The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1853-06-30
For the National Era.
A STORY FOR CHILDREN.
BY ALICE CAREY.
i

Not far from my fathers house there lived a
family of the name of Flagg--well-to-do people
they were, owning the most land and having
the finest house in the neighborhood
We used to see Mr.. Flagg driving in his fine
carriage towards the city very often, and never
without going in the house TO tell Of it, for i,
gave us pleasure to see his shining carriage
and horses; and sometimes he said some pleas
ant thing to us, and this we were sure to TO
late word for word
Julia and John Flagg, of the ages Of about
ten and twelve years, were all the children Of
their parents and had been so much INDUCED
and petted they were good deal spoiled. But
of this by and by. One morning in the spring,
as we were trimming the liacs in the front
yard, we saw the white faces of Mr. Flaggs
bay horses coming over the bill. We left our
work, and went nearer the gate to weed the
pinks, so that we might see and speak with
him. He drove more slowly than was his GUS
TOM and passed by without once looking to-
ward us. Mrs Flagg sat beside him, wearing
black silk gown and a long Grape veil
We wondered a great deal about where they
were going, and why Mrs. Flagg wore the
black veil but after all the maryeling we
were none the wiser and after while in
trimming the lilacs and Strengthening the sod
in the edges of the walks we forgot all about
| them. But at sunset when we came out with
our watering. pots to freshen the pinks we had
| that morning transplanted, we again saw the
white faces Of the well.known bay horses COM
ing past the clover-feld alta brisk trot.
Mr.. Flagg bowed to us this time, rather sol.
emuly we thought. and Mrs. Flagg had put by
| to US while she spoke to a little boy sitting be
side her, who peered at us very curiously. il
| loh ,, H.. w.
were almost sure that he had not been in tn,
carriage in the morning; 20 we fell to guessing
and at last concluded that he was some poo
boy whom they had overtaken and asked Il
ride
. A day or two after this, however, as we wer
, going to the woods for wild flowers to ador
I the door-yard, we saw John Flagg and anothe
| boy cutting rn-st0cksi in the field that ad ioine
ours; or rather John Flagg was sitting on tn
fence and the other boy w@ cutting the corn
! stalks All about the woods we went, digging
up the wild fowers-spotted adder's tongue
and blue and white and yellow volets, anc
purple and striped.eaved plants, of which W,
knew not the names. AT last, our baskets
were full, and our hands too; and under the
MONDAY sun we went homeward--not forget
ting to look into Mr.. FIagg's fields again. The
strange boy was still at work, and we could
see that he wore no shoes and that in all re-
spects he was shabbily dressed.
John was nowhere to be seen, nor were VIC
for all our observations any the wiser, but we
were shortly to learn something of the lad that
would add to the interest We already felt in
him. As we were planting our flowers along
the front walk, and asking each other whether
Il were likely they would ever grow-for the
stocks were wilted, and the wild leaves that had
been used TO the deep shade hong timber and
lifeless--our attention was suddenly arrested
by the clicking OF the gate-atch, and, looking
up, we saw Aunt Caty Martin coming in. We
were delighted and didn't care much whether
oar flowers grew or not for it was not often
that visiters came to our house, and, Of all that
did come, we liked Aunt Caty best. And here
| may Us we'll say that she was not our aunt ut
all, nor any relation OF ours that know Of We
called her aunt, because she had taught US to
do 60 and because we liked her as we'll as il
she had been our aunt. IL was scarcely one
o'clock but we were not fashionable folks in
our neighborhood, and it was not ut ell unc0m.
mon for visiters to come ut that early hour 30
o. | said, we forgot our flowers, and ran to
open the gate aud to assist her 10 carry her
work into the house, for she had brought moth.
log less than little wheel, and two or three
knots of flax to be spun during the afternoon.
Leaving you to imagine the ceremony of her
getting into the house--of getting off her black
silk shawl and black straw bonnet, windiss
the dstaf with fax and getting to work on
the north porch-l will say something about
/ who she was and where she lived-make you
acquainted with her, as It were.
She was widow lady who had cmigrated
from one of the Northern States TO our neigh.
IL
having died and left her nothing but an old
horse and a COW, few poor articles of house
hold furniture, and three helpless children. II
was rumored about that she was none Tho
worse off for his death--that he drank up every
thing ne could get and always had jug full
Of whskey, whether his wife had any tea OF
not know not how true this may be but
do know that never heard Aunt Caty lamen
heard her say piddsrs were sometimes better
of than wiyesl This proves nothing, to b
sure, but it seems a supposition in favor Of tn,
was, he died, and left his widow about ~ pool
a. poor can be but she was not a woman t.
give up and say she could do nothing. and tina
there was nobody in the world TO help her Oh
care for her--not She This she knew woult
do no good, and was the very way to MAKE
people unwilling To help her, and to lesseI
their interest. "The way to get helpers" salt
Aunt Csty, "is to help ourselves; and who
our neghbors smell our ham boiling they viii
send US ono Of theirs, that We may SEQ whic
IL best2
| And, acting upon this notion, she satherc
together what little she had, and made YER
due--reservng only coiIoo-pot and fs,
dishes, and tho old horse.
She had always lived in little rented house
with garden attached, and from selling tn
vegetables and butter tho family had been pre-
yided Cor.
1 II owned the house and garden, though
Aunt Csty | could get along and bring "
} my children nicely. Bat to save money enoug
J 10 buy them, was out of the question so tn