Australian Tales - Setis

A Rustic Love Story. Jonathan Sprouts and Phoebe
Skimmer.
Chapter I.
JONATHAN Sprouts loved Phoebe Skimmer, as fondly as schoolboy
ever loved almond hardbake: and Phoebe loved Jonathan a little bit, but
not a soul knew the delicate secret, except her bosom companion Betsy
Brown, who lived within call of a shrill cooey.
Jonathan was a roundheaded, honest young rustic, and at the time my
story commences, had not been long out from the quiet little village of
Dumplyn, in Devonshire. He was hired immediately after his arrival by
Mr. Murphy, the market gardener, to drive a horse and cart, and to make
himself generally useful. Phoebe was a dairyman's daughter, a buxom
lassie of twenty-two, whose principal duties were to help milk her
father's cows, polish the milk cans, and ride in a yellow cart with her
brother Bob, twice a day, round their milk-walk. In addition thereto, she
superintended the domestic affairs of the household, for her mother had
been dead some years.
Jonathan used to blush like a mangel-wurzel whenever he met Phoebe,
and Phoebe used to feel as funny as if she had a live mouse in her pocket
whenever she met Jonathan; but not one word had been exchanged by
them on any other subject than the state of the weather, although they
had passed each other daily for five months or more.
Jonathan was a smart sort of fellow in his way; he could handle a
spade, or a pitchfork, or any other farming tool with any man in his
county, and could beat his master in loading a cart for market. He knew
how to make the bunches of carrots and turnips look most tempting, and
to turn the heads of the cauliflowers and the hearts of the lettuces to the
best advantage: but he was puzzled how to turn the heart of Phoebe
Skimmer in his favour; or to make known to her the tender state of his
own heart; for he knew no more about love making than he did about
making air balloons, or steam-engines. Long he had silently admired the
pretty dairy-maid, and had spent many sleepless hours on his stretcher,
making abstruse calculations on the amount of capital required for a start
in the milk line himself, with Phoebe for a partner. I do not say that he
had selfishly counted upon any direct advantages, from a union with
Phoebe, in the shape of cows, or cow-keeping plant; or that he