POLLYDEEN’S BOUQUET. 
Pollydeen was hopping up and down in the front 
hall and clapping her hands, while her mother vainly 
tried to fasten her wrap and pin her collar. Pollydeen 
was going to Fitchburg to spend a whole month with 
her cousin Helen—and who that was in her place would 
not jump for joy, for was not Helen the loveliest of all 
young ladies, and must not Fitchburg be a paradise if 
Helen lived there ? Pollydeen was going without her 
mother, too, and to have heard Pollydeen’s rejoicing 
over this special fact, anyone who didn’t know anything 
about mothers might have supposed that they were the 
natural enemies of little girls, and that to escape from 
them was the best thing that could possibly happen. 
But such a supposition would have done great injustice 
to Pollydeen, for her elation was only caused by the 
sort of grown-up feeling that she had in view of taking- 
care of herself. But it must not be supposed that she 
was to take the journey alone. Her father had 
business iu Fitchburg, and was to take her with him, 
and at the close of her visit it was expected that Helen 
would return with her and spend a few weeks at the 
Highlands, where the Deans lived. 
“Come, Pollydeen,” said her father, “ we must be off 
or we shall miss our train,” whereupon Pollydeen hug¬ 
ged and kissed her mother with such overflowing energy, 
that when that lady emerged from the embrace, the pin 
confining her collar was unclasped, and her breakfast 
cap was tipped to one side. Put Pollydeen and her 
father “were off.” 
Never had the horse-cars moved so slowly before, and 
never had the way into and across the city seemed so 
long to Pollydeen ! And although the houses, trees and 
fences flew past so fast that one could scarcely see them, 
Pollydeen complained that the train was “so lazy.” 
But Mr. Dean, with paternal regard for his own com¬ 
fort, had stowed away a bag of peanuts into one of his 
pockets, and these soon silenced Pollydeen’s complaints 
and quieted her impatience. And after Mr. Dean had 
read his paper he went into the smoking-car for a 
smoke, telling Pollydeen not to stir from her seat until 
he came back. The next time the train stopped, a tall, 
fine-looking young man entered the car, and came 
straight to Pollydeen’s seat, and saying— 
“Do you want a first-class traveling companion, sis:” 
sat down beside her without waiting for an answer. 
“ I’ve got one, sir, but he’s in the smoking-car now,” 
replied Pollydeen, looking doubtfully at the stranger. 
“Ah! I don’t believe he’s as fond of little girls as I 
am, or he would never forsake you for a cigar.” said the 
stranger. 
“It isn’t a cigar, sir; it’s a meerschaum,” amended 
Pollydeen, “and he’s very fond of me, too. Do you 
like peanuts?” and she held the bag toward her new 
friend. 
“Next to little girls, I adore peanuts,” was the reply, 
as this queer young man helped himself to a liberal sup¬ 
ply. “ Do you like chips?” 
“ Some kind of chips, I do,” replied Pollydeen cau¬ 
tiously. 
“ Molasses chips, for instance,” suggested the stranger. 
“Oh!” murmured Pollydeen, with an expressive 
smack of her red lips. 
Then this most delightful of young men produced 
from one of his pockets a package of “Murdock’s Best,” 
and between the chips and the peanuts the time passed 
so rapidly, that Pollydeen was wholly surprised and 
half regretful when Fitchburg was reached. She had 
barely time to induce her new friend to write his name— 
John Hathaway—with his street and number on the 
back of one of her own cards, when her father came 
for her and hurried her out of the car, while she was 
assuring the young man that she would certainly come 
and see him. 
Great rejoicings took place when Pollydeen reached 
Cousin Helen’s. In the first place, Helen’s pet dog, 
Snip, came bouncing at Pollydeen’s toes, and running 
round and round her, and barking and wagging his tail 
as if he had never seen her like before. And then Helen 
came flying dcwn the stairs, and she and Pollydeen 
rushed at each other, and there was a violent but harm¬ 
less collision.- 
“Oh, you precious Pollydeen, what an age it is since 
I have seen you!” cried Helen. 
“You poor darling! How have you borne it?” ques¬ 
tioned Pollydeen in all seriousness, and there followed 
more kisses and embraces, in the course of which 
Pollydeen bumped Helen’s nose, and Helen bumped 
Pollydeen on the eyebrow, and Pollydeen’s hat tumbled 
off, and Helen’s beautiful blonde hair fell down and 
almost hid them both from view, and Mrs. Forester— 
Helen’s mother — came in to- welcome Pollydeen, 
but couldn’t get a chance to look at her even. Then 
Helen’s big brother came in and recommended that the 
remains of the two friends should be conveyed up-stairs 
for needful repairs. So Pollydeen gathered up Helen’s 
stray hairpins and ribbons, and Helen picked up 
Poilydeen’s hat, and they chased each other up¬ 
stairs in a mad frolic without having spoken to any 
one else. 
Pollydeen had been staying in Fitchburg about two 
weeks, when Helen proposed to give her a party. Polly¬ 
deen was wild with delight, and wanted to know if it 
should be a girl party or a boy party, or a boy-and-girl 
party. Mrs. Forester thought it had better be a boy 
and-girl party, as there were several nice little boys 
among the family friends whom Pollydeen had already 
met and who ought to be invited. 
“Oh, I must invite my railroad friend,” exclaimed 
Pollydeen. 
“Who in the world is that?” asked Mrs. Forester, 
taking a mental inventory of railroad officials from di¬ 
rectors down to brakemen, and wondering among which 
class Pollydeen had found a friend. 
“ Why he is a young man that came to Fitchburg 
with me,” replied Pollydeen. “ Papa went off into the 
smoking car and left me, and a real nice young man 
came and sat with me, and I’ve got his name on one of 
my cards, and I promised to go and see him, but I for¬ 
got all about it till now.” 
“ Go to see him! Oh, you little innocent!” exclaimed 
