakey the girlish wife blithely responded, the blue satin was a bit spoiled, you know, and I used the cravat for the aochor figure in my quilt ; ond the frayed canary bandkerchie made an exquisite fan pattern with feather-stiched in silver thread. When I shall have finished the lovely centre star, my crazy quilt will have ninety thousand —' It strikes me, Mis. Axworth, he You might bave spared yourself, savagely ivterrup, that your quilt Aunt Virginia, the repetition of such will not be the only crazy thing about | doubtful gossip,” she said, with dig. this establishment; I am alrea.y | I refuse to listen to any insio- Afraid to guarantee my sanity, Mrs. ustions against my husband; and I Axworth—which may not seem won- shall never believe any wrong of him. derfol if you will condescend to my ninety thousand miseries since you But you will perwit me to explain,” have begun that delectable monu- | "ith # smile of mischief and of un. ment of feminine shsurdity. Since | G08lified approval. ; that quintessence of the preposterous I want po palliative explanations was begun, Mrs. Axworth, there has|from any body who would jtradoce been nothing in the house but disor | my husband,” interrupted the disturb- der, cold meat, and excuses. And |ed wife, nobly loyal despite the untidy here's my dimond pin actually deco- | house, the cold meats, the neglected rating Dot's bib; upon my word | buttons, and all the small folly of the madam, I am inclived to change my |luckless crazy quilt. And they who residence. credit ill of him cao no looger remain Preity Mrs. Axworth dropped her | ¥ friends.” crazy quilt, and ber dimple face| And then, before her companion slightly whiteved ; she was startled | could utter a syllable, she tarved and and amazed by the unfamiliar vehe- | indignantly left the room. mence of a husband who had ever| Despite ber noble indignation br been forbearing and almost weakly |Deart was sore and weak, and one indulgent. she flung herself on her knees beside Dear me ! she ejaculated in dismay, the dainty bassinet and wept hirer y I am sure I dou’t know how baby | In vain baby Dotleooed and whin - Dot ever managed to get your dia- pered and clinched her chat y mond pin ; and really, I did not mean | fingers in the loose dark locks ah ut to be 80 careless about your buttons ; | the bowed head ; the pretty wife vas but I have been so busy—about—the | conscious of nothing but the unfami ar quilt, she faltered, with an uncomfort- [trouble thst seemed #0 keen snd able sensation that ber only apology | cruel. would see ridiculously ; malapropos at| When st length she bad controlled this crisis. ber tears, she glanced wistfully to’ You need not remind me of that, ward the dusty clock on the untidy Letitia, be answered, with more seri- mantel. ous inflection in his sarcastic tones. | How late is it, she murmared I am profoundly aware that you have | Perhaps becanse he felt neglected he been quite too occupied to care for | has indeed become remiss himeelf ; or, your uninteresting domestic daties, or | perhaps he may never come, Per say such insignificant matter ss my | haps, he no longer loves us—poor comfort. But finish your quilt, my baby Dot and me—and he niay really dear; by all means, your |be with her—that strange woman precious crazy quilt. I should be afraid | whom he has favored with magnificent > guarantee my return until the [gifts and frequent drives and daily thing is done and stowed from sight | visits. And with that not particularly cor-| Her compunctions or misgivings, dial assurance he adjusted an ancient embittered by a vague and balf in. black cravat, picked up his rumpled | credulous jealously, came well-nigh gloves snd stalking out of the house, | maddening her, as the swift moments. leaving pretty Mrs. Letitia feeling | elapsed, and yet be did not come.’ more astonished than ‘she had ever | She could onl i I am certain he dose not wish to be I am not aware of anything of the kind,” Mrs. Axworth sa’d, with pal- ing lips and kindling eyes. I have no knowledge watever of any such person.” Indeed!” the other comment d. And be takes her driving often and visits her every evening; and he has presented her with quite a magni- ficent birthday gift.” Mrs. Axworth tossed aside her crs- zy quilt and arose from her low rock- er. pity. m, now wild- BOT af 2 or “bat yot the comment rt k- | and smire fin K. d with the old gentle tenderness. Laura is ill Who is Laura? she sharply de- manded, as a fierce pang wrenched her sore heart. For an instant he started a litile, and then an exceedingly comprehen. sive look succeeded the houest sur. prise of his countenance. Why, she is my niece, he smiled, little Laura Doave Axworth, Pos sibly I may not have mentioned that my brother and his family are in the city ; but late'y my love, you have been so busy with your) crazy quilt that you have bad no time to listen to anything. And yon have been driving with her, you bave given her a magnificent birthday gift ; she questioned, with an indiction of unutterable relief in her choking voice, Why, yes, he declared, cheerfully ; I knew you wouldn't mind : you were 80 eager Lo finish your quiltfyou know, Letitia, that I had a notion you were glad to have me away. A fellow dislikes to dally about & house where he is only a bother and a hindrance. But, bless me, about what are you ery- ing ? I am so sorry about it all—about the buttons and all that, Mre. Letitia sobbed, her arms about his neck, her bead against his heart. And I was beginning to fear that I had neglect ed you and everything until you might not wish to come home again. And I | thought Laura Doane was some strange woman for whom you cared. THE PRIMA