Randolph County journal. [volume] (Winchester, Randolph County, Ind.) 1855-1862, 1858-03-11
TOO LITTLE TO COME.


OH it was such a delicious day in /
June. The birds sang till the air was
fairly vocal with their melody, and all
the green trees nodded their head with !
appreciation The very brooks seemed
to have the general inspiration, and
danced along through the meadows as
if keeping time to a quickstep of the
fairies.
Annette Summers and had been
invited to spend the half-holiday with
our scloo'mate. Kate Harrington
Deacon Harrington's oldfashioned,
brown house, fronted toward the
South. Behind it stretched broad,
green meadow, and still further back
was densely wooded activity, famous
for flowers and berries in the geography
Of every child in Ryefcld. l used to
love to look at Deacon Harrington's
old brown house, even in those carly
days, when | had not single well-de-
fined notion of artistic skill in my
early head. / know that il combined
to an eminent degree the elements of
the picturesque. The low roof, which
sloped backward nearly to the ground,
was gray with moss. Ivy crept about
the windows, and over the rustic porch
had climbed twining roses, along with
heavy clusters of trumpet creepcrs.
There was rude seat at the door
way, made of the little boughs of the
white birch, twisted together in fan
tastic fashion, and here grandmother
Harrington was wont to sit, with her
gray wooden knitting work Oh. what
treat we used to think it to spend
half-holiday with Kate Harrington.
Il wish l were you, Kate" ex-
claimed Annette, after we had spent
half the long summer afternoon chas-
ing butterflies, and arranging veget
able baby house, with hollyhocks for
our ladies' parasols, and teapots man
ufactured out OF vicrtable poppy pods.
Il wish l were you, and then l could
be happy all day long, with nothing
to trouble me-"
"You could, could you?" and Kate's
cheeks flushed as she put away from
them her heavy bands of black hair;
"you think so, and that's all you know
about it. / have a thousand things to
vex me. There is Rose, for instance.
Mother expects me to be constantly
taking care of her, and she the greatest
little torment you ever saw. by the
way, girls, let's start after those
strawberries in the wood, now she is
out Of sight for minute, SO she won't
tease to go with US"
We were halfway across the mead
ow, when we heard sweet voice cry
ing
"Please, sister Kate, Rose wants to
go, too"
turned around, / remember, and
thought how beautiful was the little
creature coming towards us. She was
very unlike her sister Kate. Kate was
a brunette, but the little white-robed
figure tripping across the meadow had
pale, spiritual face, and long curls of
golden hair falling to her tiny waist.
There was a flush on her cheek, and a
look of eager, beseeching interest in
her large blue eyes: and she stretched
her dimpled arms towards us, and kept
crying in her earnestness:
please, girls, wait for Rose"
\ look of vexation crossed Kate
face, and she called out in tone Of ex
treme irritability:
"Go back, Rose, you're too little to
come! Go back go back''
Kate always had a way of being
minded, and the little one put her fin
gers to her nose, and silently turned
towards the house. We hurried on
in the direction of the wood, without
giving single glance backward. l
think Kate's conscience rcproached
her for selfishnes, and know my own
pleasure was spoiled for the afternoon.
We found plenty of strawberries, red
and ripe, among their beds of leaves.
There were little blue-eyed blossoms,
too, that kept reminding me of Rose,
and was not sorry when the sunset
shadows heightened, to go home.
We had gone down the hill out of
the wood, and crossed several rods of
the meadow land, when Kate said, in
a hoarse whisper
"See there, girls, what is that white
thing by the brook? Do you see it?"
We saw it and hurried towards it.
1t was Rose. AT first we thought she
was dead. Scarcely seemed the faint
est breath to steal from her parted
lips, and the pulsations of her heart
were so weak you could scarcely feel
them She was in trance-like sleep.
1t was some time before we succeeded
in waking her, and then her limbs
seemed chilled and stiffened by the
subtle dampness of the meadow land
atmosphere. She could not stand
How many times that afternoon the
little darling had begged of us to
make chair for her with our hands,
and we had answered that we couldn't
stop. We made one now. She twin
ed her dimpled arms about our neeks,
and held OH very tight; but she didn't
speak, except once, and then she only
said, Amt l most big enough, sister
kate?"
Mrs. Harrington met US at the door,
with look of alarm.
"Good Heavens, Katel" she ex-
claimed, whats the matter with
Rose9" And taking her from our
arms, she discovered that her clothes
were almost saturated with moisture.
kate, child. why don't you speak,
Has Rose been In the water?'
mo, ma am, but she went into the
meadow and got to sleep, and we
found her there sleeping" = = =