Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1871-06-23
BRATTIEBORO FRIDAY.

and yet again her little explanation, and
certain learminglod with the curiosity with
which she anticipated the "comng man."
And ho came very often indeed, the y,
M. and Q. being road of many divisions
and changes. No one less than civil on
the whole; but Aunt Sue was accustomed
to moro than bare civility, and her eye,
sharpened by wounded amour propre not
ed overy slight token of SURPRISE doubt,
Or scutiny, and found them infinitely an
noying, though TO more experienced
tramp thoy would doubtless have seemed
less than nothing. .-..
And now a raging desire TO buy seized
upon her, r,i,orn OF the fact that she lacked
the moans0f buying. The route was a IA
miliar one, Often before had she passed
over IL, and found its temptations in the
way Of popcorn, seed cakes, and maya
znos by no means irresistible. Now she
longod for them ali. She studied the out
side of the prize package thrown into
hor lap, and fairly hankcrod for twenty
a. >pnts With which 20 test the delusive
''Srssc ora possible one-dollar green
Back within, not to mention attractive ar
ticlos of jewolry' and unlimited station
cry. If she could only buy it and there
was one-dolar grcenback inside, then,
she thought, she should be able TO give
something TO the hurdy-gurdy man, the
harmonica boy, and the little cripple who.
punctual as Fate, boarded the train. She
had never wished to assist these worthless
before that she could remomber-but now
Ip a al
eliminating so nicely between the sexes,
and always saying "thank you ma'am,'
and "'thank you, sir" in the right places.
lie, too, ought to have something. Worst
trial of all came in the Springfield depot.
The train, for the first and only occasion on
record was exactly on time. Sniils and sa-
vors of unutterable fragrance breathed
from the kitchen of the neghboring Mas
sasoit. Aunt Sue felt herself dying of
hunger; there was twenty-five minutes to
spare, and not Il c.umb to be had
Twenty-Five minutes Nothing was left
but to sit in the car, and await the last of
the conductors and, thought she, "Mr.
lansing said his note would be of no use
ON the branch road, SO no doubt I shall
have dreadful time. Still, if the worst
comes to the worst, | could walk twenty
five miles
But when this august parsonage made
his appearance Aunt Sue gave a deep sigh
of relief Her lips almost relaxed into a
whistle Of surprise and joy. "Bless me"
she said aloud "iis Tommy Bliss = Tom
had, in the days of his youth, been a schol-
ar in the Bunbrook Sunday school, and
Miss p, his quandam teacher, had no
fears that her ex-scholar would prove less
amcnablc to influence NOW than in the days
of Westminster Catechism and Second
Question book.
IIei. authorizations were confirmed. From
this point on she was treated like prime
ess and by eight o'clock, slowed safely in
a hack by the devoted Tommy, she was
driving homcward through the Bunbroke
streets, murky with November fog. Ar
rived and welcomed, she plunged at once
a. an exclamation OF her difficulty.
",somc Of you must lend me half dol
lar" she said, "to pay this man with. |
haven't penny, because | lost my purse
this morning tickets and all"
'fIIow did You Get on p asked her sister
in-law.
avery niccly--thanks to the politencss
of the conducting fraternity. Half a dol
lar, please, James"
"Tick, instead of ticket, laughed James,
as he searched his pockot-book.
"What was that you said, Aunt Sue?"
asked younger Susic-namesakc and IA
vorite-- who was turning over the bundles
on the table.
~ said my purse was lost, pet"
"Why, no, it isn't" rciuined Susie; and
from inside the buc-lincd muf, i'm the de-
spised red bag, she drew forth the verita-
BILE purse which had been the cause of so
much adventure.
Aunt Sue dropped into chair. at re-
ally - she gasped at was there all the
time and what lies have told Oh that
fatal muifr'
"But didn't you look for the purse ?"
"Of course-but not in the muff How
could suppose 1t was there? | never used
it and forgot its existence entirely. l sup
pose those girls will never have done
laughing at me but | shall always say ii
was their own fault. If they had not in
fictcd that wretchcd slit which they call IA
'muflT upon me, il is evident l couldn't
have mislad my purse thus. But, after
ALL" she went on, turning over her long
strip OF uncut tickets, I'm rather glad
that / t happened, and l shall just inclose
these to that good Mr., Lansing, and thank
him over again. don't believe there is
any country in the world but this whore a
lady would be so beautifully taken care of
by every body as l have been, or where,
upon the whole, so much kindness is
shown to unprotected females who travel
about and need assistance"
In this belief Aunt Sue rests 10 this day.