Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1869-12-02
Out in the Rain.

Vut x11 INV AesA AAss
Sprinkle! rain! shower! right
down Mile Warmers tasteful hat
and graceful shoulders, unprotected
save by thin shawl, notwithstand-
ing the beseeching glance of the
prettiest pairof eyes that ever looked
up to cloud in that way.
When Mile came to large white
farm house, she very gladly, and
rather hastily-for just then there
was a heavy peal Of thunder-opened
the gate and went up the fiower-bor-
dered path tothe house, and knocked
for admittance. Nobody answered.;
and as another peal of thunder was
heard, accompanied by vivid fash
Of lightning, Miliie entered without
ceremony. She took in at a glance
the contents of the room she came to
"a large square room plainly but
neatly furnished--the cane-seated
chairs, the pretty chintz-covered
lounge, book case filed with books
and sheet music; the violin in the
corner, the vase Of faded flowers, and
the ornaments on the mantle. There
was no one there; but she heard a
childish voice in the next room, and
again knocked. A dark-eyed girl Of
ten or eleven opened the door.
Mile explained why she was
there. With theease and good man.
ners of one much older, the child
babe her welcome, placed chair
near the stove, and took Miles
dripping hat and shawl.
II was just beginning to get din
ner, and that was the reason didn't
hear you knock. 1t will be a long
time before the shower is over; and
you must stay with us to dinner.
1t will be ready by the time Ben
comes; but that will not be for an
hour"
"Es, dinnie'll be weddy when Ben
tums," Iisped and laughed a little
girl of three years.
The older child, whose name was
Hetty, resumed:
~ can't get a very good dinner; l
amt quite old enough; but Ben says
/ do nicely. He puts it on for me,
and / see to it; but he does not allow
me to lift off kettles, for fear that l
will burn or scald myself; but l
think am large enough to do that.
/ like to have everything ready for
him when he comes in tired and
hungry. / can't make Biscuit
wish could, for Ben likes them ever
so much; but Martha, who comes in
to make bread for us, says she will
teach me-"
G"Where is your mother?" asked
Mile of little Eva, when Hetty was
out of the room.
"We got no mudder but Ben"
the little one lisped.
When Hctty came back, Mile
said:
"Now have got nicely warmed,
and my dress will dry as we'll at
work as sitting still; SO l will help
you get dinner. If you like, will
make some biscuit, and we will have
dinner ready in very short time"
Hetty was delighted. Ben would
be glad. Might she not look on and
learn how?
Mile was young, and frank, and
gay; and she and the children soon
became very well acquainted over
the biscuit. She said presently, try
ing potato with a fork:
1.-THE potatoes are done. / will
pour the water off, SO, then put them
on to dry. That will make them
mealy. In a few minutes we will
peel them, and then dinner will be
all ready except taking it up"
The dinner seemed very meager to
little Hetty, as she ran over the items
in her mind: potatoes, peas, pork,
biscuits, butter, cucumbers, milk,
and water. She had wanted to make
tea for her visitor, but she declined
decidedly. The poor child apologet-
ically said:
"When father and mother were
alive we used to have good many
tGhGfos dinner. and Martha, our
hired girl, used to get them all; but
when they died, and Squire Johns
said he bought a mortgage on our
farm, and that we had got to pay
every cent the day it was due or lose
everything, we had to do without a
good many things; and we are very
poor now, and Ben is afraid we can't
get enough to pay it; and they oil say
we may look for no mercy from
Squire Johns, for he is q very hard
man to the poor; and he always
wapted pux farm, because it joins his
own where he wants to bnild. J