Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1871-06-22

or limb, sor the shouting ana gesllc1-4tirg
were wild and furious
Aunt Jen.-Oa, Aunt Je1, look
Just look !"
Aunt Jem did look-gt the broken back
fence, leveled cErrsl.-b1shes. 1afened
flower beds. and last Il the front yard.
whore reposed the cause o. al the Ills
chief-ihe large Dillssone.
1T comeS tumbIiag tie hill right down
on 10 or back yard, sid soine Of The fence
WIS there besides the e1rrzoi- bushes, and
Rob AID me we yelled. you'd better be
level" lucidly explained iae astonashed
Teddy.
III mercy You we're not killed" be
ysn Aunt Jerns trembling lips: but Rob
INTERRUPTED her with another vocif.ro1s
aOh, look, and pointed 70 brisk bon
fire that YVES springing up in front o.
them. Jemims's bleaching apparatus had
been overturned, and the Goals enptied
out Of the pan had set the barrel in q
blaze. A bucket or two Of water soon
ertingl1ished the FIRE: but alas for the bon
net, Il was wofully blackened instead OF
wbitened, and burned beyond all pos
sibility Of making over.
The group gathered about the ruins in
dismsy. for the children were quick 10
detect the look of trouble in Aunt Jem's
face. and even they understood the case
well enough TO know that articles
DESTROYED were not always easily replaced
"No one hunt, / hope," said voice
Just beside them-a manly voice, though a
trife hurried and anxious.
Jemima looked up, met the kindly,
questioning glance Of a pair Of blue eyes,
and recognized Mr.. Barclay. She started
a little, not having noticed his approach,
but she answered, promptly, No, Sir no
one nurt in the least
Really, don't know how such an ac-
cident could have happened" he remark
ed, a. If even yet bewildered by the af-
fair. "There must have been some care
lessness In loading the stone, | suppose ;
for when we were part way up the hill. the
wagon tilted little, and the stone slipped
off and came crashing down. It's force
vas mostly spent before it reached your
place, but l see it has done damage
enough as it Isl" and swift, comprehen-
siye glance swept fuwer-beds and broken
bushes.
"Hothing very serious-nothing but
what little labor will make right again, !"
courageously and politely responded Miss
Jemims, noticing the direction his e7es
had taken.
"No, it won't" interposed Master Ted
dy; "'cause Aunt Jem's bonnet what she
had bleachin' in the barrel is all burned
up. II was goin' 10 be her Sundayest one,
too an now she can't go to meetin' nor
nothin'; only I'll lend you my hat, Aust
Jem.
"Hush, hush, Teddy" whispered Aunt
Jem, pressing the little white hand that
slid into hers, in appreciation Of the offer
ed sympathy, though her face grew sud
denly rosy, and it required some effort to
betray no discomposure. No, sir;
there's not much harm done. ! am thank
full IL is no worse.
So am l. Some one might have been
killed by 1t, he answered, gravely steal
ing curious glance at the charred barrel,
and bordering Teddy's re-
mark. Not very well versed in millinery
matters was Cade Barclay. A sister he
had never had, and his mother had been
dead nearly a year. Where the neat, Qua,
ker like bOnncts she had worn during her
life time came from it never had occurred
70 him To inquire but he felt tolerably
out Of barrel In the back yard. He
knew that there were places where such
articles were sold, and fancied that most
ladies bought them. Brewing them at
home, in barrels, over fire, struck him as
rather an original plan, and he strongly
suspected, Teddy's lament taken into &C.
count, that it indicated shortness of
funds He was very sorry for the mis-
chief his rolling stone had caused, and this
particular part Of 1t seemed the most diff
cult TO remedy
"You must let me compensate as far as
possibly for the trouble l have caused
YOU" he began; but Miss Jemima so
quickly and decidedly declared the injury
of no consequence that there was nothing
more TO be said His honest heart was
still peplexing itself over the problem
when small specimen Of the canine race
presented itself to view, and Teddy caught
IL up
"This Is my dog; he come to live with
US without nobody askin' him. Aunt Jem
don't like him much cause he amt a
he's a rat terror"
"Ahl is heg" said Mr.. Barclay, becom-
ing suddenly interested. "Such an animal
is very useful about mill sometimes,
where there are great many rats and
mice. wouldn't mind giving you five
dollars for him, If you were willing to let
HIM go. Would you sell him for thats"
Eyes, SIR" answered Teddy, promptly
and bill was pressed into the little palm
and the dog transferred to its new owner
Miss Jemima viewed this proceeding
rather doubtfully; still, as she was not
consulted in the matter, and the gentle
man appeared as much interested in the
bargain as Teddy himself, she did not
quite see how TO interfere. The dog might
he valuable; she really did not know. Mr..
Barclay seemed wonderfully well satisfied
himself, aud held fast to his purchase
as if its were a rare prize, while he dis.
cussed with Miss Jemima the removal of
the ponderous ornament from the front
yard
"You will, at least, let me come and
help put this garden into order again." he
said ms he turned away--a proposition she
could not readily have declined, even If
he had given her chance to do so, which
he did not.
"Now, Aunt Jem, now you can have
bonnet; and not an old smoked one,
either" said Teddy.
And Aunt Jem did have new bonnet
a pretty white chip, with fresh, spring
like green ribbons, that it seemed posi-
tive luxury for her to put on. You would
think a respectable bonnet could scarcely