The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1851-10-09
WHOLE NO. 249.

that!1
Lawi it was cause I was driv, and in sich
hurry was gSine 10 change it this very
day
"Here are two damask table napkins"
Them table napkins put thar, to get EN-
washed out some day.
Don't YOU have some place here ON purpose
for things to he washedl'
"Well, mass'r st Clare got dat ar chest he
said for dat; but likes 10 mix up biscuit and
hey my things on it some days and then IT amt
handy Gftn' up the lid"
"Why don't you mix your biscuits on the
pastry-table there ~
: ={.aw! missus it gets sot so full of dishes,
and one TINS and another der amt no room,
noways"-
But you should t>Sss your dishes, and clear
them away"
"Wash my dishes :" said -ilii'''
key, as her wrath began to rise I
ual respect Of manner "what does IA let
bout work, want to know! Whe2t9as re-
ever get his dinner, if was to spend all
time washin and putin up dishes? Nks
Marie never telled me so, nohow7
"Well, here are these onions
"Laws yes!n said Dinah. thar is whar
particular onions was savin' for dis yer very
stew. I'd forgot they was in dat ar old flannel
Miss Opbelia lifted out the sitting papers Of
sweet herbs.
81 wish missis wouldn't touch dem ar
likes to keep my things where knows whar to
90 to EN- said Dinah. rather decidedly
But you don't want these holes in the pa
pers"
"Them's handy for siftin ont out said d.
nah
But you see it spills all over the drawer
Laws yes if missis will 90 tumbhn things
all un SO, it,wll- Mssis hses szlt lots dat NJ
way said Dinah, coming uneasily to the
drawers. If misss only viii 20 up stairs Gil
rly cihfin up time comes, iii have everything
right: but can't do nothn when ladies is round
henderin. You, Sam, don't you GIT the baby
dat ar sugar bowl I'll crack We over if We
don't mind
"Pm going through the kitchen, and going
to put everything in order, once Dinah, and
then III expect you to keep it 500
"Lor, now! miss Phelia dat ar amt no way
for ladies to do. | never did see ladies dom no
SIGH; my old missis nor Miss Marie never did,
and don't see no kinder need ont and Dinah
stalked Indignantly about while Miss Ophelia
piled and sorted dishes emptied dozens of scat
tering bowls of sugar into one receptacle sorted
napkins table-cloths and towels for washing;
washing, wiping and arranging with her own
hands, and with speed and alacrity which
perfectly amazed Dnah.
"Lor, now! if dat ar de way dem Northern
ladies do, dey amt ladies nohow,n she said to
some Of her satellites, when at safe hearing
distance. al has things as straight as anybody
when my clarin up time comes; but don't want
lad, d.. A
all where can't find EN-"
To do Dinah justice, she had at irregular
periods paroxysms Of reformation and arrange
ment, which she called "clarin up times" when
she would begin with great zeal, and turn every
drawer and closet wrong side outward on to the
floor or tables and make the ordinary confusion
seven-fold more confounded Then she would
light her pipe and leisurey 70 over her ar
rangements, looking things over, and discours-
ing upon them; making oil the young fry scour
| most vigorously ON the tin things, and keeping
up for several hours most energetic state OF
confusion, which she would explain to the salts
! ia0vvn Vt ali inquirers, by the remark that she
was "elarin up" "She couldn't hev things
a gwine on so as they had been. and she was
gwine to make these yer young ones keep better
order" for Dinah herself somehow, INDUCED
the illusion that she herself was the soul of or
der, and it was only the young unS and the
everybody else in the house that were the cause
of anything that fell short of perfection in this
respect When all the tins were secured, and
the tables scrubbed snowy white, and every
thing that could offend tucked out of sight in
holes and corners Dinah would dress herself up
in smart dress, clean apron, and high brilliant
Madras turban, and tell all maraudng "young
uns" to keep out of the kitchen, for she was
gwine to have things kept nice. Indeed, these
periodic seasons were often an inconvenience to
the whole household, for Dinah would contract
such an immoderate attachment to her secured
tin as to insist upon it that it shouldn't be used
again for any possible purpose---at least till the
ardor Of the "clarin upn period abated
Miss Opholia, in n few days, thoroughly re-
formed every department of the house to a sys-
tematic pattern; but her labors in oil depart
ments that depended on the cooperation of SER
wants were like those of Sysiphus the Danaides.
In despair she one day appealed to St Clare.
There is no such thing as getting anything
like system in this family"
ITO be sure there isn't" said ST. Clare.
"Such shiftless management such waste
such confusion, never saw"
II dare say you didn't"
"You would not take it 30 cooly if you were
housekeepern
My dear cousin, you may as well under
stand; once for all, that we masters are divided
into two classes, oppressors and oppressed. We
who are good natured and hate severity mske
up our minds to a good deal of inconvenience.
IL we wiH keep a stumbling, loose, untaught
set in the community, for our convenience, why
we must take the consequence Some rare
cases have seen Of persons, who, by peculiar
tact, can produce order and system without Sc
verify; but Pm not one of them--and 80 | made
up my mind long ago TO lot things 90 just rs
they do. will not have the poor devils thrash
cd and cut to pieces and they know it-and, of
course, they know the staff is in their own
hands,
Bat to have no time no place, no order,
oil going on in this shiftless way F."
My dear Vermont you natives up by tho
North Pole set an extrayagant value on timel
What on earth is the use Of time TO fellow
who has twice as much Of il as he knows what
10 do with As 10 order and system, where
there is nothing to be done but 10 lounge ON
the sofa and read-an hour sooner or later in
breakfast OF dinner isn't of much account
Now, there's Dnah gets you capital dinner
soup, ragout, roast fowl, dessert, ice creams and
all, and she creates il all out OF chaos and old
night down there, in that kitchen, and think
il really sublime, the way she manages But
Heaven bless us if we are to go down there,
and view all the smoking and squatting about,
and hurryscurryation of the preparatory pro
cess we should never eat more My good
cousin, absolye yourself from that! it's mora
than Catholic penance, and does no more good
You'll only lose your own temper and utterly
confound Dinah. Let her go her own Way
"But Augustine, you don't know how found
things"
Don't +! Don't know that the rolng.pn
is under her bed, and the nutmeg Crater in her
pocket with her tobacco-that there are sixty
hvedAerent sugar-bowls, one in every hole in tho