DONNA, ~ The first time I saw them they were b ith in the window, Clarissima was leaning her arms up- ou the sill and gazing upward ut a flock of sparrows quarreling and chat tering on the opposite house-tops, Bhe looked like one of Raphael's cherubs, with her thatch of hair and Italian eyes, a finger on her lip. Her dress, which was white and flowing, with a scarlet band about it, was clasped at the throat with a gleaming curio, There were tiny ornaments in her ears which twinkled and danced as she tarved ber head. Antonia stood behind ber with eyes turned above and beyond the sper rows. His expression, as I made it out, was that of a man who had for. ever settled the most vital question of his life, and heuceforth deals in no secondary owes. A pale face, cut clear as a cameo, with proud, acqui. escent mouth, I was long in making their ac. quaintance, for they seemed content o live apart, although Clarisima had vodded to me ina friendly manner more than once, Oue afternoon when she appeared at her favorite haunt in the window from Bt. Petersburg to the Nile, like a patient slave, and Autonio of 80 noble a family | He suffered the unguish of a purgatory for her. And she— sh, some women are inquisitors ! Sometimes she sang for weeks in the same city, and then he was in paradise, He sent her fliwers, such lovely flowers! Not great bouquets, or vulgar baskets, but some rare blossoms such Aod while she still sang on, smiling upon him like a spirit from the heave,” ly world, she held therm in ber hand. She pressed them lightly to her breas ; she baried her lips in their bloom. live together who never meet, tonio in his box, the Lady Rowe ou the stage—they exp rieveed all that did. The Lady Rose had weither heart nor experience, She beautiful creation, a vison, Autoni, was said, of love and song. At last she came to America, aud for a time we lost ber, It is hard to pursue io & country so vast as bad gone, or mailed Li keep her en- gagements. I was very weary of th intermiable fight, but the look in my brother's eyes never pera tted me to and I had seen Antonio, whom I somewhat feared, go down the street with his sketch book under his arm, I | seized a pot of primroses from my bal- | cony, as a propitiation, and ACTO8S, ran | | i And I, be retarved in playful con- steroation—I shall begin to fear that | your crazy quilt has unsettled your | senses. Aud it strikes; mefthat some- | body bas willfully misrepresented my piece, who is will a little miss in' pinafores. And I could never care] for any other womsn but you, al though, my love, you were rather trying when you were occupied with that decorative abomination of ninety thousand discomforts. It will be the cause of no more dis comforts to you, Jakey, the pretty wile avowed with ber most wifely smile, She was likely never to ignore the | lesson she had learned in that bitter | vigil when she bad waited and watch- ed for the coming of one whose love the feared she had alienated by ber in- attention to the homelier duties of her household. Dear sagacious Aunt Virginia knew [ needed a stern lesson, she used to think, and that is why she fabricated the clever comedy about little Laura Doane, HE — A—— SIMPLE, BUT INTERESTING. To suspend a bottle from s match Iaid on the edge of a table may seem 80 ij Osaible feat but, says Si. Nicholas, experiment will prove bow easy it way be necomplished. HELD BA A MATCH. Tea piece of twine securely around the neck of a bottle; then lay a match on the cork, held it firmly, bring the ends of the twine over it, and tie a tight knot, forming a loop. You msy remove the match to show that you have simply tied a loop. Then insert the match through the loop, rest one end on the cork, and lay the other on the projecting edge of a table where the bottle will swing clear of any obstruction. If the match is but an inch in length it will sup. port the boitle quite as roadily and make the feat appear all the more RW AO— Young Indy’s dress of plaid velvet and «arash. Lower skirt of velvet plainly made. Back Urapery of surah jabot effect at. the right side, and pointed in froat; collar, cufls and vest She bad seen me coming and ad. | mitted me herself with a balfshy, half | Appy courtesy, a beautiful fan of | scarlet plumes in her hand. The room which I entered was one | of three in direct communication, but separated by hangings of attique silk | pu bed far along the rods. To utter | ‘acry of admiration was inevitable [art ; | ~—all was s0 beautiful so fall of indi. i vidual life. I had known that An toois was an srtist and a successful | ove, but the work that surrounded me | exceeded my wildest surmises. The face of an angel confronted me, | hung against a velvet panel of some oriental blue. Never, heaven knows could such a countenance have found its home on earth. A copy of Dante and a few violets lay on the couch beneath it, fro. the rumpled cushions of which Antonio had lately arisen. Between the windows hung a painting in oils. It seemed to me at first merely s roseate sky ruffling in little waves toward the west. But | suddenly I discovered a river rushing through a desert country, and the riv- er took the color of the sky. There Was not & tree nor shrab, nor living creature in the scene— only that mar- velous glow in wave and cloud. Og either side of it were water-colors of pink flowers, one azaleas, the other a foreign plant uwokoown to me. I bee came suddenly aware indeed that this same pale flush prevaded all the room changing in effect, for it was not a monotone On a table st my hand lay a half. finished szetch of pansies, sofi, perfect things, with a little purple dust upon them. Iovoluntarily I tarned from them to the