The south-western. [volume] (Shreveport, La.) 1852-1870, 1866-10-31
The Little Stranger.

e ron /: he had vast fund oil numOT, anu yer.
ready wit, and with little children, particularly
lie loved to chat familiarly, and draw then
t out AS he was one day passing into tn,
S house, he was accosted by very little boy
who asked him if he wanted any sauce, mean
: ing vegetables. The doctor inquired if sucl
7 a tiny thing was market man. No, sir
my father is. was the prompt answer.
! The doctor said /" Bringm me in some squash
es, and passed into the house, sending ou
; the change. In few moments the child re-
! turned, bringing back part of the change. The
doctor told him he was welcome to it but the
child would not take it back, saying bis father
would blame him. Such strange manners in
a child attracted his attention, and he began to
examine the boy attentyely; he was evidently
poor his jacket was pieced and patched with
every kind of cloth, and his trousers darned
with so many colors that it was difficult TO tell
the original fabric, but scrupulously neat and
clean withal. The boy very quietly endured
the scrutiny Of the doctor, while holding him
at arms length and examining his face At
last he said:
'sYou seem a nice little boy won't yeg
come and live with me and be adoctor?''
I" Yes, sir" said the child.
"Spoke like man." said the doctor, pat
ting his head as he dismissed him.
A few weeks passed on, when one day jim
j came to say there was a little boy with bun
die down stairs waiting to see the doctor, and
would not tell his business to any one else
Send him up" was the answer; and in a
4 few moments he recognised the boy Of the
souashes, but no squash himself, as we shall
see. He was dressed in NEW, though coarse
suit of clothes, and bis hair very nicely combed,
his shoes brushed up, and little bundle, tied
/ in a homespun checked handkerchief, on his
arm. Deliberately taking off his hat, and
I LAYING it down with his bundle, be walked up
to the doctor saying
Il have come, sir"
" Come for what, my child ?"
To live with you and be a DOCTOR" said
4 the child, with the utmost naivette.
/ The first impulse ofthe doctor was to laugh
/ ir7moderately, but the imperturable gravity Of
the little thing rather sobered him, as he re-
called, too, his former conversation, and he
vowed lie never felt so perplexed in his life
Attic time he felt be needed no addition to
his family.
"Did your father consent your coming 90
he asked
+ /" Yes, SIR"
"What did he say 30,
81 told him that you wanted me to come
and live with you and be doctor; and he
said you were a very good man, and might
come as soon as my clothes were ready"
And your mother, what did she say -
:" She said Dr. Byron would do just what he
said he would and God had provided for me"
/ 3" And" said he, al have on new suit of
Clothes" surveying himself, and here is
another in the bundle, !" undoing the handker
chief and displaying them, with two shirts,
white as snow, and a couple of neat checked
aprons, so carefully folded it was plain none
/ but a mother would have done it. The sensi-
bilites of the doctor were awakened to see the
fearless undoubting trust with which the poor
couple had bestowed their child upon him, and
such child. His cogitations were not long !;
he thought of Moses in the bulrushes, aban-
doned to providence and above all, he thought
of the child that was carried into Egypt, and
that the divine Saviour had said BLESSED
be little Children and he called for the wife
Of his bosom, saying, Susan, dear, | think we
pray in church that God will have mercy upon
all young children"
ITO be sure we do" said his wondering
wife, "'and what then 2
And the Saviour said, 'Whosoever re-
ceveth such one little child in my name, re
ceiveth me- take this child in his name, and
take care of him" And from that hour this
good couple received him to their hearts and
home It did not then occur to them that one
I of the most eminent physicians and best men
/ of the age stood before them in the person of
4 that child 1t did not occur to them that this
/ little creature thus thrown upon their charity
was destined to be their staff and stay in de-
clining age a protector and more than son
to themselves. All this was then unrevealed
but they cheerfuIly received the child they be-
/ lieved Providence had committed to their care,
and if ever bene6cence was rewarded, it was
in this instance. Family Circle.
The SuoRr DREss.-A fashion writer, dat
4 ing from Paris, SAYS of the g short dress
This is the greatest novelty of the season.
It remains to be seen whether it will find
the same favor in the eyes of the Ameri-
can ladies that it has already in the eyes Of
\ the Parisiennes
The principal objection to it here will be
that it is only designed for the street, and is
not graceful in the house this, in our opinion,
4 is a recommendation. One of the faults of
our style of dressing is its mixed character
1 its want Of distinctiYeness, and adaptation to
Y separate uses.
Half the women wear the same dress in the
street that they wear in the drawing room
sometimes trailing, sometimes caught up with
some one of the half-dozen contrIvances for
raising ladies' dresses, but either way inevita-
bly, sporting it. A neat short dress, similar to
the modes we have seen, is surely a great i'm
provement on this method Or, rather, want Of
method, and is not only convenient, but in
quiet colors with accurately fitting gloves, and
handsome dark bottines, is immensely becom-
ing to all but very tall women.
The most useful Scotch dresses are made Of
Scotch winsey the skirt gored and cut out in
vandykes, or trimmed with several rows o.
narrow Jet braid over petticoat stimulated by
! deep braid Of the same material, put upon
twilled cotton, and finished round the bottom
with fat quilting or pIeating, put on with a
broader braid than that upon the upper skirt
The body is not cut in one with the skirt but
has lite polka attached, which is cut out in
short, square appels, and bound with GALLON