Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1866-04-13
Nj isccIIany. .
ORR " LIDDY LIZER."
A no ESTIC 7 Al Z

D q VI r - ! I a l. =
She was christencd Lydia Eliza, I believe,
but II couldn't be expected that human be-
ings could take the trouble Of pronounclng
those two hard names hundred times
dav and the natural consequence was that
she was always called Lildy Lizer. and al
ways called herself so and tie fact ought
TO be warning 10 al poor people not to
take airs when they name th IT children -
As for LiddY Lizer herself, -hc neysr took
any airs-I'll say that FIR Hcr but then
yog sre. she had no reason 20. took her out
1i the r.lr house. " Zen Nr- lrab lelt tins
wicked world. and ! drought Of taking a
lcw select h01rdcrs. went % the po0r-house
and adopted Liddv Lizer- chose her be-
cause she lo ktd the healtai,siand smartest.
II / had known how smart size was, d
never had any thing 70 do with her, You
may derend on that : but | never knew any
good to come ot those charity children
never. Pen could NOT tell ail did for that
Girl She was bound 60 me until she was
eighteen. and / felt IL uy duty. She al
ways wore two aprons that covered her from
her chm TO her toes. and uice, thick cow
hide boots. and all winter | gave her two
nights a week at evening school, and never
allowed lNE 10 tHAANuAl littffate Nt AAANAAN0c
no. that is not on my conscience. have
had that girl up al five IN the morning
scrubblng the steps, when they iroze beneath
her brush, before she was twelve years
old.
The only fault had to find with her was
that she was too pretty ivr her position
Charity Children have 10 right to he hand
some in that way i don't mind healthy red
cheeks and chubby shoulders, but Llddy Ii
ger grew up tall and fair, with great blue
ewes and golden curls, Il cut them on as
close as / could 10 her head thought and
was better looking than my Arannta, who
was Just her age-or would have been, II l
had dressed them alike. Bat You see kept
my Araminta always dressed like doll, and
put her her hair in papers every night, and
never let her soil her hands. and ! had her
taught to play the piano, and for bade her
the kitchen-for meant to bring her up
lady.
As for Liddy Lizer. you heard her name
all over the house a hundred times day. /
wanted her, cook wanted her, Araminta
wanted her. and every boarder in turn need
cd Liddy Lizer. When sac found time to
cro,~ | don't know, but grow she did. l
knew tb.,t by her two aprons. She was
head taller n. 40 Araminta by the time she
was sixteen ~. /. 70 own the truth, she
booked like a Young lady when she wore
her pink print to church "a Sunday
That Christmas had a NV ooarderLa "a
very rich gent.eman-n0t very 'ung ouS
very good-looking and stylish He ~ahleu
q quiet home, and Furnished some ap art
nents on the first floor with his own band
some things, and raIi well and promptlv,
which the bOarders didn't all do. won
dered il he was bachelor.
looked at my Aramina, dressed in
scarlet and black, with her hair braided at
the back and fastened with a gold comb.
The girl had a bewltehing way, like her
mother when she was young; and l lay
awake dreaming. though my eyes were wide
open, all night, about being mother-ln-law to
Mr. Ashton. Yes the truth was, had made
up my mind that my Araminta should DC
his wife. The dear girl promised to do her
best, and dress her prettiest and, certainly
when / was almost driven wild with duns
from dry-goods stores every daY of my life,
she ought 10 have had q sufficient wardrobe.
And that is the way Liddy Lizer was press
ed into service, and put on her pink calico
and sat up in the back-parior stitching al
day for she was handy with her needle
and Araminta detested sewing.
Matters began finely for. as Aramints
told me, while they were sewing Mr.. Ash
ton tapped at the door, and. when 70
course5 she asked him in, sat talking to he
for twJ hours.
The next day, and the next, he came also
and read to her poetry, and sentimental
poetry at that and | said to Araminta:
:. | never saw one come on quite SO fast
my dear. Your pa was three months get
ting to that.