angelic face upon the wall, #2d Clarissima said, simpley Those are the Lady Rose's eyes. When Ao tonia bas finished thew he will hang them there beside the arbutus in the corner, which is her smile. She was food of piuk—it was her favorite col. rebel, We were iv a city of the west, | had been ill, and Aotonio had linger. ed faithfully leside me, al bh wgh the hindrance must have cost him much. We were driven through the open coutotry, and as we passed a frame, created for the purpose, I saw the name of the Lady Rose. It was the bills sunounciog her to sing that night; | aod as we drove along they multipli- ed, and there were rude portraits of ber in the windows of the shops, Imbeciles | mattered Antonio, who could mot bear these outrages upon but nevertheless, there was a note of joy in his voice. I was too w Sib Res § | tired to go with bim to the opers, and | "em auyway it alone. was best that he should go He was very handsome that night. You bave remarked that be isso? His eyes were brilliant and restiess as stare. He bad a bracelet to send to the Lady Rose between the acts, and as he wrote the note that sccompanied it, bis man’s band trem’ bled. Has it ever occared to you that the love of an artist is really a terrible thing —half divine, half dia- bolical? He kissed me when he went away, and I could feel the rapid beating of his heart as it rested for a moment next to mine. When he bad gone I lowered the lights ond tried to sleep ;Jbut I wa, tortured by a terrible dream. a soft, white arm arise upon a sea of light aod wave a moment in the air, There was nothing but light and the waving arm, as far as I could see, until at last Antonio appeared and came across the sea 10 where the arm was beckoning. Itsoftly carved about bis neck and the hand lay on his breast. But suddenly it changed and turned a hideous bronze, and seemed to slip and lose its hold ; fand the band bad turned into a head with burning eyes. AntonioZstroggled w be free, but while I looked something darted from its mouth and plunged into its heart. I awoke, cold with fright, to find Aotovio in reality beside me. I sprang to his arms snd turned bis be turned to we vuder the Moorish lamp above it aod nitered these words: A man vever touches the bem of the garment of art until he bas broken his heart. He should do this as quick- ly as possible if he wishes to paint or Compose & sonata, _-— MR ARSON SERENADED. It is curious what lives people cay | Auy~! human bearts can. I mean Antonio | this, | She allured us, and then eluded us : | I saw ) | one {itto A an as devoted love alone could procare. | Ove evening a few weeks Ago as | Mr, and Mos. Arson, who live in Si. oux Falls, on Dakota avenue, were at | supper, a band of six or seven pieces | bogno tn play on the sidewalk in front of the house, Ab! said Mr. A rson, what's that ? Mrs. Arson bio Red vat of a8 front window aud reported, | That's it, that's it, said Mr. Arson, { smiliog aod pushing back from the table; | ex pected it, | Expecied what ? inquired Mrs Ar { BOND. Woy t Iv ¢ vn be serenaded, of course, woking fur something of [ that Kind right nlong. | i | My friends | have sent a baud around to serpade { hiv, Whaat for, pray ? | Want for? can't You see any thiog? Did wot I tell you when ap- bosrd that I wes a I was pointed on that public mao vow * Dida’ I try to ex- plain 0 you that | was now in life and public likely to bes renaded, aad in- terviewed, and called on for s speech like all other public men ? couldn't see it, snd went around act. ing as if you thought I was a private citizen just like I was when you mar- ried me. What dy’e think about it now ? Bat you : : I think just the sam: did. as | always You may bein public life, as you call it, but you're just as big a foo. a8 you ever were, Well, I don't care what you thivkr any how—my public services are ap- precisted, even if you don’ recognize I am going down haps I'll be called on fo { will thank the band in a few well | chosen words and then go down and | see my constituents, Ab, I guess the baud is coming in, and be weat to the | door in respouse to a knock. \ Money for ze musicians? ssked the man as he held out his hand. M.! | Arson slid out sod closed the door, | giving him a dollar, and then walked down town by a back street, and Mrs, Arson said : If that man isn't growing worse and {worse ! He'll bear about this when | be gets home and he can’t turn the | subject, either. i m—— —— : Children, look in those eyes, listen to that dear voice, notice the feeling | of even a single touch that is bestowed upon you by that hand! Make much of it while yet you have that most precious of all good gifts a loving mother. Read the unfathomed love of thoes eyes; the kind anxiety of that tone and look, however slight your paio. In after life you may have friends: but never again will you have the inexpressible love and gentleness lavished upon you which none bat a mother bestows. Often do I sigh in the straggle with the hard wokrind world for the sweet, deep security I felt when ofan evening vestling in her bosom I listened to some quiet tale suitable for my age, read in her un- tiring voice. Never cen I forget her sweet glances cast upon me wheo I ap - peared to be asleep: never ber kiss at night. Years have passed away since we have laid ber beside my fatoer in town and per- ra speech, I icy | the old yard: yet still her voice whis- pers from the grave and her eye watches over me, as I visit spots long since halloweded to the memory of my mother, There is » charming white crepe de Chine with small flowers over the surface. One of these was made with dh rm fell over this vl 3
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