The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1851-09-25

fOftN
And now, Mare, said St Clare "your
golden days are dawning, Here is our practi-
cal, business-lke New England cousin, who will
take the whole budget of cares off your shout
ders, and give you time to refresh yourself and
grow young and handsome The ceremony Of
delivering the keys had better come off forth
with"
This remark was made at the breakfast table
few mornings after Miss Ophelia had arrived
Pm sure she's welcome said Marie, leaning
her head languidly ON her hand al think
she'll find one thing if she does and that is
that it's we mistresses that are the slaves down
here"
"Oh, certainly, she will discover that and a
world Of wholesome truths beside, no doubt
said St Clare.
sTalk about our keeping slaves as if we did
it for our oOnUenieace.' said Marie d" I'm sure
if we consulted that, we might let them all go
at once
Es,zs-,linn fivad her large. serious eyes on her
mothers face, with an earnest and perplexed ex-
preston, and said, simply "What do you keep
them for, mammal
al don't know Fm sure, except for a plague
they are the plague of my life believe that
more of my i'll health is caused by them than
by any other one thing and ours, ! know, are
the very worst that ever anybody was plagued
with"
ooh, come Marie, you've got the blues this
morning. said st. Clare "You know 'tsn't so
There's Nanny, the best creature livng-what
could you do without her! ~
NANNY il the best | ever knew said Ma
rie; and yet Nanny, now, is Enthusiastically
selfish; it's the fault of the whole race
Selfshness as dreadful fault said St
Clare, grayely
"Well, now, there's Nanny said Marie
III think it's selfish of her to sleep so sound
,ajghts; she knows need little attentions almost
every hour when my worst turns are on, and yet
she's so hard to wake absolutely am worse
this very morning for the efforts had to make
to wake her last night
Hasn't she sat up with you Il good many
nights lately mammal" said Eva.
allow should you know that" said Marie,
sharply; she's been complaining, suppose"
"She didn't complain; she only told me what
bad nights you'd had-so many in succession"
"Why don't you let Jane or Maria take her
place a night or two" said St Clare "and let
her rest .
GLOW can you propose it," said Marie. st.
| Clare, you really are ipconsderate So nervous
1 us 1 uln, Tic ltttSl ntttbn uisLuTDs Ht. anu u
strange hand about. me would drive me abso-
lutely frantic Ii Nanny felt the interest in
me She ought TO- she'd wake easier-of course
she would I've heard of people who had such
devoted servants but it never was my luck y
and Marie sighed.
| Miss Ophelia had listened TO this conversation
with an air of shrewd Obseryant gravity, and
she still kept her lips tightly compressed, as il
determined fully to ascertain her longitude and
position before she committed herself
Now Nanny has a sort Of goodness said
| Marie: she's smooth and respectful but she's
| selfish mt heart Now, she never will be done
idgeting and worrying about that husband OF
| hers. You sec, when was married and came
| to live here, of course ] had to bring her with
| me. and her husband my father couldn't spare
| He was q blacksmith, and Of course very neces-
sary and | thought and said at the time, that
| Nanny and he had better give each other up
as it wasn't likely to be convenient for them
ever to live together again ] wish now I'd in
| sisted ON it and married Mammyio somebody
else but | was foolish and indulgent and didn't
want to insist, told Nanny, at the time, that
| she mustn't ever expect 10 see him more than
once or twice in her life again, for the air Of
fathers place doesn't agree with my health. and
| can't 20 there; and | advised her 10 take up
with somebody else; butn0--she wouldn't Mann
my has n kind of obstinaey about her, la spots
| that everybody don't zee as don
Has she children ?" said Miss Ophelia.
"Yes; she has two
81 suppose she feels the separation from
| them ~
well, of course couldn't bring them. They
were little dirty things--I couldn't have them
| about; and, besides, they took up too much Of
her time; but believe that Mammy has al
ways kept up a sort of sulkiness about this,
| She won't marry anybody else and do believe
| now, though she knows how necessary she is to
| me, and how feeble my health is she would 60
back to her husband tomorrow il she only
could do, indeed,p said Marie; they are
just 40 selfish, now, the best of them
" It's distressing 10 reflect upon" said st.
| Clare, drily.
Miss Ophelia looked keenly at him, and saw
| the flush of modification and repressed vexa-
ton, and the sarcastic curl Of the lip, rs lac
spoke.
@Now, Nanny has always been pet with
me,n said Marie. 81 wish some Of your North
ern servants could look mt her closets of dresses
silks and muslins, and one real linen cambria,
she has hanging there Pye worked sometimes
whole afternoons trimining her caps and getting
her ready to 90 to a party. As To abuse, she
don't know what il H. She never was whipped
more than once or twice in her whole life. She
has her strong coffee or her tea every day, with
white sugar in it. lts abominabe, to DO sure;
but ST. Clare will have high life below-stairsJ
and they every one Of thcm live just as they
please. The fact il, our servants are oyer-n-
dulged ] suppose it is partly our fault that
they are selfish, and act like spoiled children,
but Pye talked 30 ST. Clare til am tired"
"And |, too" said St Clare, taking up the
| morning paper,
Eva, the beautiful Eva had stood listening to
her mother, with that expression OF deep ana
mystic earnestness which was peculiar to her
She walked softly round to her mothers char,
and put her arms round her neck
"Well, Eva, what now :" said Marie.
Mamma couldn't take care of you one
nght-iust onei know shouldn't make you
nervous and shouldn't sleep often lieawake
nights, thinking"---
ooh, nonsense, cbild-nOnsense," sald Mare
"you are such o strange child
7" But may |. mamma! | think" she said,
timidly. shat Nanny isn't well She told
me her head aohed all the time lately"
@Oh, that's Just one Of Mammy's fdgets.
NANNY il lust ike all thu rest Of them--makes
such a fuss about every little headache on
finger ache it neyerll do 10 encourages it
never! I'm principlcd about this matter, " said
she, turning To Miss opbelia; "you'll find the
necessity OF IT, II yon encourage servants in
giving way to every little disagreeable feeling,
and complaining Of every little ailment you'll
have your hands full I never complain my
scif--inobody knows what endure. i isel IL a
duty 10 bear il quietly, and do"
Miss Opheliss round eyes expressed an un-
disguised amszement at this peroration, which