The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1869-10-22
Eayesdropping.

KATY was a pretty little girl with a
slender graceful figure, and long iaxen
ringlets. 7-rfr>
She was sweet and affectionate too, so
that strangers were always pleased with
her, and remarked what lovely child she
was. M Fsb
say strangers, because Katy soon be-
came tiresome, she asked so many ques-
| tions.
If any member of the family came in
with package. she would not be satisfied
| till she found out what was in it, where
| it came from, and what was to be done
with it. ~7 -.... .
If any one opened the front door to go
out, Katy would begin, Where you GO
ing? When are you coming back May
1 go with your" ~ 9- tesrs
This, you see, was very troublesome and
impertinent; but this was not the worst
thing she did. She would sometimes
hide away and listen to what people were
saying, when she knew it was not for her
to hear.
A lady came to call on her mother, one
day, and after remarking that it was very
cold and wet, and that she thought it was
going to be hot and dry; that the frost
had killed their beans and a hawk stolen
one of their chickens; she said something
else in low voice, which Katy did not
hear. Then her mother SAID to her, You
may run down stairs, my dear, now, and
play with the other children"
Katy went out and shut the door, but
she knew very well that she was sent
away, because the lady had something to
say, and she was very curious to know
what it could be. So what did she do
but put her ear to the key-hole and lis
ten? 50 ase
At first she could not distinguish a
word, then she caught the sound of her
own name, next that of Molly Gibbs, and
then the words School" and Beaver
Pond"
She pieced it all together, and this is
what she made of it, "Molly Gibbs has
been telling tales out of school, that's GER
tain; she's mean girl and I'll let her
know that think so; 1 don't see what
Beaver Pond has to do with it, though"
Then she pressed her ear closer to the
key-hole.
Pretty soon she heard her brother Mi
chael calling her from the foot OF the
stairs.
To answer would be to betray herself,
so she thought she would steal away, but
something held her back, and to her dis
may she found she had shut two or three
of her long curls in the door.
Still her brother kept calling Katy,
Katy"
What if her mother should hear and
open the chamber door?
Katy had pair Of scissors IN her hand
with which she had been cutting paper
dolls She might cut off her curls, and
run away-but, o, to part with her hair,
it seemed almost as bad as losing her head,
for Katy was very proud of her curls.
"Where ON earth are you, Katy q
screamed Michael, running up the stairs.
Snip went the scissors, and off came two
of her curls; but she was not free yet,
for two more were fast in the door, and
there was Michael at the other end of
the hall.
40, ho, Miss Curiosity" shouted he.
"caught at last Came Alice, come, Mol
ly, come all of you-come and see Pau
Pry" liz .....
katy's mother fastened to the door, fol-
lowed by the visitor, and the children
came running UP stairs to see ewhat all thi
noise was about.
There stood poor Katy, ready to sink
through the floor with modification.
$50 to your room," said her mother,
"and / will come to you presently, and
you, children, run back to your play
again"
If Katy was mortified to be caught
she was still more so when
her mother told her that the lady wished
to speak to her privately because she was
planning picnic at Beaver Pond, which
She intended should be pleasant surprise
4
She had chosen Wednesday afternoon for
it, because there would be no school
Katy was allowed to go to the picnic,
but it afforded her very little pleasure.
1t had been necessary to sacrifice all her
curls to match the side she had distgured,
and this was constant reminder Of her
fault Or if she did forget for moment,
it was recalled by Michael, who would lay
his hand on her shorn locks, and remark,
" Sly Reynard lost his tail in the trap
Youths COMPANION.