The Union and eastern journal. [volume] (Biddeford [Me.]) 1854-1858, 1855-12-21
Misfrllnnrnns.
From hs oAio Farmer.
MAGGIE MEALS ALBUM QUILT.
And how il was Finished.
DY HELEN l.. BosTwicE.


"willyou have another slice Of pudding,
Josiahl"
"No, ma'am"
"Anolher baked apple ~
"No, thank you, m,,hsr, I've fsiShed
my dinner" Aud the young man TO prove
his assertion placed the handle Of his knife
and fork side by side on his plate, and rose
from the table.
"well, then, If you've finished, want
YOU to make n good fire in the front room.
The girls are coming this afternoon, TO
Quilt, and i, won't do to have numb fin
gers. Ge, the room warmed up ifyou can,
by one o'clock, Josiah. declare It's hall
past twelve now.' And Grandma Neal
piled up the plates. and hurried them to
the sink, as il she feared she might no, be
able 10 take quito as many stitches on The
qui, as the girls, who were to come ut
I" one o'clock, precisely"
"Will they gel of this afternoon, moth
eI!"
What the quilt oh no, 10 bc sure
not. There's two full half days work TO bo
done ai,er 10 day. But you know Deacon
Bates does no, star, for The Wes, until Mon
day, so we have plenty of time. Let me
,hink.n And Grandma Neal actually paus.
ed in wipins green edged platter, TO fix
upon the days that could hes, be devoted TO
the completion of the quilt; ",hc everlas'-
ing quilt" as Josiah laughingly termed it,
ale, me see, tomorrow is Tuesday, and
can get the ironing done by noon easily
enough, so there's one afternoon for it,
Wednesday is Sewing Society, and on Fri
day there's Temperance Lecture. saiur-
day always brings hurying work; so TO-
morrow and Thursday must DO the day.
And Josiah, you may invite the young fol.
lows 10 come in Thursday evening, il you
like. The girls will be glad Of a little play
and they've earned it, dear knows, on tha,
piece OF fancy patchwork"
Josiah soon had bright fire blazing on
the parlor hearth and the good old lady
after hurrying her dishes into the cupboard,
and brushing up the crumbs, was in the
oct Of tying on figured alpaca apron,
when the street gate was heard to open and
shut with very unusual clany. In a mo-
men, has,y feet pa,tered up the walk, and
the front door opening, admitted whole
avalanche Of mirth aud mischief, in the
shape Of dozen blooming girls, Of ages
ranging from fourteen to twenty.
How they laughed and chartered! 7! How
they trOoped to the "spare bedroom,"
throwing of their bOnne's and cages, and
smoothing their hair with incredible dis
patch; and then walking out 10 the quilt,
now they scru,inized It all about, declaring
that here was a long stitch, and there was
an end sticking up, and certainly Grandma
Neal had been at il in their absence, for
they never did such things" Of course"
And Grandma Neal, putting on her spec
iacles assured them tha, she had no, touch
cd the quilt since they left !, the Friday be-
fore, and moreover, IL she had, !, was very
impairment in them TO charge their blunders
upon an old woman, who had quilted nine.
teen quilts and seven comiortables before
they were ever born! And then with
much laughter anil hunting for ,himbles
aud between needles, and with sly glances
a, Josiah, who had come into the room os-
tensibly 10 see iflhe fire burned, and they
all sat down industiiously 10 work.
"Now IL our dear Maggy could only look
in upon US all so comfortable" sighed
Grandma Neal, and well she might say
=. our dear Mag gie," for truly the absent
one, for whose benefit they were assembled,
had been, ever since the day Of her orphan
ed childhood, the pride and darling of the
whole village. Adopted by her grand
parents when but lille more than an in
iani, had she not also been adopted by the
minister's vile, the DOCTORS wife, the Squire's
wife, and particularly by whole host Of
farmers wives, who counted her rs one Of
their own family in "sugar time" In "cher.
ry time" and bes, ofall, in "nu,tins time ~
Had she not endeared herself expressly TO
the old people, by her elastic spirits, and
her miraculous knack OF finding lost spec
iacles and knitting works aud as she grew
older, did no, the childreu all but adore her
for her inexhauslible fund of stories, espec-
tally Chicken Little foolish chicken, who
thought the sky was falling, because rose
leaf fell on her tail A, for the young men,