The Lancaster gazette. [volume] (Lancaster, Ohio) 1863-1886, 1870-01-13

tinte, while now your stitches are
all standing in u crooked row, and
bal yonr seams arc yet TO bsi fin.
iShbdf O. 500 V13 ODD Jaua
- Yes,"said Lofty, and she look
edsso thoroughly sorry and asbam
ed that the fairy must have no !
ientedg for he cried quite chccrily,
rWeli, well what's done cant be
undouo, but one can try TO do BET.
ter. Come, now, if you and / were
to take hold togetherI / think you
might finish your work and have a
whole hour tO'yourself before dir
ner."J @. fIi 80 StgU 9Hl tl
D yThank you very much; but III
wonder how you ares9oing to help
me, Mr. what is fyour name ?"
stammeredi Lefty. oJ blgJx
80 qtNeger mind my name | dare
say you conldn!t pronounce it,
But l am one Of the thimble fair
ies--bpve you never heard Of them2I
--agdiI live in your thimble, as
tad you. III isa very idle sort oi
life that / live compared with
somo Of my brothers and sisters. =
Do you remember that day when
you went to play at hide End seek
with your cousins in the barn {?
Your thimble was on your finger.
and you laid it off on the dusty
window sill, and while you were
gone careless mouse on his way
to the grarary whisked il off in a
.trice Itrolled away on the floor
and lodged in crevice, and there
it staid all summer, until one day
when Jake was sweeping the floor
for the thrashers and saw it shin
ing amongIthe straw. Those were
the longest months [ ever knew
| never thought to come out to the
light again. 'ru3.'a3 i.
"You spoke of your brothers and
sisters" said Lefty; ARE there
many Of you?" q r7 e a
20, yes" said the fairy. "more
than you could count. We have
not quite SO much to do as before
sewing machines came into fash
ion; but there are many thousands
of us. especially in the great cities,
who are still very hard workers.
But we only help ,riliing fingers
you know" with a sly glance at
Lefty which sent tho blood into
her,cheeks. IA little tap with the
mallet just at the right moment
sends the needle quite through,
and the working fingers never
know that they have aEy help but
their owr.!' Tn h3dsigIDj 9G
"How funnyp' cried Letty.In o
if"We sometimes see very sad
sights" tho fairy went on. "0ne
of my brothers lived with a poor
widow in New York. She had
one wretched room Z up six flights
of stairs; with no pure air, and
hardly light enough to sew BY,
even at MONDAY. She had one
little curly,headed boy, just as
sweet as your own littlotb brother.
o. how willingly themother work
ed to buy bread for the little rosy
MONTH She and the fairy got on
bravely for time; but by and by
sickness came. Tho fairy mallet
pushed and raped, but the poor,
willinglfngers could scarcely hold
the needle. Tho rent was unpaid,
and there was no fire, and often
nothing 10 put into the baby's
mouth. q Ono day the work tell
quite down upon the floor, and
whom the baby climbed up and
put put his hand on his mothers $
face he cried because it was SO
cold.n- . ID boa .l III jrau
"Was she asleep?' asked Lofty.
"She was dead.'t l.rrat elt io -
"And the baby2" sobbed Lofty.
''The baby" answered the fairy,
twas found by kind ,alady from
the Mission. She madehim warm
clothes, and gave him good food,
and found a. home for him with
some good people who learned to
loveIhim dearly. The little boy
goes to your school now" mei
10, L khow!' cried Lefty, "it is
Willie Ray" fsr os 'e
Tho fairy nodded, and some-
thing pulled hard at LcLty's dress.
She gave great start and rubbed
her eyes. There was nobody
there but Rover, who sat looking
up into her face, waggiDg his busby
tail and making queer little jerks
with his long ears. Ono of her
spools had rolled away in the
grass. There were teeth marks on
IL, and the thread, was soilcd and
tangled. ~ The clock in the church
tower was striking ton, r, a, 4,
"Ov' said Lefty, drawing a long
breath, II thought it was halt an
hour agol" sy,r sga .u
Her little gold thimblo had drop
ped from her finger and lay shining
in the little basket Lofty was al
most afraid to- touch it. She look
ed inside carefully before she put
it on, There was nothing there. %
At eleven, o'clock the. patch
work was done. Lefty had never
| sewed any seams so neatly before
Perhaps the fairy helped. 'I1
CONVERSATION DYING 81
eihlH OUT. 'Lrt aHa
What is becoming of converse
tionf ihquiring minds are begin.
ming to ask. 1t is to be classed
among the lost arts OF which Wen
dell Philips discOurscsP Certainly
society is every day growing less
and less capable Of conversation
more and more wearisome to itself