Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1868-10-03


doned by an Irish family, and which she
felicitously baptized Rory o More. This
cat one day crept into the oven. Mary,
ignorant of the fact, shut the door,
stifed new" she opened it,
and out few the cat and plunged
through the house outside into the near
est snow-bank, from whence she emerged,
with true Irish elasticity, right end up,
and as good as new. The third cat little
Mary housed was perfect savage, her
mistress never being able to catch sight
of her save iif her fierce and lightning
like transits through the house. These
cats fought each other, scratched and
made the fur fly, stole chickens, and gave
that zest and excitement to her childish
days which might well astonish our city
prisoned urchiHs-shut up with cross
French nurse, to keep their silk dresses
clean, in nursery, from whose windows
the only view is dead brick wall.
"Then she rode to mill ia an old wagon,
with mammoth wheels, painted green
outside, and drab within, with movable
seat, on which was placed buffalo.robe
for cushion After little Mary had
taken her seat, the wagon was backed up
to the gate, the 'tailboard' let down,
and huge bags of tow-cloth filled with
shelled corn we're placed in the cart to be
ground, then transformed into johnny
cakes, brown bread and Indian pudding.
As they were put beside her, this i'm.
aginative, little girl fancied that they
might resemble those of Joseph's breth-
rem, mentioned in the Bible, which were
carried down into Egypt, with plenty Of
room in every sacks mouth for silver
cup and corn money.
when all these bags were safely de-
posted in the mill, and little Mary and
the old horse started for home, who was
happier than she ? The rough gates
which opened to let them through, seemed
to turn on golden hinges. Her quick eye
noted the branches of feathery fern, the
painting cows, standing knee.deep in the
cool water, and even the stagnant pool
which she knew would by and by blossom
forth with pure white lilies; while the
yellow blossoms of the barberry hedge
would ripen to crimson clusters in the
crisp days of the coming autumn; this
barberry bush, around which she Joined
hands with her little romping companions,
and sang:
"As we go round the bar berry BUSH.
The barberry, barberry, barberry bush;
As we go round the barberry bush,
SO early in the morning.; A
This is the way we wash our clothes,
We wash. we wash, we wash our clothes;
This is the way we wash clothes,
So early in the morning. y } A3 NaF
"Then Mary and her companions
would initiate the washing Of clothes and
the ironing, and woe to her who should
first lose breath in dsingit.
"Then there were the lovely New
England country Sundays, heralded by
the song of birds, and odor of blossoms,
and creeping away of mist from valley
and mountain, as the warm sun glad.
dened every living thing. Every New
Highlander knows what that is without
further preface.
"Sundsys to little Mary, under these
were not prisons or chains
They were best clothes, with pleasant
clovery smell in them when they were
day was baked beans, and big, red
Bible with the tower of Babel in it full of |
little bells, aud lovely walk two miles |
through a lane full of sweetness and !
bird singing; over the bars, through ten
acres, over another pair of bars, by
mill, over wall, through another
meadow, through the woods, over the
ridge by Black Pond, over fence,
across railroad, over another fence,
through a pasture, through the long
woods, through another gate, out upon
he high road at last
Then, as our little girl was no dis
sased, embyro saint, during the long ser.
vice which she could not understand,
she looked at the people and the fine
around her, and never was she
wiling to stay at home, be the service
ever so long. Then she went to Sunday
'chool, where the children on coming out
lsed to say: 81 think your ribbon is
orettier than mine" I" Is your vail like
susy's2" "Why don't you wear your
,lue dress to meeting p "Doyou know
Toe got fourteen perch yesterday ?" Aud
he read the library books and ate gin,
.erbrcad in the interim, and then came
he afternoon service, and then the long,
pleasant ride home, and then the ca.e-
,hism in the evening, and the unfailing
zig red Bible. IH
"To-dsy Gail Hamilton is not only
In thought and expression,
ut, i am happy to say, in pocket She
5 also living, breathing, brilliant refu-
alton Of the absurd notion that woman
nth brains must necessarily be ignorant
{, or disdsin, the everyday domestic vir-
ues. When she writes Of housekeeping
nd kindred matters, she knows what she
talking about All the New England
irtues Of thrift, execsiiveness, thorough
short, faculfy-are exempli6ed
4 her daily practice. Well may there be
unshine inside her house; vel may The
overs in her garden bloom and the
-uits ripen, skillfully tended By such
ngersl
zone piece Of sdvice before I close /
ill volunteer TO the male sex Who desire
, keep clear Of a woman like that Let
len consider Il heaveB-ssnt impulse
. several rash eenilemen, Who, to my
ersonRl knowledge, disrsgArdsd i, have
ith base iugrstifude towards The tame
{ her species Who fully indorsed their
.raphic qualities, not only upon per
,nal acqasintance With her forgiven her
q emitting them on one cheek, but vol- 4
= Il ]